After being a senior for a marking period, I can definitely say being a senior is the best thing ever! Not only can I take fun classes like Journalism or Robotics, I also get the privilege of taking TAPS.
For those of you unfamiliar with TAPS it stands for Teacher Apprentice Program. TAPS is a class you can only take senior year and you essentially become an intern for teachers in the school. Are you interested in Business then you can become an assistant of a business teacher at Colonia high school? Maybe you’re into Computers then you can become the TAPS student for a computers class. However, it doesn’t stop there because if you’re planning on becoming a teacher for younger children, you can go to elementary schools in Woodbridge Township and help out teachers there.
If you’ve ever considered becoming a teacher, especially for younger students then you should definitely take TAPS for elementary schools. For the first couple days you might feel a little uncomfortable being around a lot of kids who don’t know why you are there but once they warm up to you teaching becomes a lot of fun. However, being a TAPS teacher does have some drab parts, like when you get a stack of papers to grade or you have to organize stacks of paper. TAPS may not be a good experience if you do not like children, are excessively shy or lack patience.
TAPS is a very enjoyable and fun experience. I know it’s very tempting to take senior leave your senior year but I think TAPS is a better class for a few good reasons. The most obvious one is that you don’t lose any rank or credit despite not being in school. If you take TAPS you still get out at 12:30 and you don’t even have to report to your school until 1:00. That still gives you time to go get lunch or relax for a little bit. Lastly, you get to give back and help others. The small children at the elementary school really look up to you. If you do TAPS at the high school, you can look after the students in your class in the cafeteria or in the hallways.
You’re going to have a lot fun if you take TAPS, and I highly recommend taking it. The first day I arrived to my elementary classroom I was a little nervous but now I look forward to it. Whether we are playing games, reading to them or making little projects I leave with a smile. It surprised me how fun being a teacher could be. TAPS isn’t for everyone, but if you think you can handle it, you should really consider it for your senior year.
