A New Unit & the YESS Video Shoot!

Ava was the first to be interviewed- she did wonderfully!

This past week we had the special honor of having several of our students, parents, and classes filmed for a new YESS video. The video, which will be shown at our annual "Road to Success" breakfast on April 26th, details the lives of our young YESS scholars and the ways in which the program has impacted their lives (and the lives of their families, too!). On Tuesday and Wednesday we had a camera crew set up in our classroom to capture what it is we do here every day. Our mentors and mentees were so excited and proud to share their experiences with the crew, and I was so impressed by their honesty and accountability as they told their stories on camera. A special thank you to all who were involved in this process--we cannot wait to see the final result!

Brenna was the last to be interviewed, and also did a fantastic job.

Last week we began a new unit entitled, "The Future." Many of our mentors are looking forward to the career planning component of this unit, and some of our mentees are already realizing changes they can make now to be more successful in the future. We started out by discussing the link between accountability and having a successful future--we agreed that it certainly would be hard to be successful if one cannot be accountable. In this vein of thought we started to discuss the nature of a habit, and how habits effect our success. We broke it down to better understand that habituation is a simple form of learning, and once a habit is learned it becomes "routine." Here is where it got interesting, however, as we learned that there are 5 essential habits one should possess in trying to become more successful. They are: getting exercise; making wise food choices; getting 8 hours of sleep each evening; surrounding one's self with positive people; and having healthy communication skills. While some of our scholars do some of these things, no one person could say that they do all 5. This knowledge of habits really seemed to stick with our scholars, and many have said to me in the days since how they plan to try and get more sleep, or eat breakfast each day, or how they plan to find friends who like to eat lunch (many of our scholars barely eat during lunch, and most do not make wise food choices).

 Sue Lee speaks about why she choose to move so that her daughter, Kiki, could be in YESS.

Last week we also did a simple assessment on learning styles so that our scholars can better understand which study habits are most in line with their personal method of processing. Whether auditory, visual, or kinesthetic, our scholars recognized the need to adopt new ways of learning so that they can get the most out of their brains (and their time!) when studying. Since our assessment, I have had visual learners ask to borrow highlighters, kinesthetic learners ask to take stretch breaks, and have had some of my more reserved auditory learners volunteer more in class discussions. I am happy to see that many have seized this information and are already putting it to work!

PARCC begins this week for us at Shaw Heights, which marks the beginning of a stressful few weeks for our scholars. We will be working on stress relievers and other tools to use during the next couple of weeks. We have also sent out our mentor applications for the 2017-2018 school year, and I am proud to say that almost every single person who can come back into the program would like to. It will be a very selective process to be accepted as a mentor this year as we have so much interest--stay tuned! 

Parent Conferences & Self-Portrait Presentations

Julianna Romero expressed the inner turmoil she feels while Ava Martinez wanted to show all of the issues she has overcome in the during the past two years in YESS.

What an exciting week we had in our YESS program at Shaw Heights! We spent the last week before Spring Break presenting our self-portrait projects, going over grades and preparing for conferences, and writing accountability letters. Our scholars did a wonderful job on their projects and showed such confidence during our presentations. I was also quite proud of the accountability letters our scholars wrote and the way in which mentors helped support this process.

Tyler Parks' self-portrait from 6th hour.

I was so excited to do our gallery walk and presentations for the self-portraits this week as our scholars have been working so hard on these projects. Unlike many of our projects, mentors and mentees did not work together but rather had to complete their own individual projects. While many of our mentees felt "stuck" at first, it wasn't long before they were hunched over and hard at work after they took some time to flip through projects from last year and gather their thoughts. Many of our scholars were afraid to be honest in their drawings and depictions but after a few supportive conversations they had the courage necessary to be 100% honest. We ended up with a lot of projects that show how the individual thinks others perceive them and how they perceive themselves--the comparisons were rich with detail and offer a lot of insight, and I am so proud of the bravery shown in these images.

A compare and contrast self-protrait project from 3rd hour.

Dayanara reads her "I am Poem" to her mother during conferences. 

After we went over the projects we moved on to preparing for parent conferences by completing scripts and going over them together. Each scholar was required to evaluate their grades from our fall conferences and to state how they thought they were doing now; I then met individually with each and every one of our YESS scholars to discuss their progress. During this time I had everyone working on writing an "accountability letter" to either a teacher or staff member at Shaw Heights. They had to pick someone with whom they had had an issue at some point during the year (even if that issue were a simple as not sharing out ideas or participating in a certain classroom). They then had to apologize for the issue and/or behavior and state how they plan to change in the future to ensure the same issue does not reoccur. The letters were well written and genuine, and I am excited to hand them out to teachers and staff when we return from break.

I was so happy to have so many parents come out for conferences this past week. We got a chance to show parents some of the amazing art projects we have done, and I loved seeing the pride on our YESS scholars' faces as they read their poems or presented their projects to their family members. Thank you to all who made time to drop by my classroom to speak with me! 

Self Portraits & Mentors at the 5th Grade Fair!

Brenna, myself and Advino at the 5th Grade Fair!

This past week in our YESS classes at Shaw Heights we did a fantastic art project and we hosted a table at the 5th Grade Fair for two days. We were so excited to begin our self-portrait projects, and it was made even more special by the showing our 5th grade visitors our classroom and all the great work our scholars have done all year long. We also began preparing for Parent Conferences, which will take place next week.

Advino and Brenna speak to students about their experiences in YESS.

The 5th Grade Fair was an awesome opportunity for our YESS mentors to directly speak to incoming 5th graders about their experiences and why YESS helped them during middle school. Several mentors assisted me in setting up a display table in the gym, where we showcased past projects such as our emotion sculptures. The 5th graders were guided around the gym by our WEB leaders, many of whom are also YESS mentors. Each group got a chance to hear about the program and about our YESS mentors and how many went from being shy, depressed, introverted, angry, defiant, disruptive, argumentative, negative students to empowered, confident, kind, respectful, supportive, hard working scholars. I was so impressed by the efforts of Ava Martinez, Adivno Sawa-Baldizan, Stacey Tejeda-Sandoval, Brenna Torres, and Ariana Miller to connect with these 5th graders and to speak honestly about the obstacles they have overcome with the support of YESS. It is amazing to see how far they have come, but it is even more rewarding to hear them speak to the necessity of helping others and how great they feel being able to help their mentees out this year. I am so thankful to the staff at Shaw Heights for covering my classroom in order to allow me to be present at this year's 5th Grade Fair! It was a wonderful two days and I am so excited for all the new 5th graders to come to Shaw in the fall.

Mentors and their mentees hard at work in 5th hour.

Our YESS scholars were thrilled to finally get to make their self-portrait projects this past week. So many mentors had spoken about the project, and we have many artists in YESS who are always happy to hear about a new art opportunity. Before we began the project we discussed the concept of self-portraits and touched on the fact that, just like poetry, a self-portrait does not necessarily have to "be" anything- though, just like poetry, it must evoke emotion and have a connection to the artist. We did some research on famous artists and their self-portraits, and we took a look at some modern concepts. Our scholars quickly got to work, and it wasn't long before I was moved to tears by several of the projects. They are all so unique and heartfelt, and I really admire the honesty and accountability I am seeing in the art and design of these projects.

Caillou and Ryan work on their self-portraits in 5th hour.

Ivan did an amazing job on his project!

We will be having a gallery walk and presentation this week, so stay tuned for pictures of the actual projects. Our scholars are excited for spring break, and we are all enjoying the beautiful weather. We hope to make it outside this Friday for a fun day before our week long break! 

Accountability & Success

What a crazy two weeks it has been for us at Shaw Heights! I must apologize for the missing blog post as I was unable to write one last week. I have been out for two weeks as I have been recoveing from a collapsed lung, and it has been quite a long and painful process. I am so thankful to have had one of our long term substitute teachers, Mr. Morris, covering for me during my absence. Our YESS scholars are quite found of Mr. Morris, and having one person instead of a multitude of subs is something for which I am incredibly grateful.

Our worksheet on Accountability and Success

In the week prior to my absence the scholars and I continued our work on accountability by discussing success and ways that one can take accountability at any given moment. We spent some time working on accountability statements--that is, how to change the language so that we are being accountable for our actions and are not dismissive, defiant, or in denial about what transpired. We worked on statements such as, "It broke," and one by one scholars came to the board to tweak the statement until it became 100% accountable. We framed the statement in the context of an individual breaking someone's phone and simply handing it back without explanation nor apology. Our scholars changed "it broke" to, "I am so sorry, I broke your phone. Can I help pay to fix it?" We did this exercise with several common "excuse" statements such as: they were doing it first; she told me to; he started it; I didn't mean to; it wasn't my fault; and I didn't know. It was wonderful to see our YESS scholars registering the difference between an accountable statement and one that is more of an excuse.

7th Hour playing Connect Four

7th Hour Chess games

We took this knowledge and expanded upon it by doing a worksheet that asked for each scholar to complete a story in which the main character was faced with an opportunity to either be accountable or not. The worksheet also asked one to consider a time in which one was accusatory and defiant instead of accountable and to rework the situation given the new found knowledge of how, exactly, to be fully accountable. We had a great time working on these worksheets together and the mentors did an excellent job of helping the mentees understand the importance of 100% accountability.

After completing this lengthy packet we had a game day together to unwind. We had several great games of Uno, a really intense table of Connect Four players, and a few close chess games. It was a great week and I am so looking forward to getting back into the swing of things this week as we wrap up our Accountability unit with an amazing art project on self-portraits.

ESMART Goals

This past week in our YESS program at Shaw Heights we began to discuss goals in more detail. We began by assessing the differences between a goal and a dream. Many of our scholars felt confused by this comparison and so we took some time to better understand how a goal is a "dream with a plan and a deadline." We referred back to our project, "Heart, Mind, Soul," in order to specifically recall what some of our scholars noted for their dreams. We then set to work on our ESMART goals worksheet in order to create plans and deadlines for the dreams so that they can become realistic goals!

An ESMART worksheet from 3rd hour.

ESMART stands for: Exciting/Emotional; Support System; Measure; Action Steps; Realistic; and Time-bound. Using this framework, our scholars began planning out the specifics for their dreams. We worked on setting goals that would help our scholars work towards their larger dreams in life. Common goals were graduating from high school and college, leveling up in literacy or math (or both!), getting a car, becoming a professional athlete, and securing a career job. We worked on being as concise as possible when we discussed how we measure our goals, which action steps we must take first, and the best time frame for each goal. While it took some time for our scholars to recognize how important it is to be specific when setting goals, they eventually got the hang of it and soon our mentors were helping the mentees write very explicit goals. It was a fun process that left us all feeling hopeful about the future!

We ended our week by doing a fun team builder with charades focused on non-verbal communication. Each table worked as a team, and we had four different categories: fast food, things that begin with the letter "M" (mailbox was quite hard for our scholars to act out!), fruits and veggies, and things that one can find in a bedroom. When asked many drew comparisons to how they felt during our blindfold maze activity from the fall, a time when they were dependent on either their mentee or mentor to verbally lead them through an obstacle course. Several touched on how uncomfortable they felt not being able to speak when they were acting, or being concerned that their team was misreading their non-verbal cues. All in all it was great way to wrap up another week in YESS.

Hanging out with 7th hour after we finished a great game of charades!

Next week we will be working more on accountability in terms of one's personal responsibility for individual success. Stay tuned!

Civil Rights, Poetry & Meditation

We had a great week here at Shaw Heights as we celebrated the 15th anniversary of YESS by creating some really great pieces of art to celebrate all those who have donated and have made our amazing program possible (pictures to come next week!). We also continued our discussions on leadership and accountability. On Monday we had a really detailed, complex talk about Martin Luther King, Jr and the Civil Rights Movement. We also had a really great day writing poetry as we did an exercise entitled, "I am a Poem." We finished our week off with a guided meditation on Friday where our scholars got to learn more about how to manage stress and anxiety and how to disengage negative thoughts that tend to ruminate in the brain. Our scholars especially loved writing poems and learning how to meditate!

Our Mentor Monday talk was an emotional one this week as our scholars had so many questions about the Civil Rights Movement. While many knew about Dr. King and his efforts, very few knew much else about the movement, especially in relation to the legal process that occurred in our country and other prominent figures who helped push for the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Since I am a Civil War historian and have a degree in American history, I took extra time to explain to our scholars the process of emancipation that began with Lincoln's proclamation in 1863 and which was impeded by the "separate but equal" ruling in lieu of the Plessy V Ferguson Supreme Court case in 1896. We discussed the lynchings in the south in the wake of this ruling, and the mass exodus of African Americans during that same time period. Not one of our scholars had any idea these lynchings had occurred, and they were shocked to learn that such a reign of murder and terror once existed in our country. These feelings were further solidified when I explained how Emmett Till's murder acted as a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement. Our scholars could not believe that Till had been blatantly murdered and yet his mother was denied justice. We also touched on Ruby Bridges and the Supreme Court ruling in Brown V Board of Education that resulted in her having to attend an all white school in Alabama with armed guards as escorts. We even discussed the Japanese interment camps that our government created during WWII as we were on the subject of the protection of civil rights for all American citizens. This fact might have been the most shocking of all for our scholars as they marveled that the US government interned over 120,000 Japanese Americans against their will--giving away their houses, businesses, and forcing them to labor in dire conditions with little food and restricted access to healthcare. These details about the Civil Rights Movement in America left a deep impression on the minds of our scholars as they watched Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech with new-found knowledge. I had some really amazing responses from our mentors as they reflected on our talk. This talk was well timed in that many of our scholars are worried about the federal government's role in enforcing civil rights for all citizens. One mentor wrote:

"I also learned about Alabama and how it was full of racism at the time. They had a lot of lynching. They even refused to follow the government's law about the new laws on civil rights...One thing that really brought attention to the lynching and more was a 14 year old boy. He was going to the store and then said hi to a white woman. When he was in the store a mob of white men were outside. They took the boy by force and dragged him for miles and beat him in the woods. Then they hung him. His mom had an open casket to let people know how bad they hurt him."

As we teach our mentors to become leaders, it is imperative that we teach them about such atrocities so that they understand the context of what, exactly, leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., faced as they campaigned for social justice.

Caillou's poem from 5th Period

While this talk alone would have made for a successful week, it was followed by a wonderful day presenting projects and then creating a new art project the 15th anniversary party for YESS. I will post some of the extremely heartfelt and moving pieces next week!

Some of our mentors writing poetry outside last Thursday!

We ended our week with poetry and meditation. Since my other degree is in Creative Writing, this week's lessons really aligned with my strengths as an educator. I was able to speak to our YESS scholars about the nature of poetry (no, it doesn't have to rhyme!) and was delighted to read them a few poems from an anthology of poetry from which I used to teach freshmen classes at my college. We discussed "Fire and Ice" by Robert Frost, "The Waking," by Theodore Roethke, and "Another Weeping Woman" and "Thirteen Way of Looking at a Blackbird," by Wallace Stevens. I mentioned that poetry does not place constraints on language, and many of our mentees connected with the fact that ee cummings did not use puncutation or capitalization and instead made up words like, "mudlucious" and "puddlewonderful." It was amazing to see our scholars connect with the poetry that I read and to see them really take off on the assignment on their own. We had so many moving poems, but perhaps one of the best came from a mentee named Caillou. His poem, "I am funnystrong," is posted here so that you are able to see the format of the worksheet and the way in which he responded.

We made it outside during 6th and 7th hour to write our poems as it was unseasonably warm last week!

We finished out our week in YESS with a guided meditation meant to help our scholars manage stress and anxiety. The guided meditation asks one to relax, muscle by muscle, and then asks one to imagine a peaceful place to which one may return during stressful moments or during high anxiety situations. This was a favorite day for many of our scholars as they really felt empowered and calm afterwards! Stay tuned next week to see some more great artwork from our scholars and to hear about our ESMART goal setting!

Accountability: Heart, Mind, Soul.

We began a new unit on Accountability this past week in our YESS classes at Shaw Heights. Our first lesson was entitled, "Heart, Mind, Soul," and asked our scholars to try and reflect on what is in their heart, mind, and soul and how they can use this information to make wise choices as they work toward specific goals. Before we started the worksheet, however, we did a quick journal prompt on dreams. Each scholar was asked to contemplate what he or she was dreaming for the future, whether it be a simple dream (have my own bedroom) or a more complex dream (have my bank account and my own house). We discussed Langston Hughes and his poem, "Harlem," in order to place some context on what may happen if we defer our dreams. Our scholars quickly connected with the poem which asks, "What happens to a dream deferred?" They were all able to recognize the need to nurture and fulfill dreams if we are to live a happy, successful life. It was agreed upon that not following one's dreams can lead to a very unhappy, resentful life.

Heart, Mind, Soul worksheet

Once we had spoken a bit as a class, our YESS scholars filled out a worksheet which asked them to use the human body as a diagram to better understand what is in their heart, mind, and soul. They were to write their dreams above the head; their favorite sounds next to the ears; how they would like to be seen by others next to the eyes; whatever issues they are facing were to be placed on the shoulders; whatever they loved near the heart; their favorite foods in the stomach area; the hands were to detail on one side who supported them while the other explained what they made or did with their energy; and last, but not least, one foot was representative of where they went each day, while the other details where they would like to go in the future.

A group project from 3rd Period

After each scholar had completed the worksheet, we moved into working as tables of four to bring the worksheet to life as a large project on butcher paper. Each mentor and mentee had to decide which pieces of information were most pertinent and were asked to place this information on the larger version of the human body (which our scholars accomplished by tracing out one member of the group onto butcher paper--it was a quite a fun day!). Once all the written information was done, the groups had to then add detail and color to the project.

A group project from 4th Period

Some of the Emotion Sculpture Projects on display in our YESS classroom.

An "Anger Cave" Emotion Sculpture Project

All in all it was a great start to our new unit. We had a great Mentor Monday talk about Cesar Chavez and the need to remain non-violent while protesting in order to affect real, positive change. This week we will discuss the life and actions of Martin Luther King, Jr., and we will continue our discussions about accountability in the context of creating ESMART goals with our scholars. Below are some more great Emotion Sculpture projects from last week- enjoy!