Category Archives: Community Field Experience Reflections

Week 3

Monday

-Completed the EIYP survey with the google form on which data can be collected.

-Finalized the volunteering powerpoint ready to go for Tuesday.

-Finalized camping application spots and printed parent consent forms for the students.

-Assisted students in the after school homework club with resume writing.

-Supervised the after school English club while they enjoyed free time in the gym.

-Conversed with more students from the English club about their experience in Canada, family, hometown, languages, etc.

Tuesday

-Organized the office stationary cupboard.

-Organized educational material binders.

-At after school program, led an icebreaker game, presented a powerpoint on Volunteering, chatted with students about their volunteering and work experiences.

Wednesday

-Assembled survey kits for each youth worker.

-Sat in with youth worker on one-on-one life/ goals/ post-secondary workshops with students.

-Assisted a student on possible interview questions for a job he applied to.

Thursday

-Created sample stencils for a t-shirt graffiti project.

-At after school program, led an icebreaker activity.

-Helped with the set-up and clean-up of stencil making, and taught students individually how to carve out stencils for their t-shirt project.

Friday

-Inputing of data from a survey conducted at the beginning of the year.

-Organized more educational binders.

-Goodbye lunch with the youth workers for me!

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As I reflected on my 3 weeks practicum at EIYP, I realized how valuable this experience was for me to open my eyes to how student learning can happen even when it is not in a typical classroom setting. When I first met many of the youth, they were quite sociable. To my surprise, the youth workers mentioned how some of them were very shy when they first started the program. It was amazing to hear that an afterschool program can help youth to establish their confidence, social skills, and to discover their strengths.

Week 2

The EIYP office

Monday

-Huddle meeting between myself and youth workers, updating each other on our past week’s progress and any new updates for upcoming weeks.

-Continued editing the survey from last week as I incorporated suggestions/ feedback from the other youth workers.

-Began collecting information on community partners to plan for their year-end picnic.

-Observed the English after school club that was lead by youths and interacted with the students by joining in their games and activities.

Tuesday

-Completed the list of community partners.

-Went to an after school session on creating a simulation of classroom experiences in high school where I helped the youth write the script of the teacher and student roles. Gave them insight on the structure of a classroom and how a teacher might manage his/ her students. Helped them with the acting to make the simulation more realistic.

Wednesday

-Helped a youth worker plan and organize an after school workshop.

-At the after school program, led an icebreaker game for the youth.

-Attended a Capacity Cafe where parents have the opportunity to hear about struggles that youth experience as they are learning to adjust to their new life and school environment in Canada. Helped with setting up the event and supported the youth as they voiced their opinions to the audience.

Thursday

-Completed some minor assignments for youth workers- survey data entry, camp application forms, etc.

-At the after school program, assisted the youth in writing emails to community partners for their year-end picnic. Guided them through the process by reminding them of certain criteria that would be important to include.

Friday

-Created a powerpoint on Volunteering for a workshop next week when I will be filling in for one of the youth workers.

-Sorted out camping applications.

-Created a new lesson plan to be used by a youth worker at the beginning of the year.

-Organized and set-up equipment ready for next week.

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As I got to know the youth more this week (saw some youth a 2nd or even 3rd time throughout the week), I was able to interact with them on a deeper level than the ‘small talks’ I had when I first met them during week 1. I learned that because they knew my position now, they valued my suggestions and feedback for them. I learned that making an effort to encourage them by saying things like “good job”, “excellent work”, “you did fantastic!”, was very uplifting for many. I noticed how the youth workers really emphasized this positive attitude towards the youth. When I tried to provide the youth with this positive attitude, I saw a difference in their confidence (eg., they smiled more, were more willing to talk).

Week 1

The EIYP Program

Monday
-Hip Hop and Beat Boxing Workshop for students because of pro-d day
-Participated in workshop, encouraged the shy students to take part, conversed with students and got to know them more

Tuesday
-Created surveys that EIYP would use for the end of this year’s program.
-Helped one of the youth workers’ in preparing for the Cultural Celebration, Wrote lyrics on chart paper for students to refer to during the performance, created a powerpoint of the lyrics so that the audience would also be able to refer to the lyrics during the performance, and helped to edit and finalize a game of Human Bingo that had previously been started but not yet finished.

Wednesday
-Observed a wrap-up awards ceremony for the volleyball tournament held by students from the after school program.
-Helped with facilitating instructions and making sure students were cooperative and having fun.

At the volleyball awards ceremony.

What sports meant to them.

Thursday

-Created games for one of the youth workers’ to use for students entering the after school program in September 2014
-Played games and sports with students at after school program (it reminded me of when I was in high school!).

Friday
-Met with my FA.

-Worked on creating more activities to be used by the youth workers.

-Attended a workshop hosted by a guest speaker from Battered Women’s Society. This workshop was intended for the girls in the after school program.

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From my visits to a different school everyday to observe their after school program, I learned that students are not afraid to speak if you initiate the conversation. I found that when I asked them a question, they were more than happy to respond even if there was some level of difficulty for them to communicate in English. From this experience, I learned that they enjoyed conversing if they felt that the person they were conversing with cared about who they were as an individual, not just as a student. I also noticed that whenever I asked students questions, they would ask me the same question in return. I was touched by this because I felt that they cared about who I was in return.