Last week was a HUGE week in the Y.E.S.S room! Two weeks ago my students went through a grueling interviewing process where they learned about the power of choice and identified what was important to them in regards to the person they wanted to be matched with for the year. It was awesome to see the students really advocate for themselves in the sense that they really took the interviewing "speed matching" activity very seriously as they were in search of their partner. Mentee's and Mentor's all had their own say in who they were paired up with and the results were revealed!
The classroom environment has shifted slightly to a more focused energy because of the seat change but they are excited to get to know the people they chose more and more each day. We discussed the mentors in history, mentor and mentee pairs in celebrity culture, and the different examples of mentors we experience in every day life. They were then encouraged to get to know each other more with an "about me" interviewing activity to foster a stronger bond and relationship to build off of.
The quote "It takes a village to raise a child" was brought up in relation to the students and how they help each other out, have each other's backs, and attribute each other to their success. Receiving help is never a bad thing, but rather courageous, because you learn to set the ego aside and appreciate the selfless compassion being offered from another person who cares about your well-being and success.
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Monday, September 18, 2017
This Week in the ACHS YESS Room
Last week my students finished up their Identity Tattoos. Each design has 6 symbols incorporated into one piece: What they're most passionate about, their most prized material possession, their most prized non-material possession, their education and career goals, 3 hidden descriptive words and use of their life motto/quote in the banner. A lot of the kids went all out, it was amazing to see them dive into their creativity together! We discussed the benefits of art therapy and the importance of creative expression in understanding our emotions.
Students then spent the last half of last week completing interviews so that we can get everyone paired with their mentors/mentees. It was fun seeing them interview each other and gain an understanding of one another on a one on one level with great intention for connection in order to find the best match. This week we begin our seat changes based on who got paired with who and we'll be diving into pair introductions & Mentoring 101!
Until next week,
Ms. Castro
Students then spent the last half of last week completing interviews so that we can get everyone paired with their mentors/mentees. It was fun seeing them interview each other and gain an understanding of one another on a one on one level with great intention for connection in order to find the best match. This week we begin our seat changes based on who got paired with who and we'll be diving into pair introductions & Mentoring 101!
Until next week,
Ms. Castro
Monday, September 11, 2017
Officially 1 Month In!
Happy Monday, all!
Last week in Ms. Castro's ACHS Y.E.S.S classroom we experienced a fun and challenging week and discovered more about ourselves and about each other.
We brainstormed and discussed the different aspects of community. All of these topics were very vital to the creation of culture within the classroom due to our goal of creating trust within the room. This trust allows the students to freely give thoughts and opinions without a fear of judgement- my class is their safe space.
As a class we broke out into groups and worked together to define the different types of communities that can exist, the challenges that go along with being a part of a community, what is/is not a community, why we need community, and how we create community.
The kids worked in groups with people who they had not previously interacted with before so it was interesting to see the social dynamic shift and assess whether they were comfortable working together and giving equal input- Turns out, they totally were! It was a great way to measure how comfort ability was being built in the room.
After the community lesson we moved onto the lesson belonging to the Coat of Arms project. Students who had been in the YESS classroom last year had completed the "Coat of Arms" lesson and this year I revamped the lesson to fit their high school interests by making the project centered around designing their own tattoo! The lesson was catered to every level of artistic skill and also kept the core values belonging to the building of identity that the Coat of Arms revealed.
Example:
They expressed their passions, material/non material prized possessions, educational goals, personal characteristic attributes, and a quote they live by. Labor day put us behind a day in lessons but that did not stop us! The kids have been working diligently on their designs by learning how to make the components of themselves merge into one creative and dynamic image that represents the core of their being.
Their projects are due when they walk in the door next class and I can't wait to share with you all the explosions of creativity and uniqueness that they came up with!
Later this week we will begin pairing mentors and mentees- stay tuned for the details of our next culture building lesson in Y.E.S.S!
Until next Monday,
Ms. Castro
Last week in Ms. Castro's ACHS Y.E.S.S classroom we experienced a fun and challenging week and discovered more about ourselves and about each other.
We brainstormed and discussed the different aspects of community. All of these topics were very vital to the creation of culture within the classroom due to our goal of creating trust within the room. This trust allows the students to freely give thoughts and opinions without a fear of judgement- my class is their safe space.
As a class we broke out into groups and worked together to define the different types of communities that can exist, the challenges that go along with being a part of a community, what is/is not a community, why we need community, and how we create community.
The kids worked in groups with people who they had not previously interacted with before so it was interesting to see the social dynamic shift and assess whether they were comfortable working together and giving equal input- Turns out, they totally were! It was a great way to measure how comfort ability was being built in the room.
After the community lesson we moved onto the lesson belonging to the Coat of Arms project. Students who had been in the YESS classroom last year had completed the "Coat of Arms" lesson and this year I revamped the lesson to fit their high school interests by making the project centered around designing their own tattoo! The lesson was catered to every level of artistic skill and also kept the core values belonging to the building of identity that the Coat of Arms revealed.
Example:
They expressed their passions, material/non material prized possessions, educational goals, personal characteristic attributes, and a quote they live by. Labor day put us behind a day in lessons but that did not stop us! The kids have been working diligently on their designs by learning how to make the components of themselves merge into one creative and dynamic image that represents the core of their being.
Their projects are due when they walk in the door next class and I can't wait to share with you all the explosions of creativity and uniqueness that they came up with!
Later this week we will begin pairing mentors and mentees- stay tuned for the details of our next culture building lesson in Y.E.S.S!
Until next Monday,
Ms. Castro
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
Start of the New Year!
Adams City YESS Program is back in session! And with new leadership! My name is Erica Castro and I served at Adams City High School last year as an Americorps Colorado Youth for a Change member serving students with drop-out intervention and emotional resource services.
I am so happy to back as a familiar face in my new role as a teacher here as I have waited for the day I get to be in front of a classroom for a very long time. I am passionate about the social-emotional curriculum belonging to YESS and my enthusiasm in the classroom shows it as I am excited to spice things up this year.
We have been working on creating trust within our classroom community by engaging in "get to know you activities" and diving into the beginning stages of the YESS curriculum. Last week we also took this opportunity in history to discuss a topic that effects 95% of my student body, the topic of discrimination and the current events surrounding that issue.
We discussed the events that took place in Charlottesville recently, including the victim of deadly violence, Heather Heyer. The conversation could have gone many ways but we were careful to focus on the effects of discrimination and racism using resources based off of Courageous Conversations lectures. We also learned about the importance of equality, inclusiveness, and compassion. The end assignment was to write a letter, which I plan on mailing to the foundation, to Heather Heyer's mother, Susan Bro, who we all saw speak at the Video Music Award's (a MTV music show the kids are into) about the importance of what Heather Heyer died for; equality for all and justice for the marginalized. As someone who serves a student body made up primarily young people of color, I felt that it was imperative to teach them that there are people out there fighting for them and for the greater good of all. And most importantly, how crucial it is to stand up for what is right in their own lives. Here is what a few them had to say to Ms. Susan about what we learned that day:
As of this week we have been focusing on more trust building and identity exploring activities. We will continue to go through the yarn toss exercise where we share out our favorite memories and recall every one else's favorite memories, we have touched on how we are all in one web as a community unit standing in solidarity with one another and discussed how when one person lets go the strength of our web weakens.
Later in the week we will be creating Identity Tattoos. I took the Coat of Arms lesson and changed it to fit the interests of my student demographic, they will be creating designs that represent their core being and the activities, interests, and people important to them.
With the current DACA headlines currently flowing through the media, it is important to me to address their anxieties and have their voices be heard as well as provide them with facts and comfort so I will be taking a portion of the end of the week's lessons to do so using a document created by The Immigrant Legal Resource Center.
I have had a great start to my year here with these kids and I am loving every day I get to serve them in this capacity as this is truly my dream job.
Many more class updates to come!
Until next time,
Ms. Castro
I am so happy to back as a familiar face in my new role as a teacher here as I have waited for the day I get to be in front of a classroom for a very long time. I am passionate about the social-emotional curriculum belonging to YESS and my enthusiasm in the classroom shows it as I am excited to spice things up this year.
We have been working on creating trust within our classroom community by engaging in "get to know you activities" and diving into the beginning stages of the YESS curriculum. Last week we also took this opportunity in history to discuss a topic that effects 95% of my student body, the topic of discrimination and the current events surrounding that issue.
We discussed the events that took place in Charlottesville recently, including the victim of deadly violence, Heather Heyer. The conversation could have gone many ways but we were careful to focus on the effects of discrimination and racism using resources based off of Courageous Conversations lectures. We also learned about the importance of equality, inclusiveness, and compassion. The end assignment was to write a letter, which I plan on mailing to the foundation, to Heather Heyer's mother, Susan Bro, who we all saw speak at the Video Music Award's (a MTV music show the kids are into) about the importance of what Heather Heyer died for; equality for all and justice for the marginalized. As someone who serves a student body made up primarily young people of color, I felt that it was imperative to teach them that there are people out there fighting for them and for the greater good of all. And most importantly, how crucial it is to stand up for what is right in their own lives. Here is what a few them had to say to Ms. Susan about what we learned that day:
As of this week we have been focusing on more trust building and identity exploring activities. We will continue to go through the yarn toss exercise where we share out our favorite memories and recall every one else's favorite memories, we have touched on how we are all in one web as a community unit standing in solidarity with one another and discussed how when one person lets go the strength of our web weakens.
Later in the week we will be creating Identity Tattoos. I took the Coat of Arms lesson and changed it to fit the interests of my student demographic, they will be creating designs that represent their core being and the activities, interests, and people important to them.
With the current DACA headlines currently flowing through the media, it is important to me to address their anxieties and have their voices be heard as well as provide them with facts and comfort so I will be taking a portion of the end of the week's lessons to do so using a document created by The Immigrant Legal Resource Center.
I have had a great start to my year here with these kids and I am loving every day I get to serve them in this capacity as this is truly my dream job.
Many more class updates to come!
Until next time,
Ms. Castro
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