School's out

At last, summer's here.

See you in the fall!














Oumar, Jen, Pete, Steve, Mary, and Amy

Pete on "The Evolution of Conversation"

Pete reflects on one full year of the conversation group:

I came up with the idea of a conversation group in the fall, because many students needed conversation practice. After consulting with the Program Coordinator, we decided to have it during sixth period lunch—because the majority of our students and virtually all of the newcomers had sixth period lunch. I was concerned that it would be difficult for the students to concentrate in our room, so I approached some teachers, and eventually, one teacher agreed to let us use a classroom during lunch.

I began the group with activities and games for several different levels: beginning, intermediate and advanced. I went to advisories every week to encourage students to come and participate. Three to five students would come, so I was able to give them a lot of individual attention. After a few weeks, only the newcomers remained, and they thought of the group as a class, so, for a while, I approached it as a class, and did a brief lesson—usually a grammar topic with a focus on speaking.

In February, we decided to move the group back to 217B. I made a new flyer and called the group “Conversation Corner” because the set up was similar (in the front right corner of the room) to the after school reading group on Mondays, which had been going very well. The approach was to have the students sit in a circle and discuss topics each week that would work for different levels of English speakers. Many students had become very used to doing homework, or socializing with their friends, or working on the computers during this time, so it was, and has remained difficult to get them to participate. The nice thing about it is that we can sometimes draw a student in as he or she comes into the room.

Recently, I have started using conversation games again with the students—like Conversation Tic-Tac-Toe. Students choose to be “x” or “o” and then choose a square and answer a corresponding question, or they complete a sentence correctly, in order to get the “x” or “o” for the box they select. The students have been enjoying this format, and I think making it more of a game is a fun way to end the year for the group.

Photos from the art show

Photos from the art show in May are posted below. Enjoy!

Steve on student growth

Steve
Steve writes about how he has seen students develop this year:

I enjoy it when students explicitly tell me stories about how they are growing up and feel more control and opportunity in their lives. As students finished up their senior projects many students felt proud of their ability to present and answer the judges’ questions. They dressed up, and several students compared it to a job interview. I hope as younger students become seniors the school will develop a culture of senior projects, and the variety and quality of the projects will improve.

Some students found their first jobs this year. One was telling me that he “finally feels like a man,” because he can take care of himself, and no matter where he goes he at least has that much. And once they take care of the basics, maybe they can ground big dreams in reality.

Picnic!

Last Friday, on a beautiful spring afternoon, we had our picnic in Franklin D. Roosevelt Park. Over 30 people were there, including students, teachers, and our colleagues from the office.

We enjoyed many different sports, including soccer, football, badminton, Frisbee, and cycling. At the picnic tables, we had hoagies, Caesar salad, fruit, Amy's homemade Turkish potato salad, and even a watermelon that one student had brought.

Amy on knitting

As the school year comes to a close, we have been reflecting on projects we have undertaken with students. Amy writes about the evolution of the knitting craze:

CO 81 sts. *K2, P2.* BO in pattern.

With language and terminology that would mystify even a native English speaker, knitting patterns are difficult to read yet simple to follow. Several of our after-school regulars discovered this back in January and have been so enthusiastic about their new activity that they have gone yarn and needle shopping on their own and even taught their friends how to knit.

Our first project was a simple ribbed hat, and students personalized them with pom poms, stripes and earflaps. From there, they transitioned to finding their own patterns online and knitting on their own. Showing initiative and courage that even some seasoned knitters lack, one student decided to learn intarsia (color work) and cables for her second project. Another designed a hat-scarf combination for herself. Some also brought their projects into school and made an informal knitting circle. Although we’ve only had one formal workshop on knitting, the students have really taken this new skill and run with it, pushing themselves to learn new techniques and to play with all the possibilities that knitting has to offer.

Just as these students are working to overcome the English language barrier, they have also succeeded in learning the language of knitting.

Project Bridging Cultures student art show!

After a year of working with many of this school's student artists, Mary came up with the idea of having an exhibition to showcase their works. We had our Art Club Student Show in our classroom on Thursday.

The show featured dozens of diverse works: pencil and ink drawings, watercolor paintings, collages, calligraphy, origami, comic strips, poetry, papier-mache sculptures, macramé flowerpots, and screen-printed T-shirts. Contributions from nearly all of this year's art club projects were included, and a number of students also brought in their own works to be displayed at the show. Mary created a volume of "Art Club Comics" for distribution. On the day of the show, we rearranged the room to resemble the wide-open space of a gallery and hung up and displayed all of the works on bulletin boards, clotheslines, tables, and easels.

The art show was a success! Scores of students and teachers visited our gallery after school. They walked around the perimeter of the room, taking in each piece, as they snacked on finger foods and chatted with each other about what they saw. Many of the students remarked on all the creative talent on display from their peers. For the artists, many of whom were in attendance, it was a proud moment.

Photographs from the art show will be posted in a later entry. (Edit: They are available here.)