Weekly Roundup: October 30th - November 2

Hello!

Dia de los Muertos display

We had another short, but jam packed week here at WLA! Halloween, Dia de los Muertos, and student led conferences all took place by Thursday with no school for students and staff on Friday. 

On Monday, we reviewed our conversation on fear/emotions and then had a broader conversation on gratitude. Students were shown a video by Sean Stephenson that discusses the importance of empowerment and positive thinking. The students really seemed to enjoy it and connect with the message. 

On our Tutoring Tuesday (which was also Halloween), mentors and mentees checked their grades and listed their missing assignments, 0's, and late work. From there, mentors created action plans to help resolve these issues. Middle school students also had a Halloween dance on Tuesday which many of them enjoyed. 

Parents check in for conferences! 

On Wednesday we had a review of what we've covered so far. I reiterated to the students that by being aware of the obstacles we may face in our lives and through learning how to handle ourselves, we are more likely to make smarter decisions that lead to better outcomes. Students appreciated the review and were glad that we took the time to connect what we've been learning over the past month. 

With Thursday being our last day of school for the week, we decided to have a little fun and spend the class period learning how to debate. Students enjoyed the activity of finding a topic, researching it, and then debating it in various groups. Our topic for Thursday was regarding school uniforms. Of course students had some very strong opinions on the issue and made sure to focus their arguments on facts and not just opinions. 




Additionally, Wednesday and Thursday evenings were dedicated to parent teacher conferences. The conferences were student led, meaning that students took their parents to each individual room to meet with their teacher. I really enjoyed this experience and was looking forward to meeting with the parents in order to discuss progress and the growth we've seen thus far. Parents reiterated to their students the importance of what we are learning in YESS - social and emotional skills, peer mentoring, leadership, etc and it was great to see strong parent support for the program during these conversations. 

Next week we will back to a normal schedule and I'm looking forward to continuing our dive into the Healthy Relationships unit! See you then! -Ben