Lesson Title: Budget & Finance, Employment, Transportation, Healthy Homes, Community Services
Date of Class: 10/7/16
Day of Class: Friday
Time of Class: 10am-1pm
MC: Megan
DJ: Megan
Assistants: Lora, Judy, Ann
Module: Budget & Finance, Employment, Transportation, Healthy Homes, Community Services
How Many Learners: 14
Materials Status (loyalty cards, alphabet sheets, etc): n/a

Self Evaluation

Preparation: Forgot to Show Up (1) vs. Every Hair In Place (10) = 5
Technique: Completely Incompetent (1) vs. Flawless Delivery (10) = 5
Engagement: Snoring Loudly (1) vs. Absolutely Riveted (10) = 5
Connection: Open Hostility (1) vs. Kumbayah (10) = 7
Poise: Charlie Brown (1) vs. Prince (10) = 8
Reflection: “It was ok.” (1) vs. Life-changing Epiphany (10) = 4

Total Score: 29

What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific): This class was held in a Catholic Charities house in Beaverton for a group of Arabic speakers exclusively. It was a make up class of sorts to accommodate people who had difficulty coming to Portland twice/week for five weeks. We covered five modules in 3 hours, and did not have any experts or guest speakers, or a powerpoint. A number of modifications were made from the standard curriculum format. We began with a quick improv game called Pass the Clap-which involves “passing” a clap around the circle by a series of one person turning to the next and clapping at the same time. This got people laughing. We then did Yell and Spell (which we did at other points in class for each new person who came in late). For all five sets of material, we began with the list of 10 and followed with me asking a couple questions to a show of hands to gauge the group’s level of knowledge and experience on that subject. I relied a lot on conversational Q&A, but added a couple sets of “This is a ___” activities – one for budget using coins, and another for Healthy Homes using green cleaning products. We also went over how to write a check, with everyone practicing writing one out on copies of blank checks. We practiced counting change with a hypothetical scenario of buying pasta. For employment, I asked for ideas on how to present oneself to an interviewer, and modeled each suggestion to the group’s entertainment (smile, stand up straight, make eye contact, etc). We discussed using Google Maps for transportation, and I had them all put out their phones and pair up to look up public transit directions to Catholic Charities in Portland. After reviewing the cost to ride the bus, we called back to the budget section when I gave someone a stack of fake money and asked for bus fare. We were running short on time for the last module, Community Service, and only briefly discussed using the library.

Lesson Title: Employment
Date of Class: 10/12/16
Day of Class: Wednesday
Time of Class: 3-5pm
MC: Megan
DJ: Megan/Zadok
Assistants: Caroline, Sheila, Luke, Lizabeth, Angel, Ellen
Module: Employment
How Many Learners: 31
Materials Status (loyalty cards, alphabet sheets, etc): n/a

Self Evaluation

Preparation: Forgot to Show Up (1) vs. Every Hair In Place (10) = 7
Technique: Completely Incompetent (1) vs. Flawless Delivery (10) = 6
Engagement: Snoring Loudly (1) vs. Absolutely Riveted (10) = 8
Connection: Open Hostility (1) vs. Kumbayah (10) = 6
Poise: Charlie Brown (1) vs. Prince (10) = 8
Reflection: “It was ok.” (1) vs. Life-changing Epiphany (10) = 5

Total Score: 40

What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific): The building fire alarm went off around 2:45, and it took some time for people to filter back into the building once we were allowed back in, so class started closer to 3:15. We did a quick warm up game of pass the clap, then did yell and spell. Then our guest experts from Easter Seals Latino Connection introduced themselves and set up their stations at different tables around the room. There was an employment laws station that Luke (PPT) and I manned, and an interview questions station that Zadok and Ellen (volunteer) managed. Sheila, Angel and Lizabeth of Easter Seals each managed one of the three other stations, resumes, applications and the interview process. We had the language groups rotate around the room, spending 10 minutes at each station. It was a bit rushed and some things were a little messy (e.g., communicating the process at the beginning, getting everyone’s attention at the end of the 10 minutes), but we learned as we went. I started to step away from my station and have Luke manage on his own to give the groups a 2 minute warning, which I was told was helpful. It was an engaging and dynamic format that we agreed worked well. It definitely requires a lot of volunteer support to do, which we had for this class.

Lesson Title: US Laws
Date of Class: 10/19/16
Day of Class: Wednesday
Time of Class: 3-5pm
MC: Megan
DJ: Zadok
Assistants: Caroline, Luke, Stef
Module: US Laws
How Many Learners: 37
Materials Status (loyalty cards, alphabet sheets, etc): n/a

Self Evaluation

Preparation: Forgot to Show Up (1) vs. Every Hair In Place (10) = 8
Technique: Completely Incompetent (1) vs. Flawless Delivery (10) = 6
Engagement: Snoring Loudly (1) vs. Absolutely Riveted (10) = 7
Connection: Open Hostility (1) vs. Kumbayah (10) = 6
Poise: Charlie Brown (1) vs. Prince (10) = 8
Reflection: “It was ok.” (1) vs. Life-changing Epiphany (10) = 7

Total Score: 42

What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific): We played an improv game – the yes circle – at the start to warm up. This involved standing in a circle and one person (person 1) initiating the game by making eye contact with someone else (person 2). Person 2 then had to say “yes”. Person 1 walks toward Person 2 and takes Person 2’s spot in the circle. While this is happening, Person 2 makes eye contact with someone else and the whole thing repeats continuously. It was a bit confusing, but overall people seemed to enjoy it. Next we did List of 10 and Yell and Spell, followed by a modified version of List of 10 with an ACLU handout. We then did another game I made up, crime charades, involving me miming an activity and Zadok asking what I was doing. When the group guessed correctly, he then asked “when is this illegal?” An example – smoking – which is illegal indoors. After break, everyone filled out an emergency contact card from the Red Cross. Then we did 911 practice drills and timed the groups on how quickly everyone at their table could say “Fire, [language]”. We ended by asking every table to come up with one question and we discussed those aloud, and then had the groups discuss one thing they learned, and had the interpreters write these down for us to collect. We liked the format of this class – using tables arranged in a diamond configuration. The crime charades game was engaging, but should be done slower in the future to ensure time for interpretation. We’ve been reading through entire sentences on the list of 10 and having everyone read the sentence back, but we feel we’re losing the group’s engagement this way. We’ll alternate between doing choral response on phrases, or jumping straight to interpretation. We’re likely also not going to use the ACLU handout again because it opens the floor for tricky questions that we’re not able to answer without a guest expert, and because of the possibility for misunderstanding sensitive subject matter (e.g., how to conduct oneself with a police officer without incriminating oneself).

Lesson Title: Healthy Homes
Date of Class: 11/2/16
Day of Class: Wednesday
Time of Class: 3-5pm
MC: Luke Y
DJ: Megan C
Assistants: Caroline, Perry, Margarita, Ellen
Module: Healthy Homes
How Many Learners: 25
Materials Status (loyalty cards, alphabet sheets, etc): n/a

Self Evaluation

Preparation: Forgot to Show Up (1) vs. Every Hair In Place (10) = 4
Technique: Completely Incompetent (1) vs. Flawless Delivery (10) = 5
Engagement: Snoring Loudly (1) vs. Absolutely Riveted (10) = 6
Connection: Open Hostility (1) vs. Kumbayah (10) = 6
Poise: Charlie Brown (1) vs. Prince (10) = 6
Reflection: “It was ok.” (1) vs. Life-changing Epiphany (10) = 8

Total Score: 35

What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific): This was Luke’s first time MC’ing the cultural orientation class. We began the class with the pass the clap game, then did a fast version of List of 10 wherein Luke read the sentence and we went straight to interpretation, skipping choral response. After yell & spell with our names, our guest experts from Multnomah County – Perry and Margarita – presented on green cleaning products and best practices for keeping homes healthy and safe. We did a round robin, passing products around from the bucket of green cleaning supplies and practicing dialogue with those. We ended with a Q&A and discussion at individual tables about one thing each person learned, with interpreters writing these down on cards to hand in. During reflection we noted that Luke did well with punctuality, starting, breaking and ending on time – which can be very challenging to do in this class. One note for improvement was staying on his toes and supporting guest presenters by calling ready and being adamant about it. A general note we had was perhaps we should do a demo next time and make a green cleaning product using the supplies the guest experts bring. Next time it will likely just be Margarita presenting.

Lesson Title: US Education
Date of Class: 11/9/16
Day of Class: Wednesday
Time of Class: 3-5pm
MC: Megan
DJ: Zadok
Assistants: Caroline, Elena, Ellen, Pat, PJ, Julie
Module: US Education
How Many Learners: 22
Materials Status (loyalty cards, alphabet sheets, etc): n/a

Self Evaluation

Preparation: Forgot to Show Up (1) vs. Every Hair In Place (10) = 5
Technique: Completely Incompetent (1) vs. Flawless Delivery (10) = 6
Engagement: Snoring Loudly (1) vs. Absolutely Riveted (10) = 6
Connection: Open Hostility (1) vs. Kumbayah (10) = 5
Poise: Charlie Brown (1) vs. Prince (10) = 7
Reflection: “It was ok.” (1) vs. Life-changing Epiphany (10) = 6

Total Score: 35

What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific): Following pass the clap, list of 10 and yell and spell, Catholic Charities staff addressed the class and Toc assured everyone that despite what they may have heard in the news following the election results, Catholic Charities welcomes them to America. Elena from Multnomah County library did a quick presentation after break. We discussed getting people library cards for this class in the future, and also doing a station format, with stations for childhood education/parent involvement/SAFRN; GED and community colleges; library cards; ESL classes.