Our journey to the early years of the republic

This week, we took 21 students to visit Independence National Historical Park. In a couple of tours, we saw some of the Greatest Hits of 18th century American history, all within several hundred yards of each other:

• We went on a tour of Independence Hall, the United Nations World Heritage Site where the nation's founding documents were signed.
• We saw original copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution.
• We explored Congress Hall, where the legislative branch of the federal government was located for ten years.
• Finally, we went to see the Liberty Bell, passing George Washington's presidential house along the way.

Having majored in history in college, I love living in a city with such an amazing and significant past. Many of the students have only arrived in the United States several months ago. I appreciated having the opportunity to show this side of Philadelphia to them.

Oumar on Math Club

I asked each of the mentors to write about a club. Oumar wrote about a student he worked with in Math Club:














One of our students struggled in Algebra I last year. When the new school year started he came to me and said that he wanted to get a good grade in math this year. We worked together frequently after school and when we had a math club before his first math test he came to review. After our review session and the test were over he came back to me to share his grade. He did not have a perfect score on the test, just a 70 but he was happy. I told him that he could do much better than that and we kept working together regularly. After he took the second math test of the year he came to me with his result, which was an 85. This time he was not happy with his score and said that he should have gotten 100% on the test! We still work together regularly.

Said on Drama Club

I asked each of the mentors to write about a club. Said wrote about our Drama Club, which takes place on Mondays at lunchtime:

Project Bridging Cultures is offering students a Drama Club, which focuses on dialogues, sketches, activities, games and plays. The sessions take place during the 5th and 6th lunch period in room 217B during the school year 2008-2009. The sessions mainly focus on exploring and developing areas of learning English such as pronunciation through Drama, grammar through Drama, using and exploiting role-plays and much more.

The course is aimed at all English students from different ages and levels. The sessions are dealing with different aspects of the use of drama in learning English. The sessions and workshops are to be practical and it is hoped that students will want to "get up and do" rather than "sit and listen".

Some of the main concerns of the Drama Club are catering the needs of students as performers on stage, and this would enable them to face the audience and overcome "the stage fright", using relaxation techniques, moving, body language, and so on. Also, the sessions concentrate on dialogues which can be used to focus on a particular pronunciation point. Participants will develop their ability to exploit the ready-made dialogues and to create their own, making them both natural and enjoyable. The sessions also look at the way students display emotion through changes of intonation, stress and pace in speech. Drama games, which can be used with younger learners and adults, are taking places in the Drama Club. The games aim to develop concentration and group dynamics, as well as general confidence in the language. Participants will look at how to set up games and how to manage them.

Senior stories

The seniors at the high school tend to have many responsibilities, and we are proud to see how they have stepped up to the plate. For example, many of them are very engaged in work on their senior projects, focusing on topics such as immigration, gangs, child abuse, foreign aid to Africa, JROTC, and dance. A number of students have asked us to be mentors on their projects, so we've been working with them on doing research, creating thesis statements, and writing outlines for their papers.

Many seniors are making concrete plans for graduation as well. Several of them have already applied to or been accepted to trade schools or the community college. Others have been working on applications, which they will submit in the coming months. Yesterday, we had an enthusiastic group of students attend Stephen and Toni's workshop on writing a personal statement. In one exercise, students pretended to be admissions officers and read many sample applications while allotting only one minute for each. It was a fun way for everyone to learn about what makes an essay good firsthand.

Toni on English Conversation Club

I asked each of the mentors to write about a club. Toni wrote about English Conversation Club, which was one of our very first clubs:














My name is Toni, and I lead our English Conversation Club at Project Bridging Cultures. Meetings take place once each week during two lunch periods. I try to provide an informal, yet structured and supportive, atmosphere where students can practice what they know (as they feel comfortable), and learn something new from myself or anyone in our diverse community. Our discussions are centered on the monthly themes we have planned for our room.

Facilitating this conversation group has been a privilege. Not only is it a great opportunity for me to better know and care for our students, but those students also get to create new connections with each other. Some are more confident than others when it comes to making friendships outside of their own culture. This group is a safe way for those who are more reserved to “stick their toes into the water” and learn not just about new vocabulary, but about humanity. One small tradition I use to begin each session is to have a makeshift “Welcome Mat” on the wicker coffee table we gather around. Each student takes a colored marker and writes their name on a card. Then, one by one, each person introduces himself to the group (“Hi, my name is Toni”) and sets his name on the Welcome Mat. In response, the group welcomes the person who made the introduction (“Welcome, Toni” or “Hello, Toni”). This way, people who are not acquainted can become so, and each participant is intentionally made part of the community.

At the end of September, we kicked off our clubs and workshops with the theme of education (of course!). A handful of students representing many countries (China, Mexico, Vietnam, Albania) joined me for a game involving our names, questions, and a ball. Each student took a turn choosing a question for the group to answer. I was delighted by the honest and thoughtful way the students contributed. A few questions and responses are imbedded in my mind; What is the most important thing to learn in school? (“sex education,” “English,” and “not to be shy” are the short versions), and Have you ever cheated on a test? (riotous, guilty laughter followed by eager confessions) are two of my favorites. October has brought us to the theme of families. In the last few weeks we have had games of family connections (Who is your mother’s son’s daughter?), partner interviews about family, home countries, and everyday life (I had so much fun giggling with students from Mali and China!), and a session focused on our childhoods (students from Mali, Mexico, Vietnam, and Albania shared their “mischievous moments” - one laughed about hiding the dishes from his mother when she tried to set the table! Another student described early memories of more solemn times.). November’s theme will be Government and Society, and I look forward to learning even more from our amazing students.

The 2008 election

Our theme this month is Government and Society. As such, we've spent a lot of time talking to students about this week's election. It was a great opportunity to discuss everything from the political parties in this country to candidates' positions to the way the Electoral College system works. Students have told us about their thoughts about the economy, war, and health care. Since many of the students are new immigrants or under 18, only a few students were eligible to vote, but we were all excited regardless. There were Obama supporters, McCain supporters, and students who were open to hearing different sides.

One place where our discussion has unfolded was our Question of the Week bulletin board. At the beginning of the week, when we did not yet know who our 44th president will be, we wanted to know what students saw as the most pressing issues. Therefore, this was our question:
















Here were some of the responses we got: