I don’t think one can really determine who benefited more from the 2+2=5 service learning program, the Bentley Students or the children. I can’t say how much of an impact Bentley Students have had on an individual student. It all depends on how much the children wanted to take away from the program. The more the children put into the program the more they got out of it.

            As for me, I got a lot out of the 2+2=5 service learning component. For example I know a major benefit form the program was it enriched my problem solving and critical thinking skills. When working with kids one has to be able to think on their feet. Everything doesn’t always run as smoothly as you would like it to. Regardless of how much preparation you may have put into the activity beforehand, you can never predict what the kids will do with it. They may finish an activity you thought would take them the whole block in ten minutes or vice versa, an activity you thought they would be able to complete in ten minutes takes up the whole block. What do you do then? You have to use your critical thinking skills to figure something out to keep the children occupied for the remainder of the time. You have to learn to be flexible and patient with the children. These skills are critical in the real world after college. Especially in my case where I’m looking into management as a major. I know I will need to have problem solving abilities, patience and flexibility. The service learning activity also deepens the understanding of individual and collective roles in social action. What I mean by this is you learn everyone has a different personality and approach to things. Some people are leaders and like to take charge of an activity, some are shy and just follow what the other kids are doing and never really get their input in, and some always challenge your authority. Learning how to deal with each and every single personality type will also be carried into the real world. I learned your personality may clash with another personality type, but that’s life. You won’t get along with everyone. You have to learn to deal with these people in a civil manner and get the task at hand accomplished. By watching 5^th grades being able to brush little negative things off said by their teammates makes you realize you can’t hold grudges and let minor things hold you back from whether it be building a newspaper bridge or something greater. By doing so you realize you become civically and community minded.