Finally!

      Starting my service learning project, I was aware that teaching in a high school would impose different challenges from the get-go. However, I was unprepared for the lack of control and how difficult it was to get the students to participate. The first class I had each student create their own name tag however they wanted. Some added drawings and designs to make it a little more authentic, which I appreciated. We then played an icebreaker game to get to know each other,  they were all given a packet of M&M's and used each one as a fun fact about them which they could eat after contributing to the class. It went well for the most part, but students were talking over one another and comments were being thrown left and right causing the classroom to become chaotic. After going through each student, they completed a worksheet titled, "The Soundtrack to your Life" where they chose songs they felt represented them and explained why. Many participated and had a lot to say as to others who left the sheet blank or as one student wrote, " I love bacon".

      Before the class was over we had began talking about values and what each students individuals values were. I was having difficulty bringing the students back to the lesson until I asked the question, "Would you rather be rich and dumb or poor and smart?" "Immediately, the alpha of the classroom, without raising his hand yells, "Hell yeah rich and dumb" and "I responded with a quick "why". The class went silent. It was the most incredible moment to see the students wait for his response because of his clear lack of preparation of a follow up question. He was deliberately answering this way for attention and I wanted to let the student know that it wasn't supposed to be a joke. I made it clear to the student that he wasn't wrong as long as he had evidence to back up his argument. This led to a major debate amongst the students but was done in a behavior that was completely opposite to the beginning of the class. Students were raising their hands, were not talking over one another, and had great, in depth arguments. It was then I realized I needed to create activities and lessons that would engage them in this way and truly connected with them.

     Therefore, when I went to the high school to teach again, I was a bit more nervous about the class because I was unsure of how they would respond a second time. I began the class digging a bit deeper into what values are and what are some things they value themselves. Many said family, money, friendship, etc. I compiled a list of 9 where they only chose five of them. It boiled down to success, truth, friendship, love and happiness. We were able to go through the list and explain what each word meant and why it is a value. They were completely attentive and it was clear they wanted to participate, which had me a little confused. I then explained that each word would be placed on chart paper and they would split into groups to write about why they value this, an example of this value or something that represents that value. They were helpful when setting up the activity, hanging up the posters, helping me cut each one, and were ready for more instructions. I proceeded to tell them they had five minutes at each station and then we would rotate. The entire activity ran smoothly and was ultimately a success! I was so impressed at how well they responded to this activity and how much effort they actually put into it. After it was all said and done, I had them write me at least a paragraph about their thoughts on the activity, something that they learned doing the activity, or the option of telling me their values and explaining why they valued it. I have just read through all of the papers and I am thrilled that they responded so well. Aside from the student who wrote, "I value bacon".  Each student wrote almost an entire page and now I have had this proud moment that I really was able to connect to the students and was able to almost feel like a real teacher.