March 20th- March 27th

With one week until spring break the students in YESS mentoring at North are powering through their homework days and turning in work for their core classes. Not only are students focusing on getting their grades up, but Seniors are giving words of encouragement on finishing the semester strong, and how important grades and GPA really are.

On Monday March 20th, mentor leaders did a college lesson with Emily, YESS college navigator.  In 6th period  Saul, mentor talked about how he has changed from 9th grade till now, and what his motivation for finishing the school year strong is. Saul said, "I kind of felt like I didn't care anymore because of all the pressure that was put on me this year." He went on to talk about how stressful it was to take multiple AP classes, apply for scholarships, and apply to colleges. He then told the whole class that the only reason he is trying is because he wants to be a great example for his mentee.

Also, this week we had parent teacher conferences. Many of the counselors directed parents to the YESS table to talk about the program and how their student can join for next school year.

We will finish off the week talking about how we can love ourselves.  We will do a lesson called "Love thy self." Students will talk about what they do to take care of themselves, as well as what do they associate the word love with.  When we return from spring break we will continue to talk about self-care.

On another note, Mentor Leader Guadalupe Tarango- Garcia has been accepted into Colorado College on a full ride scholarship, as well as accepted into Cornell, and was awarded the Daniel's Fund this week! Congratulations Lupe!

March 13th- March 17th

This week was a fun week at North High School. This week students discussed boundaries with one another. We discussed the spoken, unspoken, and written agreements we have with others. We also discussed why it is important to have boundaries with people we may not know that well, as well as what kind of boundaries we should have with friends versus family. The discussion piece was great. Students gave examples of why they may need to set boundaries with friends, and what unspoken agreements they have win their lives.

Also this week, mentor leaders thought it would be best to let students have an extra day of homework support. They carefully looked through each student's grades and realized that some have low grades simply because of missing assignments. Mentor leaders would like to have all students caught up by spring break, so that they may go on break without any stress or worry.  Next week we plan to talk more about college with Emily, our college navigator, as well as discuss in depth-"How to love ourselves." Overall, this week was a great week of learning and reflecting!

March 6th- March 10th

This week students worked on their Love Cups. Students self-reflected on what is draining them in their everyday lives. Some students mentioned that applying for college is draining, and other mentioned: family, friends, grades, work, and paying bills. It was amazing to hear the different issues that drain our students. As we reflected on what drains us, we also reflected on the things that make us happy. It was great hearing the different ways students cope with stress, make themselves happy, and if they did not have anything that made them feel great, mentors and mentees shared different ways they can make themselves happy.  One conversation that stood out to me was between a mentee and a mentor. The mentee has been struggling keeping his grades up this semester because he has been very depressed. The mentor asked him, "It looks like you have a lot that is draining you, is there anything I can help you with?" The mentee replied, "no, there is really nothing you can do. My grades are bad because I don't have enough energy to get caught up, and everything else is a family problem." The mentor listened to the mentee as he worked on his love cup. After about a minute of silence the mentor replied, "You know, I can come to your house in the evenings and work on homework with you, or if you need to get out of your house you can come to my house. My mom can cook dinner and we can work on anything you want."  The mentee smiled and said, "I would like that!" The mentor quickly comforted the student and said, "We all go through stuff, and I am your mentor. I have your back!" Moments like this are amazing to see and hear. The "Love Cup" is a great activity where student can self-reflect, as well as connect with their mentee/ mentor about what is going on in their lives. Students don't even realize how much they open up during this activity, but by the end of the project student seem to have a a sense of relief and a plan on how they can tackle the "holes" in their cup. This week was a great week of working on our love cups! On our block days students worked on getting their grades up in the classes that they are struggling in.  Students are coming to class prepared and are working hard!

2/27/2017- 3/2/17

I am

This week students worked on on their " I Am" poems as well as presented their poems to classmates. I was very impressed with their final product.  Through their poems students were able to voice who they are, what they want in life, and what is on their minds.

Also this week we worked on homework and missing assignments. This week a mentor leader helped a mentor with his mentee because he is failing almost every class. One day on their own time a  mentor leader and a mentor helped a mentee develop a plan on how he can get his grades up. I was very proud to hear that these student met up on their free time to make sure the mentee would be successful. I am also proud that this particular mentee was taking the initiative and was being accountable for his school work.

To wrap up the week the mentor leaders on main campus will continue the discussion on accountability and will have students work together to reflect on the excuses they use in their everyday lives, and how they can be more accountable for their actions. In engagement center we will begin discussing boundaries. We will reflect on spoken and unspoken agreements, By the end of this lesson students should be able to  determine if some of the unspoken agreements in their lives are working for them. Overall, it was another successful week here at North,