3rd Help Project Reflection

Karan Grewal's Football Tournament
What did you do to help?
I helped Karan make the main football informational poster to put up above the table during ticket sales at lunchtime.  I also helped him make decisions such as whether or not players will wear cleats and how many people will be on a team. 
Who did you help?
I helped Karan Grewal.  He is hosting a football tournament for his intramurals club that will be some sort of play-offs tournament with teams of 5 or 6.
What did you learn?
I learned that football posters are relatively easy to make! I also learned more about the intramurals club and what is going on with their club at the moment.  I hadn't talked to Karan or Sean about the club since last year, so it was nice to learn about what they were currently doing.
What would you do differently next time?
If there is a next time, I would definitely make more football posters because they came out beautifully! I might also suggest trying another sport besides football that would appeal to a different group of people. 
Identify Pros & Cons
Pros:
The football poster does a good job of communicating information to interested players.
Cons:
Their is no major con to this project or me helping Karan out.  Everything went smoothly and the poster is very informational.

2nd Help Project Reflection

Drew Hidalgo's Relatively Motivational/ Make You Smile posters in the hallways

What did you do to help?
I helped make posters and come up with motivational slogans afterschool with Drew Hidalgo and some other students on Thursday, January 6, 2011.
Who did you help?
I helped Drew Hidalgo with his lead project of making motivational posters or enjoyable posters to put up around the school to build school spirit or create a positive environment.
What did you learn?
I learned that the posters were relatively easy to make and did a lot to create a positive environment.  Some of the posters highlighted some of the quirks of our school, such as how the school is always frigidly cold.  However, by making posters that highlighted these quirks and poked fun at them, we were able to turn it from something students complained about to something students could joke about and bond over.
What would you do differently next time?
Next time, I might allocate more time.  We ran out of time to put the posters up at the end of the day.  Overall,  it was a very successful project and there was very little that I would change.  The posters were a good size and weren't overly obnoxious.  They had witty slogans that would bring joy to a student's school day.
Identify Pros & Cons
Pros:
The posters are absolutely gorgeous!
Several people have given compliments about it.
They create a happy positive environment for learning.
Cons:
Some students/teachers might not really appreciate them.

1st Help Project Reflection

Sarah Canul's Thanksgiving Food Drive

What did you do to help?
I helped run the food drive on one of the mornings when Sarah wasn't able to make it.  I also helped her count up the food cans at the end of the day sometimes. 
Who did you help?
I helped Sarah Canul with her Thanksgiving Food Drive for the two weeks it was held before Thanksgiving break.  She collected canned foods for the Des Moines food bank.
What did you learn?
I thought her idea was very innovative because instead of just asking people to donate, she exchanged coffee and tea for each item donated. For the future, ASB could definitely use this type of fundraiser idea to make fundraisers more successful.
What would you do differently next time?
There were problems with getting the hot water started and we were unable to serve coffee that day.  If this were to happen in the future, I would try to have better communication with Sarah to get a better idea of exactly what I needed to do.
Identify Pros & Cons
Pros:
Sarah did a good job and it was very successful!
Everyone seemed to really like the tea and coffee stand.
There was good healthy competition.
Cons:
Some people didn't know what day the food drive ended.
It wasn't advertised the first few days.

Update- Lead Project #2

For my lunchtime spirit competitions, I would like to buy a megaphone/microphone before I host another one.  The only way I could get everyones attention was by standing on the table and yelling.  Not suprisingly, this didn't work too well.  I am looking into megaphone prices and they range from about $15 to $50.  I am hoping to bring this up to an ASB meeting in the near future.  Then, I would like to host another lunchtime spirit competition (with the new megaphone) when we return from break. 

The other projects I have helped with such as the Candyland Tolo and Operation: Surprise have been going well.  Although not a lot of people showed up to tolo, it was still fun and the decorations were fantastic.  As for Operation: Surprise, I am writing my own letter and planning on visiting classes tomorrow to collect letters.

Update on Leadership Progress

Independent Project Progress Update


Yesterday, I finished my reflection on my first independent project for the campus clean up.  I also held the first in a series of lunchtime spirit competitions on Wednesday, November 17th 2010.  I still need to get written feedback from various students in the student body.  During an ASB meeting, we reflected on how it went.  The following aspects were discussed:

-Definitely getting a microphone.

    We had to yell which wasn't very effective.

-Having grades more fairly represented.

-Playing lunch before the beginning of the competition.

-Possibly getting a megaphone

-Getting the word out effectively, but not spoiling the surprise.

At the moment, I am currently helping with other ASB projects such as the spirit board and the winter Tolo.

Until next time!

Post Project Reflection-School Grounds Clean Up

Project Name: Campus Clean Up

Group Members: Karan G, Drew H, Allison D, Cole S, AJ S, Anna S, Royce L, Katie M, Isaiah B, Roman V, Salina A, Lianda A, Gerson G

Overall, I thought this project was successful.  All of the teachers were tended to and there was a fair distribution of work.  People finished at a reasonable time and were able to leave when they were done.  The teachers were able to have the odds and ends of their room that the janitor doesn’t normally work on tidied up.  However, one thing that went wrong was how some of my volunteers bailed out last minute, so I had to find a sufficient amount of replacements last minute.  This is something that seems to happen pretty often, so I need to find a better way to deal with it in the future.  But, one thing that did go well was that we still had enough people show up where everyone only had to work on one or two rooms.  In the past, whenever there was a lack of volunteers, I had to assign multiple rooms to volunteers.  I thought the distribution of work was very even and nobody had to work too much.  Furthermore, the cleaning pairs worked very well together and there weren’t any problems with how the group worked.  During my time, I tried to go around to each room and check in with each of the cleaning pairs.  When most of the volunteers had finished, I stayed and helped clean up Room 2 with another volunteer.  Aside from figuring out a better way to deal with volunteers bailing out last minute, I don’t think there were any problems with the actual cleaning.  Teachers had the necessary supplies and if they didn’t, volunteers could just borrow from the janitor or another teacher. 

My next project will be a lunchtime spirit competition.  I wrote a project outline for it in my previous blog entry.

Pictures of the campus clean up are also available on the blog!

Proposal for Lead Project #2

Executive Summary:

Picture this:  A high school filled with passionless zombies, apathetic about their learning and careless about their school.  A high school with students unenergetic and unenthusiastic about everything and anything.  Everybody does the bare minimum; nobody has any pride about going to their school.  Now ask yourself: Would you want to go to a school with no school spirit?

My project of lunchtime spirit competitions is a series of quick and easy spirit competitions during lunchtime.  These competitions, held at least once a month, will hopefully boost school spirit and pride.  When I need help, I will collaborate with other ASB members and leadership students.  The cost of this project should be minimal and the time table is pretty flexible. The end objective is to create a series of competitions that will become a tradition for each year after this one. 

Need:

            School spirit is critical to creating a positive learning environment and encouraging atmosphere.  If students have pride in their school, they will have pride in their work.  Students will become more committed to their work if they are enjoying themselves and appreciate the school they attend.  School spirit fosters an environment where students are encouraged to go above and beyond and when overall morale is higher, everyone is happier. 

Lunchtime spirit competitions will be an unexpected, yet welcome surprise for students and will add a little more pep in the middle of their day.  It will add more excitement to the daily routines within the school day.  Students will be more invested in their learning if they have more school spirit.  Although students at Aviation aren’t the passionless zombies described above, there are still students who have absolutely no school pride.  Thus, there is an absolute need for an independent project like this. The end result will boost school pride, which is overall beneficial to our school, students, and greater community. 

Objective:

            The end objective of this project is to create an ongoing series of spirit competitions.  By the end of the school year, I hope to make lunchtime a period where students are not only excited to eat their food, but also am in great anticipation for the next spirit competition.  I hope these spirit competitions become tradition and will be continued year after year.

Method:

            Because the idea of lunchtime spirit competitions embodies surprise, variety, and unpredictability, there isn’t a specific method or concrete details about the competitions.  However, the overall steps will include:

1)      (Optional) Spreading the word.

2)      Holding a spirit competition.

3)      Getting feedback.

4)      Adding to the spirit point’s board.

5)      Repeating Steps 2-4.

For each spirit competition, there will be more detailed steps as well. 

1)      Picking a date to hold a spirit competition.

a.       Talking with administration and getting everything passed.

2)      Deciding on a quick and easy spirit competition. 

a.       Gathering needed materials & buying supplies if needed.

b.      Practicing competition beforehand.

3)      (optional) Spreading the news. 

a.       Giving an all school announcement.

4)      Holding actual event.

5)      Talking to students in order to get feedback.

I have outlined the action plan for the first spirit competition: “Bottom’s Up”

1)      Picking a date to hold the competition: November 17^th

a.       Putting the date on the calendar with Ms. Stark.

b.      Getting the competition approved by Mr. McComb.

2)      Deciding on a quick and easy spirit competition

a.       Researching games on websites like Minute to Win It.

b.      Gather aluminum cans from Ms. Durrant.

c.       Find/make a yo-yo.

d.      Practicing beforehand to make sure the activity is reasonable and entertaining.

3)      (optional) Spreading the news. 

a.       Talk to Ms. Hiranaka about making an all school announcement just before lunchtime.

4)      Holding actual event.

a.       Bring out the stereo.

b.      Carry out the table to the back of the cafeteria.

c.       Getting student competitors from each grade.

d.      Holding the competition.

5)      Talking to students in order to get feedback.

a.       Get lots of advice since this is the first time.

b.      Make a list of revisions for the next spirit competition.

Each spirit competition will have a unique set of steps in order to be successful.  I will take actions accordingly.

Evaluation:

            After I host each competition, I will ask a few students that either participated or watched to give feedback.  I might make a handout that I can give back each time so that students can rate each competition and I will be able to compare it to the past competitions.  By the end of the year, I hope that the ratings will be higher than the ratings for the first few competitions.

Qualifications:

            I will have whatever equipment I can find or gather myself and I will most likely be working in the cafeteria most of the time.  I will collaborate with other ASB members as well whenever I need an opinion or need their help.  I am qualified to host these competitions because I have been at the school for 3 years, so I have a general feel for what will be exciting and what the student body will find entertaining.  I have also been apart of the ASB for a while, so I am used to planning events.  I also took a quick course on lunchtime spirit activities at leadership camp in the summer.  I know what types of competitions are realistic and how to make it quick and easy, yet exciting.

Timetable:

It’s hard to set a timetable because each competition will be unique and require different amounts of planning.  Overall, the timetable for the competitions should be throughout the whole year.  I hope to get one in at least once a month.

Budget:

            The overall cost of this project should be minimal and case-by-case.  Hopefully, all of the smaller competitions will be resourceful and only need household items.  However, if a competition does need certain supplies, the cost should be minimal.  I would probably ask for the ASB to help fund it, since this project is also an ASB project and helps achieve one of the main goals ASB wanted to achieve this year.

Conclusion:

            This project will be extremely worthwhile for our entire school.  After all, the happier and more excited people are, the more productive they will be.  By having unpredictable and random spirit competitions at lunchtime, it will boost school morale just as people are beginning to be tired in the middle of the day.  The competitions will be very quick and easy and will require minimal clean up and set up.  They will hopefully raise the school pride and spirit within the students.  Hopefully, this project will continue on next year and become a tradition for each year afterwards.