This job is not the first time I have ever done a computer class for senior citizens. Each time I do it I realize how amazing a computer is, how complicated it is to use, how much hand coordination it takes to use a mouse or touchpad, how many procedures there are to working computer programs, and how difficult it is to navigate the Internet. It is almost incomprehensible and therefore not easy to explain to any first time users (but especially those with memory challenges). Plus seniors are more often comfortable with steps rather than protocols and using a computer, with pop-up reminders and error messages, is not a step-by-step event.
I like the computer class most because it helps new people relate the things they hear about so often with the machine that makes them. The first class I taught was to a charity assisted living on a donated computer shared by the entire building. One of my pupils came in and said, "I would like to see MySpace. I don't want to start MySpace, mind you, I just want to look at what all the fuss it about." So we saw what all the fuss was about and I explained the basics of a social network. The next question I could not answer, "Why would someone want to put all that information for others to see?"
One of the selfish reasons I love my job is that interacting with residents gives me a unique perspective on our culture. Conversations can turn into a magnifying glass of the past and I understand so much without needing to study history.
Conversely spending time with children is like a telescope into the future. Today we visited a daycare class of 15 4-year olds and it blew me away. When one had a question about my sugar glider that I couldn't answer, they suggested I look it up on my phone. I didn't waste time trying to explain that my phone doesn't have Internet on it because when they are adults all phone probably will come with it as a standard.
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