Volunteer of the Month: March 2016

Congrats to our March Volunteer of the Month, Grace Hunter! Read our interview with Grace here:

What first brought you to Big Class? 
I heard about Big Class from people at 826 Valencia in San Francisco
What keeps you coming back?
The stories keep me coming back! I look forward to hearing or reading all about what happened in someone’s beautiful brain that day. The students’ process their worlds in such phenomenally creative ways.
What are some skills you have that help you out at Big Class?
Listening intently has served me well at Big Class, being a solid sounding board for any and all ideas seems to be the most useful skill I have to offer. 
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced at Big Class?
The biggest challenge that I have had to deal with while volunteering for Big Class has been my own time management! Sometimes I get so excited as kids talk through their days it detracts from the time that needs to be spent putting those words down onto the page. 
What are some great projects  you’ve helped with? Tell us the story behind them if you can.
Some of my favorite projects have come out of the Big Class workshops. I was particularly a fan of Monster Lab. One of the students from Akili showed up. Sometimes shifting the social setting of a classroom can lend to more engagement with the assignment. At the workshop, I was blown away by how many details Jacob crammed into his story. Everything from a glowing red eye to a harrowing backstory that made me sympathize with his spooky monster. The project produced pages of scary and fascinating monster tales and I was so happy to be a part of it.
What are you up to when you’re not volunteering with us?
Big Class is the best part of my week–who knew Tuesdays and Thursdays were something to look forward to! On the days in between, I am fixing my house, reading comics, and kayaking around the murky water.