Photo By Master Sgt. Kap Kim | Sgt. Maj. Michael Aycock, 1st Cavalry Division (Rear Detachment) sergeant major,...... read more read more
KILLEEN, Texas — It was meant to be a week of career exploration and for the most part, it was.
Kim Reid, a Timber Ridge Elementary School kindergarten teacher hosted a week of different career specialists from people who work in pest control to a cultural dancer.
"I wanted them to learn about the people in the community and how they interact and just to see what they do," she said.
Yet, as many of her young students have parents in the Army stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, it seemed "appropriate" to ask a Soldier to come and speak about the profession, Reid said.
One of her students, 5-year-old Aliyah Aycock, has a father who is the 1st Cavalry Division's Rear Detachment command sergeant major. As the senior, enlisted advisor to the commander, one of Sgt. Maj. Michael Aycock's job duties is to make sure that enlisted members' issues and concerns are always kept in mind.
However, due to their age, Aycock chose not to spend his time speaking about his daily duties as the division's sergeant major, and decided to speak to the children about something he feels is the single most important thing to all Soldiers: the values in which they live by.
"The reason I chose the army values is because I wanted to talk to them about the values in life and I think the army values or needed as a soldier or a civilian," Aycock, of Clinton, N.C., said. "I believe that the children would be more interesting in learning and retaining the Army values because that's what the Soldiers live by and most of the children's parents are Soldiers."
Before his presentation, Aycock passed out the Army Values Card with a description of each value: Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless-Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. He had the kindergarteners read each of the values, and then they all discussed examples in their own lives.
Aycock said he hoped that by learning the Army values, that each student who has a parent in the Army could learn something about what their parent.
"If the children understand what values are and the type of values their parents live by, I think their lives at home would be better, and they will understand more about why their parents do what they do."
Toward the end of the presentation, the students asked him various questions. One student asked the question, "Why do Soldiers do what they do?"
"We have to make sure you can do what you want to do ... and that no one can tell you that you can't do it ... unless, of course, it's your parents or the police," he told them with a chuckle as he added his disclaimer.
Aycock closed his visit with a video of what 1st Cav. Div. troopers do for people around the world. Then, he pleased his entire audience with free candy.
Yet, aside from candy, Aycock said what he hoped the children would understand was the importance of having good values in their lives.
"It does not matter who you are ... how young or how old. We must follow the values of life that are being taught to us by our parents, sisters, brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, preachers and etcetera," Aycock said. "We all have to have something to value in our lives that is geared toward giving to someone else and not just thinking of ourselves."
| Date Taken: | 05.11.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 05.11.2009 23:26 |
| Story ID: | 33492 |
| Location: | KILLEEN, US |
| Web Views: | 427 |
| Downloads: | 317 |
This work, 1st Cavalry Division Rear Detachment Command Sergeant Major teaches students lesson in values, by MSG Kap Kim, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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