Hello class!
Please write this weeks' post on what you are most excited about concerning your upcoming trip, and what you hope to learn from this experience. Also, feel free to write part of your blog about the video we showed at the beginning of class.
Have a good trip!
Being able to attend this trip is thrilling on its own. Having the ability to spend time with new friends from different majors and backgrounds will definitely make the journey exciting. I have never been to Atlanta before so I am anxious to compare the lifestyles within a big city to those in Lawrence and Kansas. The best part about this trip is being able to assist the homeless in accessing healthy meals. Im sure for many people these meals are necessary for survival. Not only will I come back with a new widened perspective on life but I will also be reminded of the things I take for granted on a daily basis; therefore I am happy this trip will be able to keep me in check when it comes to realizing my privileges and my responsibility towards others in my community, country, and world. Overall, I hope this trip will build in me a permanent focus to serve other people. Also, I am excited about the fact that there will be a plethora of snacks on the road trip there and I am the one responsible for the music so my group can expect great vibes and chill sounds throughout the way.
ReplyDeleteIn the past few weeks, I have read a lot about the purpose of the Playworks programs around the country, and I have looked into different types of programs that Playworks offers in schools. This research, combined with my Community Health major have led me to look into more opportunities working with children to provide a healthy and safe environment in which they can play in a bully-free space.
ReplyDeleteMy mom was a classroom teacher in an elementary school for 6 years, and she now works at a school in Olathe that experiences a higher rate of gang activity than most schools in Johnson County. Through her experience, I have heard many stories about recess conflicts and how they can carry over into the classroom, which in turn affects students’ performance and development of social skills. I can imagine that many of the students and teachers that Playworks volunteers work with are in schools similar to the one my mom works in. Because of this, I am most excited to learn how Playworks implements this safe environment for students, especially since they work with a variety of students in a variety of schools.
It will also be interesting for me to see how the students react to the methods used by this program. Playworks seems similar to Teach for America, so I am looking forward to getting a first hand view of how the program really works in the community. All of the stories and videos I have read and seen in regards to Playworks speak highly of the program. I know this is also often the case with Teach for America, but there are definitely critics who disagree with the purpose and structure of Teach for America.
Originally, I applied for an Alternative Winter Break, because I enjoy helping others, meeting new people, and of course adventure. But, over the past several Thursdays I’ve realized that there is so much more to volunteering than I anticipated. I’m eager to apply the lessons I learned in class to my service at Give Kids the World. Though we learned of several social issues, I found that I could always relate the main ideas to my specific site. Before attending this class, I probably would have shown up for the trip without digging deeper into the mission of the organization and developing a greater understanding of my purpose there; however, this time I have started reading first hand accounts from the numerous families that Give Kids the World has touched. I have learned that they host several fundraisers throughout the year to build up funds for these families buried by medical bills and hardships. I have developed a strong appreciation for the goodness that Give Kids the World spreads, and I am so excited to be a part of it. I’m looking forward to not just passively volunteering, but actively volunteering, processing, and reflecting. I have high expectations for my trip, because I’m traveling with a fantastic group of girls to a fantastic destination designed to make every little kid’s dream come true. Many of these kids will be burdened with health difficulties that I have never had to cope with, yet I’m sure they will still be filled with spunk. Being reminded of what I so often take for granted will be tough but eye opening. As a pre-nursing major interested in pediatrics, I’m eager to learn from the perspective of patients and parents. Hopefully, I’ll be able to apply what I learn in the short week at Give Kids the World to my future career.
ReplyDeleteI am excited to be able to get away from everyday life to give back. I am also excited to grow close to and build relationships with six other girls who feel just as strongly as I do about service. But when I think about my upcoming Alternative Break, I find that I am most excited to see how I will change because of this experience. The video we watched at the beginning of class expressed how we need to learn from children. I strongly believe that children have insights and perspectives of the world that we can’t have as adults. I think we often underestimate what children can do. I am excited to see what I will be able to learn from the kids at Give Kids the World. When I first applied for Alternatives Breaks, I was most excited to see how big of a difference I could make in the children’s lives. I was mostly focused on what I would accomplish and what I would contribute. However, through the classes I have learned that this trip is not about what I can do, but about what I will learn. Although I hope to be able to make a difference in a child’s life at Give Kids the World, I realize that the one who might get the most out of this experience is me.
ReplyDeleteWords cannot begin to express how excited I am for this trip! I've never been as far west as Tuscon before, so I'm really elated to road trip with people who are essentially strangers to volunteer. Over the past couple Thursdays I've been exposed to the different levels of volunteering and I can't wait to do the same at my site. I'm going to Humane Borders, which deals with a touchy subject for a lot of people, but I'm excited to get to see what it is like in a community that really is almost divided in two about their stances on it. I've only ever been exposed to one side of the argument so hearing about the other and being exposed to the other will be quite an experience. I learned we will be going to other sites as well besides Humane Borders that are related to the issue at hand. I know this week long trip will be simply amazing and teach me how to interact with all kinds of people as well as give back.
ReplyDeleteAs this is my second alternative break, I am extremely excited to have just as wonderful of an experience as I had last year. One of my favorite parts of the break was how well I got to know my other group members. We spent all night talking about really important things; we all shared very personal pieces of our lives and quickly grew from strangers to good friends who cared about each other. I was amazed with how close I became comfortable--that's not usually easy for me. Opportunities to experience things like this don't happen all of the time--therefore whenever I am presented with such an opportunity, I know I must take complete advantage of it.
ReplyDeleteWith so much studying lately and not enough physical exercise, I am very excited to spend the week in manual labor, using my physical abilities and giving my mind a bit of a rest. It can be very soothing to spend long hours in nature, so I look forward to the therapeutic aspects of the nature and of the work. I hope to get to know those who are employed by Cumberland Trail or who spend much more time there than I will to see why they are so passionate about the trail and to get some insight into all of the work that has been done thus far.