Stories from Bigs

We have a lot of amazing Bigs that invest their time and resources into changing the life of a child. Here are some stories from these incredible individuals, as well as some creative ways they have found to reach their Littles.

“Me ‘n My Sister” – Submitted by Latifat, matched July 9, 2009

My experience thus far with Big Brothers Big Sisters has been a highly enriching one. I think my favorite parts are the ones where I impart knowledge without her knowing. Every time we spend together is an opportunity for her to learn and grow.
1. We started a reading regimen. Her house is on the way to the Library, so every time I pick her up we stop by the library and get about six books. This occurs at least once a week. My sister wants to be a lawyer when she grows up, so I let her know that continuous reading is an integral part to her success. Sometimes when we hang out at the library I have her read books to me then tell me about the book… what parts interested her and what parts did not.
2. Since I love imparting my knowledge I told my sister that I would like her to learn certain things from me — goals being a big priority. At the beginning of every school year I make a list of the goals I would like to achieve by the end of the school year… different categories, from spiritual to academics to social. I had my sister take a look at my school goals and suggested that she write her own on a big piece of construction paper. We went over each of her goals. Like getting along with her siblings. Then I’d suggest things that she could do to combat it. When I took her home we posted it on her wall so that she could see it every day and make her way towards it.
3. Sometimes I take her with me when I volunteer at Williams elementary. Volunteering has always been close to my heart, and I let her know that although she’s my sis, I’m still gonna go about my regular routine as far as volunteering.
4. Sometimes we go grocery shopping. We look through the fridge to see what is missing and needs to be purchased. I let her help me by writing the list down. She loves to push the cart so we don’t grocery shop as much, being that it takes twice as long. However, when we do grocery shop I look over her list, and we sound out the words and correct the words she missed. The next time we meet we take a mini list on the grocery list. We do this with each meeting until she finally gets all the words ( it’s only a few minutes out of our meeting time).
5. My sister and I also have occasional conversations on the phone. A particular one that caught my interest was one we had concerning money. She asked me why I couldn’t buy a certain item for her . I asked her if she knew where money came from. Then I proceeded to answer where money came from… What bank accounts are… Why we have bank accounts.. What type of bank accounts are available… Why there are cash registers in stores.. Where money comes from that goes into cash registers… etc.
6. My most recent experience occurred when I took my sister onto UF’s campus. We were to visit a museum. As we arrived on campus my sister asked if I was rich. I asked why. She said she thought that UF was a rich school and that you needed to be rich to go there. Therefore I proceeded to break it down for her. By no means did a person have to be rich to attend ANY college they wanted to. What you do need are good SAT scores and good grades in school. With some additional extracurricular activities you can be here. I explained it all. And in the end she asked if I thought she could attend UF… my answer: OF COURSE!
7. The  most recent thing we have begun to try is an introduction to surprise events. My sister and I compiled a list of things we wanted to do with each other.. going to the mall, movies, etc. We listed each thing on a single sheet of paper. Then we placed it into a hat. We each week one of us will remove a sheet of paper and that will be our activity for the day.