A typical week for a VSP Participant

Virtual Service Pilot (VSP) Participants donate between 5 and 15 hours each week, collaborating online with partner organizations to complete short-term projects all while maintaining their own personal and professional commitments.

You may be wondering what an average week looks like as you consider expressing interest in a virtual engagement yourself. We asked Joyce, a VSP Participant who co-teaches a reading club online with a youth center in Georgia, to share a weekly rundown of how she juggles it all.

Monday

8:00-9:00 a.m.  I review my prepared notes and discussion prompts, and sometimes I re-read the assigned book chapter(s) as I eat my breakfast. This week, the reading club is discussing chapters 10 and 11 from Helen Keller’s “The Story of My Life.”

9:00-10:15 a.m. I join the recurring weekly virtual meeting at the time requested by the partner. Because I am working with a youth reading club, I confirm that at least one of four adult counterparts is present before starting a comprehension game or discussion questions. This time together serves as an opportunity for the students to practice their English-speaking skills and learn more about the United States. For instance, when Helen Keller visits the beach in chapter 10, we talked about ocean waves and our own beach experiences.

10:15-10:20 a.m. I document the donated hours and the number of students who attended this week’s session in my Activity Tracker. This spreadsheet acts like a diary of sorts, but it’s also how the Peace Corps will recognize my total number of donated hours at the end of my engagement.

After class I walk to one of my part-time jobs as a dog-walker.

Tuesday

In the morning, I teach English as a Second Language (ESL) to adults in my community.  Then I do my dog-walking part-time job.

3:00-4:00 p.m. I read the assigned chapters for next week and write down words—and their definitions—that may be difficult or new to the students. The reading club has a group chat that I post the difficult words and their definitions in.

When my grandchildren get home from school, I help them with their schoolwork, or we may walk to the library. I also often work in our backyard garden.

2:00-3:30 p.m. In the afternoon, I develop games or crossword puzzles that the reading club students can access via a free digital education communication platform. These activities help reinforce new vocabulary in an engaging way. Everyone learns in different ways, so I do my best to mix up the approaches I use.

3:30-4:30 p.m. I email up to 10 reading comprehension questions to my counterparts for feedback. After making any necessary edits on their end, one of the counterparts publishes these questions on the digital platform for students to practice their English writing skills.

Thursday

In the morning, I teach English as a Second language (ESL) to adults in my community.

2:00 – 3:00 p.m. I often research cultural topics that I can incorporate into our weekly discussions to meet Peace Corps’ goal 2: To help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served. For Women’s History Month in March, I highlighted the American Women Quarters Program, which commemorates the achievements of five notable women every year by releasing new quarters that feature their faces. I’ve also prepared materials on teen sleepovers, the Cherry Bossom Festival, and Iditarod sled dog races.

Friday

8:00-9:00 a.m. Every two weeks, my counterparts and I meet with Peace Corps Georgia staff to share how the collaborative project is going. It’s nice to have an opportunity to request support if we need it.

Saturday and Sunday

I get my engagement work done during the week to keep my weekends free for family time. This weekend though, I’m going to check out what new virtual engagements are available since the reading club will soon finish. If any of the engagements meet my skillset, I’ll express interest.

The reading club is my first time participating in VSP and I would like to support another ESL-related project once the club wraps up.

Want to find out more about the Virtual Service Pilot? Start here.