Thursday, January 21, 2016

Mid-January Update

Hello all,

A nice 4 day week leads us into what should be a great game between the Patriots and Broncos (Go Pats)! This week we worked on Anger Management, Consequences, and the Abuse Cycle.

The Anger Management topic resonated with many of the students and the discussions that we had were fantastic. Students learned several new anger management strategies such as taking deep breaths, walking away, or even a nice workout (a.k.a a punching bag). Discussions also focused towards the cause of their anger and students agreed that family/siblings, peers, and teachers were some of the main causes. They were very honest with me and it allowed for some great insight into their world and what they see and think.

The consequences lesson was a fun and challenging one at the same time. They had a lot of trouble thinking of a specific time one of their actions led to a negative outcome but with a little guidance, they finally came up with a good example. It also involved a lot of scenarios so students could diagnose the appropriate vs the inappropriate way to handle the situation. Overall, they made the correct choice when prompted, but they did stress it is difficult in the moment depending on who they were with.

We finished the week talking about the abuse cycle and again I was impressed by the conversations we had. Students shared out examples of situations they've seen both at home and with their friends parents. The topic hit home with all of them and although it was definitely a tough topic to discuss, it is definitely important for them to hear so they can recognize these situations in the future.

It was a great week of work and we're all excited for the weekend!

Saturday, January 9, 2016

New Year, New Post

Hello all!

Fresh off of winter break most kids, myself included, seemed to be energized and ready to go while others were still adjusting to having to wake up early again. This week we focused on I am poems, the apple pie metaphor and boundaries.

The I am poems gave students a chance to be creative in their writing and truly express themselves through an outlet they may not use very often, writing. Most students had done one of these before but I asked them to dive a little deeper and express their feelings more, and they did not disappoint. They did such an amazing job I felt they needed to present their poems and although these are personal poems, many students were confident and prepared to share. Here are some examples of poems below:


The apple pie metaphor gave mentor and mentee pairs the chance to talk about their relationship and work towards making it a 50/50 partnership. This was very empowering for the mentees because instead of having the mentor dominate opinions and work, they felt as if the power was now shifting towards them and a more even split of responsibility. Here is an example of what one pair came up with in terms of how they will improve their relationship:

We wrapped up the week talking about personal boundaries. This activity helped students realize each others boundaries in terms of talking, touching, and emotionally. I had mentors and mentees walk towards each other and whoever was being walked towards had the chance to say stop when they felt the other person was close enough. Some students said stop sooner than they thought they would but most felt comfortable with when they told the other to stop.

Overall it was a pretty packed first week back but the energy level was so great we just kept on working! 

Have a great weekend!