Ranum Pre-Vacation Week!

Hello,

The week started off strong with a great documentary on mentor Monday. The focus of the documentary was on two people from a small island off the coast of Colombia. One has been a fisherman his whole life, the other is a 10 year old boy contemplating his future. Not many people make it off the island to pursue education and this little boy wants to go to the mainland to focus on schooling. The mentors were surprised at how content all of the islanders were with their non materialistic lives, especially without WiFi!

Tuesday was a snow day so that put us a little behind for our next activity, the Love Cup! The love cup is a metaphor that helps us figure out how much of ourselves we are able to give to others. There are many things that make us happy and that goes into the Love Cup; however, there are many stresses in life that drain your love cup (arguing with friends, fighting with parents, and school work are just a few things the students came up with). As you can see below, the students had a lot of fun creating their Love Cups.

The students learned a little more about themselves and the things that bring them happiness. They also learned how to slow down /eliminate some of their leaks (stressors) through different avenues such as exercise, music, and even journaling.

I wish everyone a safe and happy holidays!

Ranum Update 12/7-12/11

Hello,

This past week went by really quickly. Our main focus was on giving back and giving back is exactly what we did. The YESS program raised $260 from the bake sale and all of the proceeds will go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. We had an over whelming amount of help and support from both the students and teachers here at Ranum. The students did a great job of bringing in baked goods and handling the large crowds of students wanting those goods.

In class, we did self - esteem charts throughout the week to see how we felt depending on the day. Mentors and Mentees discussed anything that was going on both positive and negative that could effect their score that day. 

Later in the week we created self - esteem rainbows. Mentors and mentees each wrote some positive adjectives about one another and then switched papers so they could decide their top 6 adjectives. These adjectives represented the colors of the rainbow and the kids were very creative in their projects.

Overall, another great week and you can tell we're all itching for the winter break.

Post Turkey Day (11/30 - 12/4)

Hello all!

This week we focused our attention on Community Service Projects while mixing in a lesson on values and how we behave in different situations/locations. 

The students will be collecting donations for the Denver Rescue Mission, raising money through a bake sale for St. Jude Children's Hospital, and writing encouraging letters to one of the Veteran's organizations in Denver. 

It's powerful to see the passion and dedication the students are putting forth towards these efforts. I'm excited to update you on how things are going next week!

The values lesson gave me good insight on the importance level each student places on their values. We had some solid discussions and it gave other students a better understanding of their peers and why they react to things differently. We also did an activity that challenged students to discuss who they are in various settings and whether or not that is a good or bad thing. Most students said as long as you stick to your values and stand up for what you believe in, it is acceptable for there to be times where maybe you act differently depending on who you're with or where you are.

Overall, another fun filled week that allowed students to express themselves and share their values.

Have a great weekend!