Anytime I tell people I want to work with kids in my career, I always get a puzzled look and a "Really?" Yes, really. No, I don't want to be a teacher at all. I just want to work with kids because it's something I feel passionately about. Impacting a child's life is something no one can take away from me.
1. To see the look of admiration on a child's face directed at you is heartwarming.
Teaching a child something, helping them understand something, or simply engaging with them about whatever they're talking about will create this admirations for you in their eyes. It makes you feel like you are the most wonderful and incredible person ever especially to this little boy or girl. They'll hold on to that admiration longer than you realize so it's something that will keep your heart warm as long as that child knows you.
2. Kids are innocent.
They don't know all the evils of the world yet. They don't know the horrors that we, as adults, have seen and witnessed. They repeat almost everything they hear but they have no knowledge of what it means (usually swear words). For me, it reminds me of the pureness and innocence they possess and it makes it easier to ignore the terrible things constantly going on in the world.
3. They want to be just like you.
Kids ALWAYS want to be like the adult in their life. So if they're at summer camp or whatever, they'll want to be like you. They'll try to talk like you, stand like you, just be like you. In their eyes, you're cool and everything they want to be. They'll shadow you and even when it's a bit annoying, it's not something you want to react negatively to because they mean well. It kind of falls into the previous one. They're innocent and they just admire those around them.
4. Kids laugh.
Something that goes away too much as people get older is laughter. Kids laugh. They make you laugh. And they have no inhibitions to stop them from laughing. They're enjoying life because they have no reason not to.
5. It gives you a reason to be a kid again.
Whether it's playing tag in the most lighthearted way or playing silly games, it's easier to do when you're playing against kids. You can goof around with them and nothings too serious which, as an adult, is hard to come by.
6. You can teach them a valuable lesson.
Sometimes, kids fight and they get their feelings hurt. As an adult, it's our job to fix it in some way. Often, that means taking someone aside and explaining what they did wrong. At first, you'll probably get tears because kids cry if they get in trouble, then they'll want to know what they did wrong. Explaining why their words can hurt someone (hopefully) sticks with them so they don't do it again and they may look at things differently.
7. Kids are the future.
We were all kids once. We all grow up. So even if you don't like them, they're going to be the ones taking care of us when we're old. They deserve to have people set examples for them and make their lives feel full of love, happiness and acceptance. That's our jobs as adults who work with kids (or have kids of your own). They have to grow up too one day, just like we did. They should have the knowledge, respect and love that we were taught. It's only fair we help them receive that.
Working with kids is rewarding no matter what level you work with them. Impacting their life is something that will stay with you. Their innocence deserves to be maintained as long as possible and their giggles deserve to be heard for their entire life. Helping them achieve that is something no one can take away.
