Category Archives: Mentoring

Fancy Tea Parties: Mentoring Outside the Box

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Written by Epiphany Acevedo, City Year AmeriCorps member serving at Dearborn Middle School.

The task of engaging a group of 8th graders can sometimes be a bit daunting, especially when it comes to mentoring lunches. It is for this reason that I often challenge myself to think about new ways to keep my students interested in meeting with me to talk about their leadership development. One of the best ways that I have discovered is creating themed lunches with personalized invitations.

Last week, on a whim I invited four of my students to our team space for a fancy tea party at lunch. I saw it as an opportunity to share something very important to me while learning about my students at the same time. Little did I know that most of the students I invited were also avid tea drinkers. One of them even brought a huge thermos of an African milk tea and a box of donuts to share with the group. It was such a huge success that they requested we continue having weekly tea parties for the rest of the year! I am so excited to have found such a personal way to reach out my students and I can’t wait to see the connections that fancy tea continues to bring us.

[More from Epiphany: City Year jackets the latest craze among middle schoolers]

 

Wordless Wednesday: Young Students Get a Taste of College

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Photos by Angela Evans and Samantha Schnell, City Year AmeriCorps members serving on the Westfield Capital Management Team at Neighborhood House Charter School.

On Wednesday, April 4, the Westfield Capital Management Team at the Neighborhood House Charter School (NHCS) hosted a day-long College Fair for the whole school. Students from grades one through eight stopped by to participate in activities, speak to visiting college representatives, learn about the 40 colleges represented at our fair and have their photos taken as college graduates, diplomas in hand. The fair was a huge success for students of all ages; the 3rd graders, instead of playing their usual games of tag and “celebrity” at recess, devised a new game called “college.” See slideshow here.

[More from Sam: Five Reasons Why Students at NHCS Love City Year]

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Interview: Sometimes, If You Want to Know, Just Ask Your Students

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Written by Kevin R. Fish, City Year AmeriCorps member serving on the Bain and Company Team at English High School.

I was curious to know what sort of impact I was having with one of my students, Darwell*. I figured that the best way to find out why he was making more progress than some of my other students was to interview him. I chose Darwell because this is the first year that he has had City Year in his classroom and he has showed significant progress. Right before I approached Darwell with my questions, I decided that it would be more authentic if I let him come up with the questions himself. This would prevent any bias that I would have subconsciously installed into my own questions. I was very impressed with the wisdom that he showed in the development of his questions and answers. I also thought an interview would be more interesting for him if he was the one making the answers and questions, since he loves to talk.

Darwell asks himself, “What did I first think of City Year?”
He states that, “At the beginning, I just thought City Year was ‘regular,’ like extra help in the classroom. I enjoyed having them for extra help, but didn’t really ask for it.”

I then ask Darwell what he means by ‘regular’ and his explanation turns into an interesting analogy. He tells me that his relationship with City Year is similar to when you like a girl and then she decides she likes you too, and then she becomes part of your everyday life.

My response: “So City Year is like your girlfriend?”
Darwell, after rolling his eyes, “Not exactly Mr. Fish”

“What are my thoughts of City Year now?”
“I think that City Year is okay, but sometimes aggravating. I know all of the CY people now, so I’m comfortable going up to anyone.”

“Do I think that CY has helped me?”
His response: “Definitely, they have helped me with my work and gave me wake-up calls and get me to class. I have a C+ in English now and was failing term 1 and 2.”

“What would I do without City Year?”
“I would fail. I would also be bored because I’d have no one to bother.”

I am so proud of the progress that Darwell has made in his school work and equally as proud of the progress that he has made establishing relationships with myself and other CY teammates. I caught him scribbling on his desk and instinctively told him to stop, until I realized he was writing “City Year.” I looked puzzled and he answered my confused look with confidence and stated, “City Year is going to save me.”

*names changed for privacy.

What’s a Fun and Interactive Way to Learn? Field Trips!

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By Nicole Chandler, City Year AmeriCorps member serving on the MFS Investment Management Team at Dever-McCormack Lower School.

I have the pleasure of working in a 4th and 5th grade Spanish-English Immersion class. My students are either improving their English speaking skills or learning English for the first time. I’ve found that my young students learn best through innovative ways like watching videos, working on the computer, playing games, conducting experiments, and my favorite method – taking field trips!

The boys enjoying their first trip to Harvard Square

The boys enjoying their first trip to Harvard Square

Since January, I’ve been able to join my students on three field trips. We’ve visited Continue reading →

Empowerment Through Education: A Personal Connection to My Student

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By Diana Mai, City Year AmeriCorps Member serving at the Holland Elementary on the Harvard Pilgrim/PTC Team.

I serve as a corps member in a 4th grade SEI (Secondary English Immersion) classroom at the Holland Elementary. It has only been six months, but I already feel at home and integrated in the sense of pride and community instilled in the small classroom of the twelve students I work with.

[Rewind: Watch Diana's Video Recap of City Year Boston Serving at Project 351]

One of the students I work with closely, Cameron*, immigrated with her family to the United States from Haiti less than a year ago. Early on, she lived in and out of shelters with her mother. After going through many hurdles and social obstacles growing up, she now has some semblance of stability in her life. Reserved and quiet, she reminds me a lot of myself when I was her age.

Similar to Cameron, I was born and raised in an urban environment (New York City’s Lower East Side) to a working-class immigrant family. Early on, I watched my parents confront the problems of classism and xenophobia. As a young teen, I struggled to deal with my own insecurities, having less than most kids my age. My mother worked full-time as a waitress in a restaurant to make ends meet. Usually this meant standing on her feet all day. When she became sick and subsequently disabled by severe rheumatoid arthritis, my father was left to struggle as the sole income-provider while raising my older brother and I. I look back and I realize that many factors, on top of race, class, and gender, have influenced me to be the individual I am today.

ImageCameron and Miguel*, two students I work with

I immerse myself in my work every day because I want to highlight and give voice to marginalized and historically disenfranchised groups of people as a way to empower, and to make those who are invisible, visible. The fusing of lived experience mediated with my perspectives of society is crucial to my standpoint in life and how I negotiate my decision to participate in my community, and one of the reasons why I believe in Continue reading →

Wordless Wednesday: Our ‘Starfish’ Defying the Odds

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By Nicole Chandler, City Year AmeriCorps member serving on the MFS Investment Management Team at Dever-McCormack Lower School

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City Year has founding stories that resonate into the work we do as corps members. The Starfish story is about a young girl who stands up for what she believes regardless of her situation by saving washed up Starfish. Addressing the many challenges that our students face are at the heart of the Starfish Morning Enrichment Program at the Dever-McCormack Lower School. So every morning we enthusiastically greet our students with a power greeting, we teach them about social justice, and we lead games where students can enjoy being kids. Some of the joyful moments at Starfish:

Students writing positive words about themselves as a warm-up activity

Continue reading →

Students Inspire Me to Write: An Original Poem

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Written by Kevin R. Fish, City Year AmeriCorps member serving on the Bain and Company Team at English High School.

Some of my most interesting conversations with my students at the English High School happen in the most casual of settings. Many of these discussion inspire my writing. I thought it would be appropriate to share an original poem I have written from my students’ perspective. It largely centers around the outcomes I hope to achieve with my students this year.

Waiting

High School,
The beginning of Our freedom,
Freedom to choose,
Freedom to be who we want to be,
Yet we find ourselves,
Waiting.

Waiting to be granted the choice-
No, the opportunity to choose.
We are waiting for the moment,
When we are treated
Like the adults we are waiting
To become Continue reading →

Learning More Than A New Language

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Written by Epiphany Acevedo, City Year AmeriCorps member serving at Dearborn Middle School.

Through the sea of students I pass on the way to our team space, I spot his movie star smile and call out to him in excitement: “Mi amigu!” It’s Cape Verdean Creole for my friend. Juan* reaches out to shake my hand as I recite one of the many phrases he has taught me in his native language this year. Juan holds back a laugh as he listens to me struggle to properly pronounce gosta dibu sorisu (I like your smile) and tells me that he likes mine too. My days are never complete without a conversation with this energetic 6th grader who makes even my best days at school remarkably better.

[More: Red Jackets the Latest Craze Among Middle Schoolers at Dearborn!]

Being silly after school

My first interaction with Juan was during our after-school program when I saw him sitting alone. I sat down across from him and asked if he would teach me Creole.  He enthusiastically pulled out a sheet of paper and began to write out various words in his native language. Every couple of weeks I ask Juan to teach me a new phrase and I practice whenever I see him in the hallway. Even though I repeat the same phrases to him over and over, Juan is never frustrated or impatient with me, a quality that is not too common among 12-year-olds. Juan’s openness and inclusivity is truly inspirational!

 

The Art of Classroom Medicine

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Over the past few months at the Orchard Gardens K-8 Pilot School, I have come to notice that there is a certain type of healing quality to the art of education. In addition to serving as the central hub of knowledge passed down to their students and taking on all the demands and responsibilities of being in loco parentis, educators function much like doctors in their classrooms. Whether they may strive to raise a student’s reading level or to cure a patient from an illness, professionals in both of these lines of work can successfully enhance the well-being of people through patient perseverance, careful observation, and empathetic flexibility. Moreover, educators and physicians alike have a solid understanding of how relevant individual social and psychological circumstances can be to their respective efforts  in helping their students or patients. Accordingly, in recent decades these two professions have evolved into stronger mentorship roles that are more involved in the personal lives of the people they serve.

In addition to serving as the central hub of knowledge passed down to their students and taking on all the demands and responsibilities of being in loco parentis, educators function much like doctors in their classrooms.

From my experiences so far at Orchard Gardens, I have been fortunate to gain many enlightening opportunities that have helped me unravel this enigmatic healing characteristic within the art of education. One recent incident in particular has provided me with significant insight. On a crisp, rather cloudy Thursday morning in November, in the last half hour of a double-block period, I asked a student in the classroom I serve to follow me to Continue reading →

Staying On Track with my High Schoolers: Finding Inspiration in James

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By Erin O’Donnell, corps member serving on the Comcast Team at the Jeremiah E. Burke High School

He sat and stared into space, eyes blinking periodically, rocking back on his chair. A notebook lay upside down in front of him. No pen.

“James*, try the first question.”
“James, would you like to work on this problem with me?”
“Hey, James, please take out your homework.”

A nod, or a glance. A few mumbled words. But none of these ever translated into action. It became a half-hearted routine. Me, squatting down at eye-level, delivering constant little reminders that seemingly did nothing. Some of the teachers thought James was a slow processor, but I had glimpsed his potential in geometry. He was consistently the first to grasp a new concept, apply it, and shout out the answer, before withdrawing once more. I quickly realized the biggest challenge Continue reading →

Five Tips Friday: The Ultimate Advice in Mentoring Students

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I’ve completed one term of my AmeriCorps service year with the Bain and Co. Team at English High School and it seems as though I am finally making some progress with the students that I mentor.  I realize that we are all having unique experiences with our own students, but I would like to share some mentoring tips that I have found quite useful up to this point.

1) Leave any preconceived notions at the door.  Months of training cannot possibly prepare anyone for each scenario that they may face. The best we can do is be open-minded and eliminate our misconceptions on where our students are coming from.  I have found that my most meaningful conversations with students have been the result of candid conversations where I engaged in active listening.

2) Remain positive.  There will inevitably be days when it seems as though negative events outweigh the positive ones.  Remember that there may be other people on your team, as well as your students, that could be depending on that positive energy you provide.  If you need to take a break and sit down for a minute, go for it.  Just do what you need to do to remain fresh and positive.

3) Appreciate small strides.  If one of your students comes to you excited about passing a test, take into consideration that that student felt it necessary to show YOU that they did well.  You may very well want to further improve that grade and thought that they could have done better, but appreciate the fact that they are excited about the grade and wanted to share it with you.

4) Don’t be afraid to diverge.  We sometimes find ourselves feeling guilty partaking in conversations with our students that take them away from coursework, but sometimes, it is necessary. That 3-minute conversation about their weekend may open a whole new realm of possibilities for you to engage with your mentee in the future.

5) Show your students that you are HUMAN.  My most influential breakthroughs have occurred when I show my own humility and admit mistakes.  I have found that when my students recognize my own imperfections they can relate to me better.  This final thought demonstrates one of City Year’s founding stories- UBUNTU- I am because you are.  I consider myself a teammate in my students’ success.

These are only five of my tips for mentoring, and although I have found them to be quite successful for me and my students so far, that does not mean they are universal. By no means do I consider this an exhaustive list and I look forward to further contributing to it as I continue my journey.

Leadership at Lunchtime: Inside Look at City Year’s Lunch Buddies Program

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Written by Samantha Schnell, AmeriCorps member serving on the Westfield Capital Management Team at Neighborhood House Charter School

Lunch period, Monday, 11:30am. We fill up our water bottles, unwrap our sandwiches and cue up the music video for “Mrs. Right,” a hit song by the new boy band sensation, Mindless Behavior. It’s time for “Lunch Buddies,” a City Year initiative designed to provide students with small-group leadership building and behavior coaching. I have four lunch buddies; two girls on Monday and two boys on Wednesday. During lunch and recess, we take a break from fractions and decimals to discuss life outside the classroom. It’s enabled me to get to know a lot about my buddies. I know their favorite sports and their favorite movies. I know which classes they look forward to and which classes they dread. I even know which members of Mindless Behavior are their respective “future husbands.”

My buddies' brainstorm: "What do you think of when you hear the word 'leadership'?" Photo by Samantha Schnell

My Monday buddies, Ashley and Stephanie*, couldn’t be more different. Ashley, this year’s “new girl,” is shy and timid, while Stephanie talks enough for the both of them. Last week during our leadership brainstorm (see picture), we discussed different types of leaders and leadership styles. Ashley defined a leader as someone who “listens to the teacher and always does what she’s supposed to do” but, for Stephanie, a leader “does what she wants to and isn’t afraid to be her own person.” I hope that they will learn, this year, that both types of leaders are equally legitimate, and that maybe the strongest leader of all is a mixture of both.

Already, Stephanie and Ashley are helping each other grow. When Stephanie told Ashley that she should “talk more,” Ashley Continue reading →

My Starfish, My Hero

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Written by Gabriel Solis, corps member serving on the Deloitte Team at the Irving Middle School

“I see [Marcos] every day and he motivates me to be the very best I can be so that I can help him succeed in every way possible.”

Coming into City Year I wanted to make a difference, like I’m sure many of my fellow corps members did. But last week this became a vivid reality when Marcos*and I had our very first one-on-one talk.

The objective of the meeting was just to talk – about anything really. His move to Boston from Puerto Rico a few years ago hasn’t been an easy transition for Marcos. It’s been painful actually, really painful. He is a charming kid who has an uncanny ability to learn instantaneously when presented with just about anything. But his home life isn’t easy. He lives in a household with his mother, aunt, three sisters, and two female cousins. As he reflected on his weekend, he paused, and I knew right away something was bothering him.

Upon further discussion, he opened up to me about his home life and the difficult things he has experienced in his life. He so desperately misses and needs a male presence in his life to help and guide him as he begins to grow past adolescence into his teenage years. As we spoke, I asked him, “Marcos, who would you consider to be your hero?” He looked at me, smiled, and said, “You, Mr. Solis.” I wondered aloud, “Me? How come?” and he responded, “Because you help me and you know Spanish just like me.”

I’ve discovered that my presence in Marcos’ classroom has become something that he looks forward to every day, but I’ve also realized that in the process of becoming his hero, something truly extraordinary has happened. Marcos has become my hero. I see him every day and he motivates me to be the very best I can be so that I can help him succeed in every way possible. He helps me just by being who he is. Thanks to him, I’m inspired to answer the call to service and approach my work with humility and love. Marcos is both my starfish and my hero.

“Thanks to him, I’m inspired to answer the call to service and approach my work with humility and love.”

*Name changed to protect student’s identity.