Saying Goodbye

Two mentors and their mentees share a goodbye group hug.

Well, it is hard to believe that school has ended for the year and our 8th grade mentors and mentees are now on their way to high school. It was a week filled with tearful goodbyes and heartfelt moments, and I am so very proud to have had the honor to educated these wonderful young people over the course of the past year. We spent our last week together packing up our room, presenting the amazing love cup projects, and attending some awesome events at Shaw Heights.

Hanging outside during 4th hour on the last day of school!

I am so grateful that our wonderful scholars helped me pack and move many of our classroom resources since I am still a bit sidelined with my broken foot. They were very diligent and organized as we worked to pack things up. We saved most of the art projects from the course of the year to put up a cool display for incoming students in the fall, and were able to secure some great new games from Mr. Diemand (Good luck in retirement! We will miss you!). Ms. Villavla also gave us some great new stuffed animals, cups, and other classroom supplies, for which we are always grateful.

Several of our mentors and mentees participated in the choir concert last Wednesday and in the talent show, which was last Thursday. It was great to see our scholars shining on stage, and I am proud of their bravery to stand before the school and to sing and dance. We also had several participants in the end of year volleyball game. Stacey, Advino, Jennifer, Hailey, and Andrea were on the team that advanced to the finals to play the teachers. Though they did not win, they did a great job working as a team and had some really strong moments.

All in all, it was a hard week, but one that fills me with pride as I reflect on all the great things we have done over the course of the past year. I sure will miss our YESS scholars over the next two months, but I look forward to meeting a new set of mentees in August. Have a great summer and take care!

One last group photo with 3rd hour.

Advino and I on the last day of school.

Love Cup & the YESS Celebration

The Shaw Heights crew after the ceremony at Westy High School.

Speakers rehearsing before the celebration began!

Support from our beloved Mrs. Villalva as we practiced was so essential to everyone's success!

What a week! I cannot put into words how proud I am of our YESS scholars and the support they showed one another during our end of year celebration last week. We had such a great turn out, and every one who came did a wonderful job of supporting those who were speaking. Our Shaw Heights scholars did a phenomenal job during their respected speeches last week, with a special shout out to Ryan Cassel, who gave a three minute speech about his success with his mentee, Caillou Allen. Ryan wrote a heartfelt speech that was incredibly mature and he managed to deliver it like a true pro! Our YESS speakers all arrived early and in time to rehearse with the microphone, and thanks to their hard work, all of our speakers moved fluidly through their lines. I am so happy to see how much our YESS scholars love our program and how deep their pride goes. It was evident at our celebration, and it was a great send off to all of our 8th grade mentors.

Last week we also did our final lesson on the "Love Cup." The love cup is a metaphor to better understand the things that fill you up with love and happiness, and the things that drain your cup and detract from your love and happiness. The lesson fits well with our recent discussions on self-love, positive affirmations, and ways to combat negative emotions. It has been great to see all the different takes on the "love cup," and we will be presenting them this week before the students leave for break.

A Love Cup from Erin Ballew.

A quick Shaw Heights selfie before the ceremony began!

It is so hard to believe we are in our last week of school--we will be working hard to pack and clean this week so that our room is set and ready come fall. Stay tuned for a final post next week detailing all of our awesome love cups! 

Love Thyself

Brainstorming about LOVE!

This past week we transitioned from speaking about stress to a discussion centered around self-love. We were excited to try a new lesson from the newest YESS curriculum entitled, "Love Thyself." This lesson fit in perfectly with our talks last week about the power of visualization and positive affirmations when needing to combat stress and overcome obstacles in life. We also finalized the slide show for our mentors in anticipation of our End of Year Celebration this Wednesday, May 17th at 6:30 at Westy High School. Several of our mentors have been selected to speak on Wednesday, and while they are certainly nervous, the pride is undeniable. We ended our week by visiting the Glow Show art installation on Friday and by playing some games together. Our mentors and mentees cannot wait for the celebration on Wednesday!

Student artwork depicting violence and nonviolence.

Tyler Parks did a wonderful job with his illustrations.

Our mentors and mentees really enjoyed doing the two day lesson on self-love. We watched two short videos, including a TedX talk on radical self-love. So many of our scholars suffer from self-doubt and anxiety as they navigate the transition from childhood into their teenage years, and this lesson really impacted them. They all noted that one comment in particular stuck with them after the Ted talk had finished: "If you were to talk to your friends the way you talk to yourself in your head, would they still want to be friends with you?"

Tyler's hard work on defining what love is, and is not, to him.

I think this really sums up the disparity in the way some of our mentors and mentees treat others yet are unable to treat themselves with the same love and compassion. We noted how it is hard to love and help others if we don't first and foremost love ourselves. We did a brainstorm on the board where we put all the things we associate with love inside the heart; those things that detract from our ability to love (either ourselves or others) we placed outside the heart. Each scholar then completed his or her own heart. We touched on the fact that we can find love in many places, and that we need to positively focus on these things as we know just how powerful positive thought can be.

We also discussed the Sanskrit term, "ahimsa," which means practicing compassion and nonviolence towards one's self and others. Our mentors and mentees worked on explaining the differences between violence and nonviolence, and each was asked to consider what obstacles, events, or behavior may for them trigger a violent reaction; awareness is the first step towards change, and so every scholar took time to contemplate this "line" and noted what they can do to remain nonviolent in these situations (we referred back to our lessons on combating stress and our seven habits for success).

Our mentors and mentees really valued the lesson on self-love and care, and we all felt empowered after our positive discussion on all the things that make us feel loved. Next week we will talk more about love as we do the "Love Cup" lesson. Stay tuned! 

Alyssa Wade's creative drawings from 3rd hour.

Yulianna and Ximena hanging out on a Friday afternoon.

Three of mentees from 3rd hour look for India on the map.

Stress!

3rd hour ladies  navigate the obstacle course.

A team from 7th hour moves through the course.

This past week in YESS we continued our talks about the future in discussing stress and the ways it can affect us. So many of our scholars have been feeling stressed lately, with PARCC  and CMAS testing and the end of the year now fast approaching. Mentors and mentees alike are working hard to ensure they have met all of the necessary learning targets in each class, though some are feeling overwhelmed with the stress of everything. We took some time this past week to talk about all the things that stress us out, what sort of physical, emotional, and behavioral changes might occur when we feel stressed, and what we can do to manage stress. We discussed the need for extra support and guidance during these stressful times. We also took some time to work on our end of year slide show and have been conducting ongoing interviews as we receive mentor applications. On Friday we ended our week with a special dance for all who worked hard during the three weeks of testing.

Andrea and Angelo work with me on their stress management plans.

Ava and Stacey enjoying a moment together as we work on the slide show,

Stress, like anger, is a hot topic for our scholars. It is so interesting to hear the different things that stress our scholars out and the way in which it affects each individual. We brainstormed out some things that cause us stress and got a great conversation going about the multitude of things that can cause one distress. I was proud of our mentees for really speaking up and not being afraid to admit what stressed them out--by this point in the year I can really notice a difference in their ability to voice their ideas in front of the class, which is wonderful. We had a wide range of issues, from politics and global warming to the simple but undeniable affect of a loved one being stressed out which, in turn, causes stress for others. We noted how stress can, like anger, affect us differently depending on the situation, our mindset, and even the time of day (many get more stressed out as they try and wake up and get ready in the morning!). We also discussed ways to combat stress (asking for help and open communication, getting enough sleep, exercise, and good nutrition, forming healthy relationships, making ESMART goals, and working on time management were just a few we came up with). I am very proud of honesty our mentors and mentees displayed as we talked about stress and completed our work sheet. We also did a great team builder where mentors and mentees worked together to get through a maze-- the catch being that the mentees could not see. We discussed how the extra support was necessary to make it through, and that sometimes when we are really stressed and feeling unsure about what to do next we need to try and reach out for help and extra support.

Enjoying the dance with two of my lady mentors!

The mentors have done a great job ensuring our slide show is ready for the end of year celebration on May 17th at Westy High School. They all had to choose a quote they liked, their future career choice(s), and what they liked most about YESS. Watching the slide show made me teary-eyed with pride as I prepare to say goodbye to my 8th grade mentors in just a few short weeks.

The amazing cards I received this past week!

On Friday we had a shortened schedule to accommodate for the dance we held outside in honor of all of those who worked hard during testing. Students also went around the school to deliver cards for Teacher Appreciation Day. I was stunned and so humbled to receive 59 cards from my students, along with a beautiful card specifically from a WEB leader named Pamela. It was an over-whelming outpouring of love, and I feel blessed that I have been able to affect these great young people in such a meaningful way. I had a blast hanging at the dance with some of my mentors, and am truly treasuring every day until we have to say goodbye.

EOY Preparations & YESS Breakfast

Ava interviews Ingrid during 3rd hour.

We are all so happy to have wrapped up our final week of testing last week at Shaw Heights. Our scholars have been working so hard these past three weeks, and now that testing is over they are itching for summer break to arrive. We spent the last week preparing for the end of the year by doing things such as starting the voting process for Mentor & Mentee of the year, hosting mentor interviews, and working on our slide show for the end of year celebration scheduled for Wednesday, May 17th at Westy High School. Preparing for the end of the year has many of our mentors feeling nostalgic (I must admit I find it hard that my 8th grade mentors will soon be leaving!). Yet, at the same time, there is a feeling of excitement for those who have decided to be mentors in the fall. We all had such a wonderful morning at the YESS breakfast on Thursday, and I am so honored to be working for an organization which has so clearly bettered the wider Denver community.

Conner interviews Jessiah during 4th hour.

On Monday the mentors and I had hosted interviews for potential candidates for the fall. The mentors prepared by choosing specific questions to ask and by discussing before hand the kind of answers we are looking for in a future mentor. We held the interviews all day long, and it was great to see our scholars using the knowledge we have learned recently regarding interviews and preparedness. I was impressed by several mentees for the level of sincerity and seriousness that they demonstrated during the process. It was certainly nerve-wracking for many and yet they remained professional and mature. I am pleased to say that 90% of our mentees wish to come back as mentors next year. I think this speaks volumes for the program and the desire of these young people to continue the cycle of support and care. We are in for some amazing new mentors come fall!

Ariana, Ava and I after I arrived back at school from the breakfast.

This past week we also began the voting process to select the mentor and mentee of the year. Each class was asked to think about one mentor and one mentee (they did not have to be a pair) whom they think has shown the most GROWTH in the following areas: respect, participation, organization, and attendance. I asked them to think about who had taken the knowledge from our lessons and was putting it work every day, all the time, every where. Since we have five YESS classes, we ended up with five finalists in each category. This week each class will have a chance to pick one of the five mentors, and one of the five mentees. We will present the mentor and mentee with an award at our end of year celebration. The finalists for the mentors are: Matt Garcia, Gio Ornelas, Brandon Bieske, Dejah-Monae Rosales, and Kiana Gerston, The finalists for mentees are: Hailey Tinney, Malachi Fernandez, Amanda Martinez Olivas, Kiki Lee, and Jordy Lopez Ontiveros.

The YESS breakfast was so moving and so well thought out--I couldn't have felt more proud as I listened to the young scholars from our high school programs speak about how and why YESS has changed their lives. It was so fulfilling to see one of our own alumni speak at the podium about his career, education, and his ability to achieve his dreams thanks to his participation in YESS. They showed the video that Westminster was so kind to film for YESS, and I couldn't hold back the tears as they focused on our program here at Shaw. It was such a special moment to see my scholars up on the big screen, What a fantastic way to celebrate all of the successes of our students and the programs. Here is the link to the video: https://vimeo.com/213900811/c82ccf61c0

Next week will host an open house for YESS and our scholars will get a chance to interact with some of the board members. We are all happy to be back to work with a normal schedule next week and lots of fun things to look forward to as we near the end of the school year.