March 18th, 2010

Yesterday was a very productive day. The night before we made plans to create a mural for the school and we were about to put our plans in action, but first Judy had to take the car to the shop to get the window replaced. As a result of having to get the window replaced, Judy had to miss a few hours of the school day.

While Judy was getting the window fixed the rest of us were going about our regular schedules of the class rotations. There were fewer fights and the kids seemed to be cooperating more and more. The kids seemed to be smiling more and some even expressed being happy to have us visiting their school. Upon leaving the window repair, Judy was able to attend the meeting in Ms. Jenkin’s class with Jolie. Judy and Jolie had the opportunity to address the class about opportunities for college and were able to share stories about their ninth grade experiences. The kids were happily participating and asking questions. While Judy and Jolie were in the classroom, Taneeka was mentoring at a program within the school that addresses teen moms within the school. Taneeka had the opportunity to answer questions and interact with the young ladies. Some of the teen moms were already parents and others were soon to be mothers.

When lunch time hit, Ms. Adam graciously treated us with traditional Philadelphia hoagies. We devoured our lunch in Ms. Adam’s room. After lunch some of us continued cleaning out the teachers’ lounge and others continued helping in the classroom.

When classes over for the day, we began working on our mural, which was to be located in a corner of the A-wing hallway that was highly visible. We worked really well together. Team work was evident in all aspects of the task. We began by tracing our ideas, which we had gotten approved by Ms. Kwong and three 9^th grade students. We were able to complete the art work by 7:30pm. We put in hard work, but it was worth it once we saw the completed product and we were certain that the kids would like it.

Once we were done with the art we followed Ms. Adam to South Street. Some of us had cheesesteaks at a place called Jim’s and others went for Falafels. The cheesesteaks left much to be desired, but the Falafels were a big hit. When we reached the hostel, Judy and Taneeka were not feeling well so they went to bed. The rest of the group continued with the daily reflection, which were a tad bit tense and short, but effective. Overall the day was nicely varied and successful.