学进去

Online study can be hard. Zech Hipp was doing it with great difficulty. Zech is 15 years old. He lives in Seattle, Washington, with his four brothers and his mother.

“It’s hard to stay focused,” he said. “I can’t stay focused on one thing at a time.” Zech has gotten some helpful advice from his “Big Brother” Owen Kim. Kim is 33 years old. He is Zech’s mentor through a program. The program is called Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound.

A mentor is someone who gives help and advice. Kim and Zech often text, talk over the phone and even video call. Kim gave Zech some advice about how to stay focused while doing school at home. Kim suggests picking one space and always doing your work there. “Make that space as comfortable as possible,” he said.

In his room, Zech set up a cubby（小房间）.He has a place where he can make tea. This was Kim’s idea. Here, Zech said he is more separated from everybody else in the house. That’s where he does schoolwork.

Kim and Zech have been Big Brother and Little Brother for four years. They used to meet once a week. They would walk through the city or play video games. In spring 2020, COVID-19 started spreading. Kim and Zech had to stop meeting up in person. The illness spreads easily between people. Now, they only communicate over the phone or video call.

Kim is older than Zech. He has had different life experiences. When they talk, Kim can give Zech a different point of view about life. Zech said this is helpful. Kim said its been a great thing for him, too. He said Zech has been a wonderful addition to his life.

“Owen’s always there,” Zech’s mother said. All of her boys have had Big Brothers or Big Sisters. “It has done such wonders for our family,” she said. “Just having them in our lives has been such a blessing.”