Reflections Week 1

I think one of the highlights of the week was being able to walk around the neighborhood and having the kids show us around. While only one of our students actually lives here, the other two knew where the local parks were, and certainly where the nearest “market” was located to buy flaming hot cheetos and soda. One thing that struck me right off the bat was the construction surrounding GCYC. There was a lot of noise and quite a bit of debris spread around the area, making it somewhat chaotic; however, after passing this section of the neighborhood we were able to see a lot more assets.

One asset is that people seem to be friendly and do not mind waving and greeting you kindly as you pass by. Another cool thing I noticed was that many people have planted gardens and flowers all along the street to beautify the neighborhood. The fact that people have such an investment in their community is incredible, and I think any project involving “bettering the community” would really boost their overall mentality.

Upon conclusion of the week I think the most focused we have been able to get, in regards to choosing an area of interest, the only thing our students have suggested is stress. They state that being in school, living in the area, family, all cause them to be stressed out, and a big problem is that they are rarely ever taken seriously. Therefore, a proposed project idea might involve dealing with stress in a peaceful way, and investigating further what the physical effects of stress are on your body.
Another possible topic of interest arose from our community walks, where nutrition takes a backseat and it can be quite difficult to come across fresh fruits and vegetables. We’ll see where things go from here, but so far so good.