O'Brien freshman Ray Witalis of Shelton works with Prendergast fourth-grader Janeliz Diaz in the school courtyard.
New Haven Register photos by Peter Casolino
Over the years I've attended many events that involve high school students interacting with the older generation, either at senior citizen centers or nursing facilities.
On Monday I covered a different kind of inter-generational program: Emmett O'Brien Technical High School school students acting as role models for fourth graders at John G. Prendergast Elementary School in Ansonia.
Although the teens are not that much older than the elementary schoolchildren - they were approximately five years apart - there is a world of difference in their perspectives.
One fourth-grade girl told me she liked learning how the high schoolers "do their jobs." And one of the O'Brien freshmen said he enjoyed seeing the smiles on the Prendergast pupils' faces.
It's good to see teenagers enjoying their interaction with younger children who see them as so much more experienced and worthy of their attention.
