March 12th - 16th

What a week! We began in our typical manner, with Mentor/Mentee Monday and Tutoring Tuesday.

Our topic on Wednesday, Thursday, and part of Friday was bullying. The kids were skeptical when I initially presented the topic because they feel like they are bombarded with anti-bullying messages. However, we took the time to dissect the reasons for bullying and the ramifications of this type of behavior. The most impactful exercise was called "Crumpled Hearts." There are 3 steps to completing this activity:

First, we drew a heart and wrote words we'd use to describe an innocent, sleeping baby.
Next, the scholars found partners who would write things that we had heard said about ourselves (these tended to be rather negative) and crumple the heart.
Finally, students identified "shields" that adolescents might use to protect their sensitive hearts.

By the end of this process, each student had a crumpled, ripped, damaged heart. The message, of course, is that we are capable of learning how to deal with hurtful things, but our hearts will never be as pure and unharmed as when we were babies. Additionally, we never know the condition of someone else's heart. We must use caution when interacting with other humans.

This led to some really neat discussions about personal identities and how to intervene when witnessing bullying behavior. Most YESS students have been told to simply call the bully out on their behavior, but that's really difficult! So, we watched a short video (click here) about other ways to assist a victim. We did some role-playing, during which I transformed into my evil twin, Sherri, and bullied volunteers while their classmates practiced intervening. Big fun!

Friday, we finished our bullying activities and performed team builders in the gym. I had as much fun bouncing balloons as the kids!

February 26th - March 9th

Due to a wildly busy week, I wasn't able to get to this task. So now we've got a BOGO offer going on. :-)

The week of February 26th was fairly typical, in that the mentors studied leadership while the mentees worked with Ms. Katrina. We postponed our tutoring day and took time on Tuesday and Wednesday to learn about EmoTrolls, which are the things we become when we mishandle our Hot Buttons. For instance, if we feel powerless in a situation and decide not to advocate for ourselves, we may become a Stuffy by refusing to acknowledge our emotions and pretending everything is all right. On the other hand, we may become Bomby and explode on someone. There are nine trolls, in all, and it was great fun to share stories of times we behaved like trolls.

I was out, visiting family, on Thursday and Friday so the students were able to participate in their tutoring day. Most scholars worked on finishing their Button Trinkets and did a magnificent job! I hope they remember to utilize these tools when their buttons get pushed. On Friday, they were asked to write a skit that demonstrated troll behavior so we could make puppets and perform with them.






We resumed our regularly-scheduled programming on Monday and Tuesday, the 5th and 6th. Puppets were created on Wednesday, then performances were given on Thursday. The kids had a fabulous time acting for their peers and I, especially, love puppets because my less-outgoing kids are able to find their voices through play. Good stuff!