StephanieC's blog

Well, it was the last week we taught at Compton Drew.  Today was the awards ceremony in which students were recognized for academics and for perfect attendance.  The YES program was also recognized.  Yesterday, Delamonta and I (mostly Delamonta) worked with two students in the Design It Curriculum who were writing a speech about the YES program.  It was really fulfilling and a little surprising to see how much they enjoyed some of the activities and what they took from them.  They performed their speeches today at the ceremony, which I unfortunately missed because I was running around looking for marbles for the marble machine they were supposed to demonstrate.  A bunch of YES teens were also recognized for their work in the classrooms.  It created some nostalgic feelings already - even though we have two weeks left in the program, we're done teaching and it seems like the last day of school all over again.

 

This week was kind of crazy, especially since we were making ice cream with essentially all of our classes.  I had to drive two days in a row, which, most people know, is a strain for me.  I've been running around getting materials, but at least I now know how to make ice cream at home.  And doing teaching prep for ice cream is a bit hectic and incredibly messy.  I think we've cleaned up our classroom twice this week, and we could definitely keep going.

So this is my first summer working both with the Science Center and the Yes program. I guess I wasn't exactly sure what to expect before starting this job, but it's been a great experience so far. I've really enjoyed working with all my coworkers, supervisors and yes teens alike. It's funny that I feel we've gotten so close from spending so much time together. (I think I'm boring my friends at home with work stories all the time, because those are basically the only stories I have at all now). Teaching in the classroom has been one really good experience. I was amazed how fast all our new Yes Teens (and there's a whole lot of them) were able to pick up on doing their roles well. We have a whole lot of potential and rising lead facilitators who now argue over who can do it. Other great experiences have included watching certain Yes teens falling off rolling chairs or rocket ships while trying to be suave... but that's just my opinion. Anyway, I hope everyone else's experiences at Compton Drew or with the Yes Program have been as fulfilling and entertaining as mine has been. I know there's been some crazy stuff happening, but I know I'll really miss this when it's ove