KKEC RESLIENCY PRESENTATION 2 SELF VALUE

Yesterday we completed the second Resiliency Presentation. The students are begining to warm up and share. Yue and the two mentors shared some of their expereinces. They are trully amazing individuals. The students are extremely attentive. I must say that I think I am having lots of fun. I expect that they are too. Most importantly, I expect they are learning! Yue was gracious enough to bring in some of the reflections. Here are some! Read and evaluate for your self. Enjoy... more to come

The students are great!



The focus was on the importance of a foundation. 
Can you analyze the symbolism. 

Resiliency presentations at KKEC

Hello all. I hope all is well. Last Thursday, started the Resiliency presentations. The students are amazing. I learned quite a bit about them. And hope to learn more. They are truly amazing young adults. They were very charming and interactive. We discussed the concept of Resiliency and why its importance. The students were very attentive. They also answered all of my questions. I asked what they wanted to do as a profession in their future. One student answered "I want to be president". So I asked the group if it was possible. Another replied "you can't be president, you were not born in the states". IT was quite an interesting exchange. To which I replied, "true you cannot be president, but your children can be". I also asked many questions about their way of life in Thailand. The students appeared to really enjoy living there. So the next natural question is "why come to the states?" I will ask them today and keep you in suspense for now. Yesterday, I got an opportunity to work with my colleague Yue Yang. We were planning for today. I realized that our presentations have to me more culturally relevant. We are very excited to present today. I will keep you posted.

Coalinga High School Resilency Program

 The drive from Fresno to Coalinga can be a long and ardous road trip.  If You allow it to be.  For me, it was nothing short of delight.  It was me and TED (talks) that is as long as reception allowed.  Then, my mind took me on a whirld wind of emotions and reflections as I passed the laborers working on the lush green fields.  I recalled the hot, muggy and sticky days of summer when I worked the fields.  I can still smell the earthy smells, and the sticky long-sleves (especally around the neck and arms).  I wondered how I got from those fields to my field.    Most imprtantly I tried so hard to to recall my journey with very little success.  I wanted to say the most meaningful things to those students that always awaited my return.  I asked my sould to give me the words which would inspire and transform them  to go from  the earthy felds to a field in which they excel and love?  But no success.  One question led to another, and another, and another.... but still no answers.  And on it went until the last step through the door.  Then, AHA!  It clicked.  Every time.  Their smiles said it all.  It wasn't my words that mattered.  Heck, I could have said the wonderful words of Dr. Martin Luther King...  "I have a dream...."  or JFK's famous words Don't ask what this country could do for you..."  Las palabras se las lleva el viento (words are companions of winds) my father used to say.  

What mattered most was that I was there! 

Guys don't forget our scouts honor (pinky swear) that we made.  I look forward to your invite as you walk through the stage on graduation day. 

Thank you for the gift of allowing me to take part in your journey. 

Dream big and work hard!

Love, Dr. Alfredo Ponce

ResilIENCY PROGRAM, PARLIER HIGH SCHOOL

On March 3, 2011, We had our first Resiliency presentation.  Although we had a small group, the student were very outstanding.  The were very engaged.  The conversation was extremely upbeat.  The students seem to know what they have to do.  The issue is to be able to think about their actions before they actually do them.  Most of the students asked when we were returning which is always a positive sign.  We discussed the resiliency component from different perspectives.  As always our goal is to have students bounce back to a level which is beneficial to them.  They must understand that failure is part of life.  Learning from failure is what we need to develop through analysis and reflection.  Our intent is to ensure that our students become reflective individuals so that they become better students, brothers sisters, peers...    A special thanks to the teacher, mentors and especially the students.  To be continued!!!

Sincerely,  Alfredo and Janelle.

PARLIER HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND STAFF

RESILIENCY PROGRAM, COALINGA HIGH SCHOOL

On March 2, 2011, We had our first Resiliency presentation.  The student were very receptive.  The were very engaged.  Most of the students had input and questions.  We spoke for over an hour.  We held our first introductions of the program.  The students do appear to have a grasp as to what is education.  When it comes to understanding the "why" education question, the answers are harder to come.  They seem to generate generic questions, but applying them to their natural environments and their future seem to be somewhat foreign.  We will continue to develop this areas.  The students displayed lots of passion and expressed high hopes for what the future holds for them.  We touched on the importance of failure and the lessons we can gain from it.  The teacher expressed a personal story of her struggles and how she overcame her stressors.  A special thanks to the teacher, mentor and especially the students.  To be continued!!!
Dr. Ponce

COALINGA HS RESILEINCY PROGRAM
PARTICIPANTS AND STAFF  

Messages from students from Coalinga Middle School

Messages for Mrs. Martin and Dr. Ponce:  She is awesome.  She taught us to never give up.  We learned about delayed gratification.  Always wait, be patient and everything will be a success.  I am always going to remeber to have faith, hope and give back.  I will always bounce back and be better off.  I will have a good foundation.

Thank you both for working so closely with our students. They always looked forward to you coming on Thursdays. We will continue talking and working with the students in regards to building resiliency. The material that you brought really helped open their eyes to the opportunities that are available to them. You guys are awesome! ---Mrs. Fairbanks

Reflections from Coalinga Middle School Students

We have just completed the first round of Resiliency presentations. We want to thank the teachers and staff at San Joaquin M.S., Mrs. Santana, Mrs. Soria and Mrs. Fernandez. Most of all we want to thank the students. They were wonderful and so much fun to work with. I expect that they will take these lessons with them where ever they go in life. We expect you will succeed no matter the obstacles that are placed in your paths. Best wishes and the highest of expectations. Dream big and work hard!!!

Janelle and Alfredo

Coalinga Middle School Student Reflections

Hello all. I hope all is well. Today we presented the 3rd workshop at Coalinga MS. We had a smaller turnout. However, the students that were there were enganged and full of energy. We started out talking outdoors. It was a great day. The students got to analize an income chart based on the levels of accademic attainment. Then we moved to Mrs. Fairbanks class. She gave us a pile of student written reflections based on the previous assignemnt. The responses were inspiring. It is as though, they are looking for conversations about their histories and their futures. We also discussed the concept of goals. They were all full of hope and willing to share their dreams. They got an opportunity to write them and convert them to goals. We all discussed our goals. Some students are interested in following a soccer career. We also discussed the importance of a back-up plan. Another student indicated that she wants to be a physical therapist. We then discussed the importance of sharing them with others so that they could begin to internalize them and learn about those who are willing to help or not. Their homework is to discuss their goals with others and come back with reflections for the group. A special thanks to the students and Mrs. Fairbanks for being so engaging and willing to take a chance with our programs. Thank you Mrs. Fairbanks. This program is so much more engaging because of you!
ps. below are some images of the day!

Janelle and Alfredo

Resiliency presentation III, San Joaquin Elementary

Hello all I hope all is well. Today we discussed the concept of living a life with direction. We discussed the idea that we are all born with a gift and that our challenge is to find it, nurture it and see it actualized. We all agreed that we have found our true purpose when 5 minutes of activity in that area feels like 5 hours. On the opposite extreme, we are playing the wrong game when 5 minutes feels like 5 hours. It seems that the previous presentations mesh well. The students are able to make connections, and add their own input from previous sessions. They have all learned what the resiliency phenomena is all about. They understand that it is about how they bounce back from stress in their lives. We are very pleased to see most of our students return and bring friends along. Once again a special thanks to Mrs. Santana, Mrs. Fernandez and Miss. Soria.

Sincerely,
Alfredo and Janelle

Mr. Forbes inspiring students...

Thank you Mr. Forbes for your words of encouragement!!!

Coalinga session II

Hello all I hope all is well! We conducted the second session of our Resiliency series in Coalinga Middle School. Although, we had a smaller turn out, the students are slowly coming out of their shells. We began the session with a brief review of the previous lesson. The students seemed to recall quite a bit of information. We covered resiliency once again. As was noted, it is not wether we encounter stress in our lives, but when. The challenge is to be have the internal fortitude and support to be able to learn from our obstacles and be better after the dust settles. It appears that the students had a bit of a tough time with the "family tree" activity. It was indicated that some of the students did not know who their grandparents were. From our perspective, it is a perfect opportunity to empower these students to go home and ask questions!!! Our intent is to strengthen child parent relationship so that they may solidify their foundations. The lesson's activities were to learn more about one anther, have a bit of fun and learn to formulate theories. Their response to who put the turtle on the post were very creative. They were all very enthused. We will continue to encourage them to participate and become more comfortable as we move forth.

A special thanks to Mrs. Fairbanks, and Mr. Forbes. Thank you for being so supportive.
p.s. below are some images from this lesson.

Sincerely,

Alfredo and Janelle

San Joaquin Part Trois

Hello all. I hope all is well. Yesterday, we completed the third part of the Resiliency program in San Joaquin. We started out with some review. The teachers and mentors have been working on the student's family trees. Mrs. Santana shared part of hers. The stories were hilarious. One of the students shared a bit of information regarding the day she was born. Thank her mother for taking care of her aunt on the day of her birth. lol. We introduced the concept of goals. The students participated in a variation of the "don't eat the marshmallow" activity. I am delighted to say that 100% of the students were able to delay gratification. I am sure that their chips and juices were more delectable after learning about the benefits of delaying gratification. We also introduced some of the follow-up activities. We have attached some of the student's work.

Enjoy,
Alfredo and Janelle

San Joaquin ELD Program

Everything is going good in San Joaquin. Sometimes is hard to get the boys to show up for the lessons but it is getting better, especially after we had a talk with the parents face to face, that always help. The students may not like me for now because of this but one day, not soon, they will thank me.

Mentor Resiliency Training

Hello all. I hope all is well. We just concluded the Resiliency training. I am happy to report that the activities went better than expected. We were able to cover two of the follow-up activities. The first was the "family tree". The mentors had an opportunity to work on their family trees individually, they shared with a partner and concluded the activity with a whole group discussion. The second was the "dont hate debate" activity. We had a pre-generated vignetee, divided the group into three groups and assigned roles. One group was assigned the task of supporting the argument (proponency), the second had the task of the (oponency) and the third was assigned as the jury. They got an opportunity to develop their argument, build their case and report it to the group. Lastly, the jury gave their veridict.
Reflections: In an effort to keep the program organic, the mentors came up with some great suggestions for imporvement. They are as follow: frontload thi activities with questions or activities for the students, bring in local newspapers, show movie clips to reinforce the activities. We also determined that it is important to connect our activities to what is going on with the academic portion of the program and the student's real lives. A special thanks to the teachers and the mentors that particpated in the activities. This program now has a very speical touch from your hearts...

Thank you,
Alfredo and Janelle

Coalinga Kick off

Hello all. On Thursday, we had an opportunity to begin the resiliency program at Coalinga MS. I must say, we had quite a turn out. We had over 20 students. Janelle and I began with a bang. We introduced the program and discussed the importance of a solid foundation. The students were slow to warm up which is to be expected. They were all very respectful and most importantly very attentive. Way to go guys. We cannot wait to return...

A special thanks to Mr. Navarrette, our Mentor and Mr. Aguilar.

San Joaquin Part deux

On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to do our second session at San Joaquin Middle School. We had a bigger crowd and all of our previous attendees returned for more (always a good sign:). We discussion centered on the idea of developing a strong sense of identity. We made the analogy of the design of a building to our lives. At the end of the session, I think we all agreed that the most important section is the foundation. Both, on the house and in our lives. Yes, we had some laughs as well. Especially when a student blurted out that the most important part was the roof.... lol. churros, we said...

A special thanks to Miss. Soria, Mrs. Fernandez, and Mrs. Santana. Thank you for being active participants in the development of our future leaders of our world!

Enjoy the pictures:

Sincerely, Janelle and Alfredo

Resileincy Presentation Kick off

Hello all. We hope all is well. We kicked off the series of resiliency presentations at San Joaquin Elementary School. The presentation went better than expected. The students were so eager to learn and participate in the activities. The students are headed in the right direction. All of them had a "dream" and goals for their future. We discussed the "why" education. I must say they were not shy. They were very outspoken and we all had a great time... most importantly we learned so much!!!

One quick reflection: Part of the presentation included a picture of a turle on top of fence post. The question was, How did it get there???? They students worked in groups to formulate an answer, next they presented and substantiated their hypothesis... Their answers were "genious"
p.s. A special thank you to Maria Tereza for all of her hard work and dedication!

Resiliency presenters,
Alfredo Ponce & Janelle Martin