The mission of Loyola is to serve others. Service learning is a big part of that. There are so many people and places in the community around us that could benefit greatly from students help. It is also just as beneficial for the student because it is a great opportunity and it feels great knowing that you are helping. 
This semester I will be doing service with Tunbridge Elementary School. While I haven't started yet I have been lucky enough that as an elementary education major I have been able to do service in other schools through field work. I know how rewarding it can be for both the teachers and me. Having an extra hand to help in the classroom can make a big difference. I have picked this school hoping that I can get more experience in schools, but also because I think it is extra beneficial to work with students of young ages. Last semester I was in a pre-k classroom and four year olds can be quite rowdy. One time that I was in the classroom one of the students was quite upset because he could not write his sentence as well as the kid sitting next to him. I was able to calm him down and help his to construct the sentence letter by letter. In that moment I didn't realize how important that was. It wasn't until the later weeks that I realized that in that moment I had formed a unique connection with that student. 
In this book Phil Kaye talks about how his parents got divorced when he was quite young. I don't remember myself much when I was that young, but I was able to experience that age when I was in the Pre-K classroom. In the story Kaye talks about how he has a different relationship with each of his grandfathers because they are experiencing different things. Kaye realizes that his American grandfather was one of the soldiers that was sent to destroy his Japanese grandfathers home. Kayes entire family has conflicting relationships with each other, but that seems to be what bonds them. The Japanese side of him and the jewish side of him have both experienced discrimination at some point in history. While at first glance it may seem like this pair could never work, in a way it makes sense. These two sides can understand each other even if they don't make that connection at first. Their language is very different but their pasts connect them. 
Also in the pre-k classroom that I was in last semester was a little girl who didn't speak english. When I started helping in the classroom at the beginning of the year she would not be able to follow directions because she could not understand what was being asked of her. Her classmates also weren't really sure how to interact with her. By one of the last weeks that I was there, the little girl was able to pick up the basics of what she needed to do as well as she was able to play with the other kids as if there was never a time where this wasn't possible.
This connects to the first part of the book where Kayes mother would speak Japanese to him when he was little. When this little girl would be picked up at the end of the day, her mother would be speaking spanish to her. Unlike in the story their traditions stayed in tact. While the language barrier can be a hard thing to over come, it is important to know and to appreciate where you come from. In the story Kaye realized how important that was when at holidays with family his grandmother was upset to find out that Kaye's younger sister did not know Japanese. Being different should be encouraged, not frowned upon.