{"id":3067,"date":"2015-01-30T17:08:42","date_gmt":"2015-01-30T21:08:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=3067"},"modified":"2015-03-10T14:39:59","modified_gmt":"2015-03-10T18:39:59","slug":"school-staff-mentor-students-boys-clubs-book-clubs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/school-staff-mentor-students-boys-clubs-book-clubs\/","title":{"rendered":"School staff mentor students through boys\u2019 clubs and book clubs"},"content":{"rendered":"

National Mentoring Month is recognized each January to focus attention on the need for and importance of mentors who volunteer their time to assure positive outcomes for young people. VBCPS is fortunate to have many individuals from the community, businesses,\u00a0military, faith-based organizations and government agencies\u00a0who mentor students in our schools.\u00a0Their work will be highlighted on The Core throughout January. <\/em><\/p>\n

On Thursdays Rosemont Elementary PE assistants Sharon DePeralta and Taniya Walker have lunch with the boys \u2014 the Rosemont Boys\u2019 Club that is.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do we always say?\u201d DePeralta asks the fifth-grade boys around the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou catch more flies with honey,\u201d begins one student, \u201cthan with vinegar,\u201d finished the boys in unison.<\/p>\n

DePeralta and Walker established the club two and half years ago to connect with a few fifth-grade students they thought might benefit from extra support outside the classroom and having a few more listening ears.<\/p>\n

Years later, the two staff mentors are still listening.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoes anyone want to start with their concerns?\u201d asks DePeralta.<\/p>\n

\"DePeralta<\/a>
DePeralta (left) and Walker (right) talk with Boys\u2019 Club members during lunch.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The students always bring a journal in which they have written about one positive experience from the week as well as any concerns, thoughts or feelings.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt helps me relieve what I am thinking,\u201d said one student about the journal and the club\u2019s lunch meetings. \u201cI used to keep everything inside, and it made me angry. I am less stressed now.\u201d<\/p>\n

One club member answers DePeralta\u2019s question about concerns, \u201cMy teacher was mad at me yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walker seeks clarification. \u201cWhy was your teacher mad at you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI might<\/em> have been talking when I shouldn\u2019t have,\u201d the student answered with a sheepish smile.<\/p>\n

The group discusses the importance of listening and showing respect.<\/p>\n

DePeralta asks, \u201cYou have to give what to get what?\u201d The students know the answer.<\/p>\n

\u201cRespect!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Students<\/a>
Students listen to one another during Boys\u2019 Club lunch meetings.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A second student said he had trouble with division problems during math.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat could you do as a next step?\u201d coached Walker. \u201cAsk my teacher for extra help,\u201d he responds.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know Ms. Rose will help you in any way she can,\u201d Walker affirms, and another student at the table offers to help his fellow Boys\u2019 Club member with division.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a good<\/em> thing to share,\u201d chimes in one club member, and attention shifts to good news to end the lunch period.<\/p>\n

The fifth-grader visited Cloud9 trampoline park over the weekend, and the boys start swapping stories of other birthday party activities they like.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to go zip lining,\u201d announces a club member. There is talk of a possible field trip.<\/p>\n

\"Boys\u2019<\/a>
Boys\u2019 Club members write in journals to share good news and concerns during their weekly visits.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

DePeralta and Walker also lead the school\u2019s STEM club and have been pleased that some Boys\u2019 Club members have joined as a result of their weekly lunch sessions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe tell the boys, \u2018We want you to be successful and we want you to set a good example for others,\u2019\u201d said DePeralta.<\/p>\n

As DePeralta and Walker meet with their boys in the cafeteria, a lunch meeting of all girls is underway in the principal\u2019s office.<\/p>\n

Rosemont principal Cari Hall hosts monthly book clubs throughout the school year, meeting with select students from every fourth- and fifth-grade class. Hall explains that it is a way for her to build relationships with students, reinforce lessons from the classroom and, hopefully, inspire their own love of reading. She looks for characters with whom the students will identify, and intentionally selects books from a series so students will be more likely to continue.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A fourth-grader tells Hall about her favorite part of the chapter.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At this meeting of the book club, fourth-grade girls are discussing the latest in a series of pranks between two siblings during a slumber party.<\/p>\n

Hall peppers the group with questions throughout the lunch discussion and guides them to make connections as needed.<\/p>\n

Why did they put cheese toothpaste in Ro\u2019s bathroom?<\/em><\/p>\n

What does it mean if the stuffed animals smell \u201chog bad?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

What is suspicious about Ro doing homework on a Friday night? <\/em><\/p>\n

See how those words are written? What is that font type? It starts with an \u201cI.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

How does Ruby react?<\/em><\/p>\n

What do you think is going to happen? Is Ro going to get Ruby back? That is called a \u201ccliffhanger.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The girls have answers to every question, citing the text and making their own observations. They even have an opportunity to correct the principal when Hall questions that baby powder was the substance used in one of the brother\u2019s pranks.<\/p>\n

All seven girls quickly flip through the pages to find proof, and several students read the passage to her at once.<\/p>\n

\"Students<\/a>
Students find references in the text to support their comments.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cOh,\u201d says Hall, \u201cYou guys are better reading detectives than I am. You got that small detail and I missed that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The fourth-grade girls laugh, and Hall compliments their work.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like how you are referring to the text. That\u2019s a good strategy when you are reading for fun or for a test.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hall closes the book club meeting by asking, \u201cIf you had to describe Ro in one word, what would it be?\u201d<\/p>\n

The brainstorming begins. \u201cPranker.\u201d \u201cSneaky.\u201d \u201cMeanie.\u201d \u201cCruel.\u201d \u201cA bad, horrible brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s more than one word,\u201d says Hall with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s clever,\u201d offers Hall. \u201cI think he\u2019s all the things you said. All of his pranks are pretty smart. I mean, how do you get baby powder in a camera? How do you get a swimming pool to turn green and then people turn a different color when get out of it? How does he get a door to stick shut? These are things he really has to think about.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IMG_3343_Book<\/a>The girls agree with Hall\u2019s bewilderment and speculate what will happen in the book\u2019s final three chapters. It seems clear to everyone that they can expect more pranks between the siblings.<\/p>\n

Hall likes what she hears.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou all are the best readers,\u201d she praises. \u201cEverybody has contributed something and has talked about what they\u2019ve read, and that makes me very happy. I\u2019ll be sure to share that good news with your teacher as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

National Mentoring Month is recognized each January to focus attention on the need for and importance of mentors who volunteer their time to assure positive outcomes for young people. VBCPS […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[31,52,45],"class_list":["post-3067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community-connections","tag-literacy","tag-rosemont-elementary","tag-service"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3067"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3075,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3067\/revisions\/3075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}