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Week 41: Graduating

Girlies <3

The team

Graduation ceremony!

Service Rocks party

 This week was full of: paperwork, a picnic in Douglas Park, the fire circle, and graduation.

Joys: see previous posts <3   

Week 40: Releasing

Soaking up the last days

Right

My freshmen :-)

One of many hallway hugs and photos

Celebrating the end of the year with admin

:-D

Best moment

Woohoo!

This week was full of:  putting on the school Talent Show, reading An Awesome Book to my classes, getting showered in cards and appreciation, watching the seniors graduate (complete with Rahm Emanuel), and finishing an irreplaceable year.


Quotes of the week:  
"See Ms. Lewis, that's why everyone loves you and Ms. Serrano - you'll stay late to help kids and you don't give up.  Other people get irritated with kids."  - A sophomore

"I just want to say thank you for all the help you gave me, and for always listening to me when no one else did.  P.S. I will never give up." - A card from V <3


Joys:  Hearing the classrooms and hallways burst into applause when an announcement came on over the intercom to thank City Year; getting hugs at graduation and seeing how ecstatic the parents were for their babies; seeing 2 freshmen boys and the school secretary getting down to Dougie at the talent show; surprise appreciation from admin and teachers.

Week 39: Prepping

Before

After

My snail

So many volunteers!  Note the news cameras on the White Sox player painting Alabama

This week was full of: prepping for White Sox Service Day!

Joys: bonding with Adrian while tracing the murals and chatting with volunteers while painting the playground.

Week 38: Online Algebra-ing

Kiddos on a field trip

Go, Andrea, go!

Art by a favorite junior

This week has been full of: taking our freshmen on a field trip to see a play, our last PT, a team day to the cultural center and navy pier, showing 'Crips and Bloods' to the juniors, and watching Andrea paint our CY graffiti boards.  :-)

Quotes of the Week: 
"What?  You pregnant?  Girl, congratulations!  What are you gonna do?" - A freshmen on a phone with his friend, also a freshmen

"They're all a part of me.  See, he's an outcast, and I'm an outcast.  His clan rejected him, like me.  But he's still persevering." - How T describes his artwork


If I had a superpower...
I would use it for good.  My power would be to make violence go away because now there is so many things going on.
I would want to be able to change people's thoughts on life, because I think the way that people think is a big reason for the situation that we're in.

"Yeah, I learned my lesson in jail, and want to stay on track now.  And it brought me and my momma closer."  - D, after he told me about his experience.  Love this kid. 

Joys:  D passing his online algebra class!  So happy he can graduate on time.  A moment to remember.

Week 37: Leading

Juniors on a field trip making a meal for senior citizens

My freshmen with Ms. Minaj

Announcing the scholarship winners

This week was full of:  being the Team Leader for a week! Chaperoning a field trip with some juniors, Nicki Minaj visiting our school, fights in school breaking out, watching a gang video with J, and starting to help D, a senior, pass his online algebra class so he can graduate.  

Quotes of the Week: 

How much did being in the Get Schooled Challenge motivate you to come to school?
"What's the Get Schooled Challenge?"


During a discussion with juniors about The Fallen, a book about a boy who has to decide whether to take revenge on the guy who killed his little brother or say no to violence and break the loyalty of his friends:  
Me: "...you know, there are parts of this world where you would never have to make a decision like that.  For example, I have never seen a gun."
Juniors: "WHAT?? Never?" "You've never touched one???" "I see guns, I touch guns, I use guns...."
I was shocked by the extent of their shock.  The idea of a violence-free world is just unfathomable to them.  "But see, Ms. Lewis, in this world, on the west side, that's how we deal with things."

"It's crazy that people get killed over this."  - J, a freshmen, while teaching me how to play dice.

Joys:  Watching C, a junior, help Ms. Peaches with crafts at the senior citizen home; being IMed by one of my 4th graders from last year.

Week 36: Piñata-ing

Science Class Walk

Piñata time in the courtyard

Last ceremony for our lunch kids

This week was full of: creating Talent Show Workplans, possibly the last three evening meetings at the office of the year, going for a walk with a science class, and our last VIP lounge.

 Quotes of the Week: 
 "I became more independent this year seeing the examples of Mr. Washington and Ms. Lewis." - D, a lunch freshman 


"Haji Ali taught me to share three cups of tea, to slow down and make building relationships as important as building projects.  He taught me that I had more to learn from the people I work with than I could ever hope to teach them." - Greg Mortonson in Three Cups of Tea

"'I request America to look into our hearts,' Abbas continued, his voice straining with emotion, 'and see that the great majority of us are not terrorists, but good and simple people.  Our land is stricken with poverty because we are without education...'" - Syed Abbas, a Pakistani, making a speech in 2001 in Three Cups of Tea

"F** these n***.  F** them all."  - Graffiti inside the subway train.  A startling reminder of how disgusting and ignorant people can be.  I was fuming the whole way home and hoping my students don't board the train. 

Excerpts from kids' Goal Books
- travel the world
- have a big house with a dog and 2 kids
- become a forensic scientist
- learn how to speak in a new language