For Groups, Churches, Clubs, etc.

Service-Learning

Service -Learning is a method by which young people learn and develop through active participation in thoughtfully-organized service experiences.

NYLC and Compass Institute

In the classroom students learn basic skills like calculating, reading and verbal expression. Service-Learning takes those skills and puts them to work in the real world. This hands-on experience teaches students the real purpose of what they learn in school, and provides personal growth and development. The essence of Service-Learning is that everyone can learn from helping others.

Joe Herrity, Director
Iowa Center for Community Education

Benefits

Service learning opportunities:

• Sustain student motivation
• Provide dynamic education opportunities
• Support academic success
• Make the community a part of the learning environment
• Strengthen the relationship between your school and your community
• Enlist your school in a growing national effort.

Points of Light Foundation
School Guide for Teachers

This seven part program includes all the essential steps for effective service-learning and can be adapted for all age levels:

1. Mapping the community - students begin by defining "community" and identify the resources, strengths, and weaknesses in their community.
2. Selecting a problem - students research community problems, select one, and research it more fully.
3. Training & Orientation - students acquire an understanding of the organization that addresses the problem, in order to provide effective service and to maximize learning.
4. Meaningful Action - students engage in the actual service experience, which is meaningful and well planned.
5. Reflection - students use critical thinking skills in order to learn from their service experience.
6. Evaluation - students evaluate their project and their own learning, in order to assess process and impact.
7. Celebration & Recognition - students are recognized for their valuable service to the community and their efforts.

Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens

Life for teens today is no longer a playground. It's a jungle out there, with tough choices, peer pressure, personal insecurities, and anxiety about what others might think. Then consider feeling of depression, inferiority, and jealousy of others' successes, plus self -destructive behaviors such as vandalism and gangs.

Introduction to The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens workshop from the Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley, based on the best-selling book the same name by Sean Covey and the No. 1 best-selling business book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey, gives young people a set of proven tools to deal successfully with real life. The training is a means for educators, administrators, and superintendents to help improve student performance, reduce conflicts; and to enhance cooperation and teamwork among parents, teens, and teachers.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens Workshop Can Help Youth:

• Gain greater control of their lives
• Improve relationships with family and friends
• Increase self confidence and self-esteem
• Make smarter decisions
• Define their values and what matters most to them
• Recognize and prioritize their goals
• Find balance between school, work, friends , and
  everything else

Workshop Options

Introduction to The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens training can be presented as a one-day workshop in two different forms:

• Habits 1-7 and Agenda Use-Participants discover the "private victory" habits as well as the "public victory" Habits 4, 5 & 6 that deal with relationships and teamwork, plus Habit 7, the habit of renewal.
• Habits 1-3 and Agenda Use-Participants learn the "private victory" habits of self-mastery and how to use their agenda or personal organizer of choice to manage their lives and improve performance.