Homework Club

The intersection of the communities of Grace Church and La Capilla is a special thing--one of the things that drew me to become a member of Grace Episcopal less than a year ago. It's rare for two congregations--separated by miles, languages, and even culture--to share fellowship and ministry, but it is deeply enriching for all of us who are lucky enough to be a part of it.

Lately, my biggest involvement at La Capilla has been the after-school homework club held twice a week at the church. Kids start trickling in after school lets out, and before long, the room is full of activity. Math worksheets, spelling lists, and reading are the most common, but occasionally a big project comes along--last week, Leslie got help with her shadow box project for history class.

Even when they don't have homework, the kids show up anyway. We've been collecting quite a stack of games, from Hi Ho Cherry-Oh for the little ones to spelling, math, and memory games for the big kids.  I have to confess, I got royally crushed in Toy Story Memory the other day by Maite, who has an uncanny knack for spatial recall. While the other kids and I were trying to decide whether or not we had seen that Buzz Lightyear card somewhere on the grid before, she calmly leaned across the table and flipped it over, then found the original, and added both cards to her stack with a satisfied smile. By the end of the game, she was giving us all hints. "That one? Oh, it's over here--somewhere in THIS area"--with a wide sweeping gesture across the cards. For my part, it didn't help. I still lost soundly.

We're having a good time, though--getting to know the kids as their personalities and individual gifts come out more and more. I for one will be a little disappointed when school lets out for the summer--but fall will come soon enough. And in the meantime, we'll have Adventure Club to keep us busy. But those are stories for another day...