Day 1 Activities

After our group was properly inaugurated as Mr. Gonzales' 4th Hour U.S. History U.W.M. service learners, we conducted some activities for our students to participate in. The first activity called for the students to write information about themselves on a note card. This information included their name, their favorite things to do, favorite musicians / groups, as well as their favorite T.V. shows / movies.I feel this activity was beneficial at exposing commonalities between my group and the students. To no surprise, these topics of questions didn't fail to strike up conversations. It was hard to believe that so shortly after awkwardly exchanging names, the students and my group were sharing intricate details of their favorite Family Guy episodes, Jay-Z song, or their favorite games to play. After countless chuckles and debates over which song or movie was better, we prompted the students with the next set of questions. Unlike the previous questions, these questions were a lot more complex and personal. The next series of questions probed the students to consider how they identify complex social structures including race, ethnicity, stereotypes, and how the arrays of socially classifiable groups are perceived by the public. The answers to these questions were a lot harder to extract as we were attempting to avoid the invasion of personal barriers. Our students came up with some strong answers, and I do not believe anyone was offended nor did I feel that the students were very apprehensive about the topic. I feel that perhaps my group, three 19-21 year-old, white college students might not have received such openness and willingness to share their views if we were to ask the same questions of some of their parents, or other older community members.

Journal 1-First Day at Loyola Academy

Overall, when informed that this course had a service learning requirement, I was a little bit concerned about what such a requirement would entail. I became moderately nervous when I became aware of the fact that the students we will be working with are in high school. As if the short age range between myself and the students was not intimidating enough, I later found out that the majority of the students are Spanish speaking. While on my way to the school, all I could think about was how I would treat a college undergrad while I was in high school. There is no question that I would've been utterly disrespectful and uncooperative of the college students' plans. Upon walking into the classroom, I remember thinking to myself that Karma had finally caught up with me, and all of the torment I gave some of my teachers would erupt in my face...

Once my group and I were seated with our visitor passes clipped on, it was pretty strange to take a look around the room. Much to my surprise, I encountered a lot of faces that I wouldn't necessarily consider out of my age group. In other words; the students didn't look that much younger, nor did I (and my group) really look that much older. On a side note, the teacher is relatively young, but perhaps the relationship between age, authority, and personal niches within the school setting would allow for my group and I to connect better with the students (than per say a teacher).

In any case, after icebreakers and introductions, I found myself surprised by the level of cooperation and enthusiasm that the students exhibited. Provided this doesn't turn out to be a dreadful experience where the students lose the interest in working with us, I feel I will be able to get a lot out of this experience. I hope to learn more about the South Side of Milwaukee, how Milwaukee Public Schools work, the lifestyle of teenage Hispanic Americans in Milwaukee, and how we are different/similar.