Good Afternoon West Community,
As I write this blog post about last week's activities, I most certainly will report on what has happened during the DPS teacher's strike, and more specifically, how has YESS been impacted at West Leadership Academy.
Classroom Instruction
My class finished up our personality tests (which you can read about in last week's post) and have made great progress on building a culture of building educational pride in their work. My students loved the idea of being able to identify their strengths and weaknesses, and more specifically, how the knowledge they have learned from this assignment tie back into themselves being emotionally intelligent, which is one of the main components of the YESS Curriculum. We had our first official DPS snow day on Thursday, but Friday was dedicated on our bullying in education lesson.
For those of you who are not clear on what bullying looks like, our kiddos are more than happy to educate anyone who asks them what it looks like, but more importantly, to call it out when they see it occurring. There are 4 main types of bullying, as you can see below.
Even before I started teaching the class on what bullying looks like, I asked the classes to write down in their google classroom accounts a post on what they know, just to create a dialogue and get their heads engaged in the lesson.
The questions was as follows:
"Think of a cultural figure, a character in a movie, or someone you personally know who you consider to be a bully. Describe them in detail and argue your position with examples this figure does that makes them a bully."
I had a variety of results come back from my students. I had examples of family members, cartoon characters such as Nelson Muntz from The Simpsons, Jerry the mouse from Tom and Jerry, movie characters such as Thanos from the Avengers: Infinity War. Funny enough, some students took this post more serious and given the state of our political climate as it exists today, on top of how much our students hear his name, the 45th President of the United States was certainly mentioned (and it was not just once) Our students gave several examples and argued their position to all of their characters, a skill that will certainly be built upon. We certainly have students who are very passionate about speaking up against hate and my classroom has the tools and resources for our student to stand up against bullying.
They will be making posters in small groups and will be assigned to make visual aids for the the WLA hallways on what bullying looks like promote a safe environment and denounce bullying in all of its forms.
Lastly, I had my classes do a team-building exercise called "The Human Knot" We practiced in small groups first (4 students) and then we made bigger groups as big as 12. I am very glad to report that while at first there was some hesitancy, the students embraced the challenge and had a blast. Here are some photos:
I will report back next week on what this week looked like, which leads me to the elephant in the room.
The DCTA/DPS Contract Negotiations
Firstly, the majority of my colleagues at WLA have gone on strike and have been rallying for better wages but also, more funding for our students. I am wholeheartedly in support for teachers who are on strike and the entire Westside community itself is behind our wonderful teachers. Our students are receiving a true US Civics lesson from their instructors as they exercise their Constitutional first amendment right to organize and speak freely on the issue itself. We did have several of our YESS students who participated in the student-led protest, and I will certainly report back their testimonies once the DCTA and DPS come to an agreement. Below are some of WLA's students in support of their teachers.
Secondly, the YESS institute's sole purpose is to provide structure and resources to our students and that is exactly what I am doing. That being said I, myself, have been inside the building and mainly providing support for our students that have shown up. My YESS class has been put on hold until the strike ends, and what I have done is mainly provide support for our WLA Administration in any way that I can. The students for the past two days have faced many troubling questions and many new faces, as their classrooms are now being ran by other DPS staff. The environment is quite calm, yet very uncertain. The classes are safe, yet have some uneasy, troubling clouds over the environment. The students themselves are having fun getting to know what it's like to be in this position, yet have asked when this situation will be over. In other words, this has certainly taken a toll on our students who aren't entirely sure when their teachers will be back, and this has certainly been one wild ride, for everyone across the district and at home.
Thirdly, whether you disagree or agree with the strike, we must all remember that it takes ALL OF US in order to win the battle of building and empowering our students. Whether you are a product of DPS, a parent of a student of DPS, or know of anyone who has been effected by the situation, it is our duty to build one another up, rather than to tear one down. We, the ones who have chosen to be in the education field, must remember that everything we do is for the sake of forward progress. Let us remind ourselves that it is not just about ourselves, but rather, it is about our community coming together, working for one another, and empowering one another.
I will leave you all with this.
"It takes a village to raise a child."
Happy reading, y'all.
Cowboys, Out.
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