My work with Qais began influencing how I thought about support beyond one tutoring relationship.
This week, we practiced sentence reading and number comparison through scaffolded activities and read-along books. The experience helped inspire the methods and values behind my student-led initiative, soop the buddy.
“One relationship can teach us how to build more thoughtful systems of support.”
Qais compared groups and numbers using greater-than and less-than concepts. We began with visible quantities and introduced the symbols only after he understood which group had more or fewer objects.
For literacy, I brought read-along versions of Kung Fu Panda and Ice Age. Familiar images helped him follow the story, anticipate words, and remain engaged. Longer tasks were divided into small steps so that success remained within reach.
As I reflected on the first twelve weeks, I saw how visual communication, sensory tools, predictable routines, and patient scaffolding had supported his growth. These strategies could also benefit other displaced and neurodivergent children when adapted to their individual needs.
Qais did not become a model to copy. He taught me to begin every mentoring relationship by observing the individual child.
- Organization: City Hope Community, Clarkston, Georgia
- Student: Qais, an eight-year-old Afghan refugee
- Starting point: No prior English literacy, limited verbal communication, heightened alertness, and significant distress around sudden loud sounds