Easley 8

The last time I went to Easley, it was a Monday. The twins had homework. One twin walked in with a sad expression. The guy in charge asked her what was wrong. She mumbled, "nothing." He said, "Come here." She went to him. He hugged her and held her for a little bit. The lady in charge said, "Someone probly bein mean at school." The other twin walked in confidently and happy. She went staight to the home work room. The sad twin followed. I asked if I could help her with her homework. She knew most of the answers, but what she didn't know she didn't want to figure out and kept sayin', "Help me. Just help me." The older twin got fed up with her whining and would tell her the answer. Their dad walked in after a little bit and went straight to the happy twin. She hugged him and told him about her good day and talked about her homework. The sad twin hid her face in her arms on the table. She peered up at their dad with huge tears in her eyes. After a while, the dad said to the sad twin, "Come with me." So he talked with her for a little bit. I'm not sure what was going on. The sad twin had once told me that everyone calls her sister the "cuter twin." Man! What a complex that child must have. It must be hard being a twin, but it must be harder being a twin in a poor environment where your sister becomes smarter, more confident, and more driven because she is pampered more.

Easley 7

As soon as I arrived, the lady in charge of the program announced that there would be a meeting in the gym, "Everyone to the bleachers NOW!" It took a lots more yelling on her part for all the kids to obey her and to stay on the bleachers. Once they were all gathered, she started to shout out them for their mistreatment of the air hockey table. She told them that it was a lot of money and that it should not be ruined after a few days. She repeated herself a lot hoping to get the point across. She told them not to tattle tail if they saw kids vandalizin', but to tell them not to or they would have to pay for it; and if the parents couldn't pay for it, then they couldn't come to the after school program until it was payed for. She then took the privilege of the game room away from them for a couple of days. Before she spoke, though, you could hear the kids whispering, "Mrs. _ is angry 'bout somethin'." After the speech, the kids got up and played as usual. They were disappointed that they couldn't use the game room, but didn't seem dismayed about the speech.

Later, a couple of girls were fighting over a boy they liked. After a while of their jabbering and yelling at one another, the boy came over and sat VERY close to me. "What's your name?" He asked me. The two girls giggled and were mad that he was paying attention to me and not them. So they reached over me to hold his hand. He jerked away, gave me a playful smile and started talking to them about what the big deal was... interesting day at Easely!

Chadasha Storyboard

Final Service Learning Reflection #2

Material artifacts at Easley go unnoticed as far as written materials. I did not even think to use the resources that they have available because there was never a need during a tutoring session. The kids come in with their worksheets. That's all I've ever seen them use. Also, I've heard that their resources are not up-to-date, and I've seen that they are lacking in resources that would actually be beneficial (i.e. objects to use for visual math, games like Scrabble, etc.). The games that they have are great resources except that the foosball game is missing parts, and they have to share marbles when playing Mancala because they are lacking marbles for all of the games.

The space at Easley is put together well for what they have. They have a track and field outside, a playground, an inside gym, a space for games and tables, and a room for tutoring. I think it is funny that it is a program for after school tutoring, and yet the tutoring room is the smallest space they have. Also, the games are placed in the atrium, so they are amid everything that is going on, and it tends to get crazy out there at times. The games are right outside of the tutoring room, so they can be distracting to the kids who are trying to do their homework.

Final Service Learning Reflection #1

Like most kids who are in elementary school, there were subjects that I liked more than others. There were activities I liked more than others. There were people I liked to spend time with more than others. The kids at Easley are not too different than I was at that age in these aspects. Some of the girls that I help with homework would rather be told the answer to write down than figure it out themselves. One of the girls is good at math and likes it while other another girl would rather fill in blanks for English homework. Some girls would rather play beauty shop with my hair, and other girls would rather play "Jack in the Box" or do cartwheels. They fight with each other consistently and get along with others consistently.

Growing up, I learned how to love God and my family. A lot of these kids don't seem to understand love and care the same way that I do. They were nurtured differently than I was. They grew up in a city while I grew up in a mountain town. They are in public school while I was home schooled. They have experienced crime, poverty, and hardship in a way that I have not.

In this way we are alike and different. I can relate to them in certain ways, but I learn from them in others. It has been an eye opening experience to understand literacy in a different light.

Final Service Learning Reflection #3

Easely has taught me a lot about discourse based on neighborhood and schooling. In Lives on the Boundary (Mike Rose), he addresses the fact that his neighborhood brought him to a place where he was angry and confused and stagnant. Because the area he lived in couldn't offer much, he didn't get to see the world for all of its possibilities. I believe that the kids growing up going to the Edgehill Center and living in that area are experiencing some of the same emotions. It is hard for these kids to be motivated in their schooling when they can't see themselves living a better or different life than they are living now. It doesn't seem that these kids are being taught to do critical thinking or that they are given enough attention in school or by their families. When tutoring the younger ones, they don't want to have anything to do with homework (not unlike most kids), but they expect me to give them all the answers. They are used to being spoon fed because I suppose the teachers and parents don't have time or energy to teach them how to teach themselves. Some of the older kids are beginning to understand the importance of being able to figure the answers out for themselves. Just like Mike Rose was on the boundary of staying in his old neighborhood or branching out to learn and study, these kids have a choice. But unless someone steps up to encourage them to pursue higher education and shows them the steps to take, their lives are still on the boundary.

Easley 5 & 6

Since it was Friday, they didn't have homework. I immediately joined the gym goings-on. We played frisbee, basketball, miniature football, did cartwheels, etc. The kids had to be told not to be to be too rough when it came to dog piling. Also, the kids had sharing issues. One girl wouldn't throw the frisbee if a certain boy wanted to play. The boys thought that I wasn't very athletic (which is funny because people have always considered me athletic). A lot of them, even though they are small are very good athletes! I then played Mancala with the girls until I had to leave. This time was just reinforcing the concept of sharing and only running in the gym, not the corridor.

Easley 4

The kids recognized me quickly this time, and wanted to play with me before I even signed in. THe girls wanted to watch the boys play baseball, but they were distracting the players. I asked the lady in charge if it was okay that we watch the practice. She said that it was fine, but I felt awkward for disrupting the focus of the players. I kept telling the girls to be quiet. Their attention span didn't last long, however, and they went inside. A little pre-K girl came out of nowhere and grabbed my hand. She asked me if I would play with her on the playground. There were lots of little ones there yesterday! All of them wanted me to pick them up, but their mothers were there watching, so I just held their hands and talked to them. Little ones are my favorite, but I wanted to pick them up and play with them. I played Jack-in-the-Box with three girls. I made sure they took turns playing with me. An older girl asked me to help her with home work when I was leaving, so I didn't get to help her.

Online Gospel Music Forum

After searching online for gospel communities, I found a site that people with an interest in gospel music can get to know each other through any aspect of life. There is a book club, a lounge, a prayer board, a news "room", a choir ministry section, (and more on instruments, style, and chord requests). This will be helpful in learning some language of gospel music fanatics as well as the general attitude and response to gospel music. So far, I can tell that they are seeking truth, serving each other, and bonding through music taste!

http://learninggospelmusic.com/forums/index/php

Easley 2 & 3

I did two consecutive hours on Monday, October 10. The first hour, I helped a girl do her homework. She was doing multiplication and I tried to help her with her multiplication tables, but she didn't want to have anything to do with it. She just wanted to use someone's cell phone calculator. The more I tried to help her, the more she tried to use me to get the answers. When I tried to get her to figure it out she would get upset and proclaim her hate for math homework. I'm wondering what I can do differently to help kids understand the importance of critical thinking...

I mostly just played outside during the second hour. One older girl put her arm in mine; I didn't really notice. One of the men in charge yelled at her over the field to let go of me. I didn't understand him (in fact, I don't understand a lot of them when they are talking with each other). When she took her arm out of mine, I realized that it wasn't appropriate for us to be touching. I became a little bit angry inside at this realization. The kids who are touchy obviously need the human touch. The healthy human needs at least 7 touches a day (I wholeheartedly agree with this statistic because when I came to college, I longed for a friendly touch for a few months before I made friends); I feel that some of these kids don't get that many friendly touches. My personality is one that is urged to meet needs. I want to be able to hug them, and pick them up, and hold their hands because they need it. It makes me a little bit angry inside that this could be a legal issue because there are creeps out in the world that make it harder for non creeps to actually live! Also, one of the girls kept begging me to pick her up and help her do things; she got mad at me for not doing it. I wanted to, but knew I shouldn't; so I just had to be okay with her being mad at me.

Chadasha Language - terms

chadash - refresh, in Hebrew
Chadashians - choir members
chair - referring to leadership positions (i.e. Communications Chair)
Decision Day - when new members turn in their commitment forms

Meeting Places:
curb garage - meet for off campus events
bell tower - meet if you don't know where the other meeting places are
Bruin Hills Clubhouse - meet for Chadasha socials
UM student lounge - meet for rehearsal and small group Bible studies

Service Project Locations:
Trevecca - nursing home
Luke 14:12 - feeding the homeless (part of Room in the Inn ministry)
Cottage Cove - Biblically based tutoring program

Style

I just found out about Chadasha this year when I attended the on campus Awakening worship night. Chadasha sponsored this event as a way to encourage and refresh the spiritual live of students. When I walked into the auditorium, a member of the choir handed me a flyer and invited me to the "info" meeting. When I read the flyer, I became excited that the meeting was at a time when I could attended. At the meeting the following Thursday, I learned that I already knew students who were invested in this ministry. I worked with one girl, Laura Gearhart, over the summer. I live in teh same dorm as the choir director, Emily Summers. I have had classes with several of the members. I learned that I have more of an emic perspective of Chadasha than I originally thought. I began this year not knowing that Chadasha existed, to knowing about it through understanding the involvement of others.

Mini Interview Transcription and Summary

What made you want to join Chadasha?

Actually, I never officially joined Chadasha. Sophomore year, they asked me to run sound for their home concert at the end of the year, and so I did just as a one time thing. And then, at the end of the concert, they asked me if I wanted to be their sound engineer for the next year. And I said, "Well, that'd be really fun, but we'll see if I have time." So, I never said "no" and I never said "yes", so they just kind of assumed that I was gonna do it; so I did it. And it's really fun...um... I did it because 'a' they let me play with their sound system and 'b' because they're really really awesome people, and being around them is a lot of fun, and they're a great support system...

I asked more questions in the interview, but the overall feeling of the interview is that this girl was needed at one point for her gifts, and the members of Chadasha at that time encouraged her to serve with her gifts. She met the need, ended up loving the community so much that she has been a part of the Chadasha community for two years now. She has stepped up as a leader when the time allowed for it, and she has built lasting friendships through music, fellowship, and service (pretty much the vision of Chadasha).

Chadash means to refresh. So, the "refreshing" isn't only for the people they reach out to, but it comes to those who are doing the refreshing as well!

Easley 1

I was nervous to think about jumping into the after school program without knowing much about it. But the experience I had in just one visit was amazing! The kids were done with their home work when I got there, so I played basketball with some 8-9 year old girls. After 5 minutes of shooting, two of the girls grabbed my hands and said "Can we play with your hair?" They marveled over the color and texture of my hair while playing "salon." A bunch of kids came up to them while they were "fixing" my hair and asked if they could feel it. It was adorable! I was the only white person in the vicinity for the whole hour, so it was a little bit intimidating to me at first (although I'm not sure why). The girls then played "school" and they were my "teachers." While we played, they gave me "spelling tests" and "reading assignments". I was able to help them with their spelling and math while we played. They loved my name, asked me if I knew the other girls in the class who had already visited, asked if we could be friends, wondered when I would come back, and just stared at me for long periods of time. These kids want companionship and crave learning and discipline as much as attention. I can't wait to go back!

Cultural Artifacts

I have a few artifacts that represent Chadasha. I attained these through personal communication with leaders of the group as well as through social media:

Commitment Form 2011-2012
Emails from the communication chair
Facebook page
Belmont's Student Voice Chadasha page

Humanities Symposium

I attended the convocation about the homeless newspaper. I learned a lot about the discourses of homelessness. The lady that started the newspaper spoke. She is a photo journalist with a vision! Hearing her speak with passion about the less fortunate was inspiring. It made me want to pursue people that I don't know much about and who I might be afraid to approach. Homeless people are still people; this is something that so many of us forget.

The Weight Room from the Outside View

I frequently visit the weight room for my own personal use, but I decided to observe the weight room from the outside perspective (literally). So, I sat in a chair looking into the weight room through the clear emergency exit door that connects the fitness area to the top of the Beaman.

I noticed a pattern by watching people go in and out of the weight room: the water fountain is a very popular thing (imagine that). This intrigued me, though, because I never realized how much people actually use water fountains until I sat watching it for 15 minutes. The funny thing is that I only saw one girl use it, and the rest of the constant flow of water fountain users were male. Then I noticed that every girl I saw walking out of the room had a water bottle in hand (aha!).

Also, I noticed that the weight room is not a social place. Lots of people go there, but very few converse with other people. I thought it was because everyone wears antisocial gear known as ipods ; I only saw one student with an ipod, and there was still no interaction between students.

Field Working Project Proposal

I am interested in conducting a field study on the discourse of missionaries and mission work...

why do we do mission work?
what is mission work exactly?
who can do it?
who is doing it right now?
how do missionaries accomplish their/God's goals?
when is it a good to time to start doing mission work/ministry?
what denominations/religions encourage it as an important ministry?
what types of mission work are there?
what are some statistics on what countries have the most missionaries or the greatest need?
how can one be involved without being the actual missionary?
what kind of organizations are mission oriented? how have they made an impact? do they have plans?
how can music be implemented within this discourse?

O'Malley the Alley Cat

This clip shows different discourses between two cats. Language, social status, and values between the two   differ greatly. The alley cat is a care-free nomad who travels alone, but keeps a high status among his circle of friends. When he approaches the affluent lady cat, his body language and accent immediately show her that he does not share the same discourses. She, on the other hand, has a family (is worried that they are not at home), and values a stable life of money, comfort, and education.

In the middle of the story, the cat and her kittens are emerged into the social circle of the alley cat. They enjoy the experience, but miss their home. In the end, the alley cat decides to dedicate himself to life in their world instead, learning and acquiring new discourses.

What Not to Do as a Writer

In my elementary years of writing, I was told, "Don't splice your sentences." In my high school years, my teacher scolded, "Being vague is never a good thing in writing. You use too many adjectives; give me specific verbs!"

These are both very true in the world of writing:

Comma usage is tricky because there are so many technicalities to using them. The placement of a comma in a sentence depends on what the writer is trying to get across to the audience; if that comma is moved to a different place, the meaning, direction, or tone of the sentence could change completely. The rules of commas should always be taken under consideration.

An adjective overdose can be quite the cheesy read. I tend to think of adjectives as flowery, but solid verb choices really add spice, emotion, and otherwise overlooked detail. Of course, for children's books, more adjective usage and common verbs are a necessity in the development of a child's language.