• The Lab's Wish List
• Successes: Fall 2007

February Lab Staff Event:  
"Writing Circles, Poetry and Spoken Word Performance:Innovative Tools to Engage Urban Youth"
Tuesday, February 26 from 3-5 pm
360 Colborne (Rooms J and K)

This experiential training opportunity will be facilitated by Mary Tinucci. In this training, staff will experience the writing circle process and understand the impact of using culturally relevant poetry with youth. Staff will learn about ways in which writing (and reading) in group can bolster school engagement and pre-literacy skills, help youth understand themselves and others, and build social skills and positive youth community.

Mary will address various ways to make The Poetry Lab model accessible and adaptable for your group. *Please note:This workshop will be most useful for those of you working with youth in 5th-12th grade.CEUs available, RSVP to Mallory at mallory.haar@spps.org

Website Blogs & Showcase! (Click Direct Links Below)

Interested in learning more about the perspectives of The Lab participants? Read student reflections on our website's Youth Blog, a direct link.

Want to know more about the perspective of our adult mentors and interns? Read about our experiences on the Mentor Blog, a direct link.

Of Course, Mary T. (program coordinator) always has something to say!  Mary's Blog, a direct link.

If you're interested in getting involved in The Lab, this is a great place to learn all about what it's all about!

For more information about
THE LAB email Mallory Haar at mallory.haar@spps.org

Do you know someone who might want to read this newsletter? You can easily forward up to five copies at once.

The Lab's Wish List

The LAB is currently seeking some specific donations to support our work with youth. We will continue to seek grant support for these items, but as we wait for funding, we would appreciate anything you might be able to send our way!
Let us know if you can donate any of the following items:

• 25 Blank Journals for our youth writers who begin in The Poetry Lab January 8th, 2008
• 200 Blank CDs for our next spoken word poetry CD
• 200 Jewel cases for our next CD project
• Art supplies that support our Youth Visual Artists (colored pencils, paint, water color paper)
• Ink for Epson Stylus CX6600 color printer (we print our own CD covers)

Bigger wishes? (We like to dream big!)

Access to technology is not always available to our youth, so in The Lab, one of our goals is to put Technology resources directly in the hands of our youth. We hope to have youth capturing their world through sound, video and pictures. Can you help?

• 2 Digital Cameras
• 1 Digital Video Camera
• 2 Macbook laptops (These computers will be used specifically by youth who are working with Writing and Technology Mentors. Students will be working with Mentors and using the computer to make music tracks with garage band software and to record audio tracks of their poetry, and to update our website with blogs, poetry, pictures & podcasts)

As always, we appreciate your interest and support in The Lab. We hope to hear from you soon!

Mary T. (mary.tinucci@spps.org)

Successes: Fall 2007

As the year draws to an end, we'd like to thank all of our colleagues and supporters for being invested in The Lab.

The dedication of our volunteers and interns, the cooperation and collaboration from school staff and administrators, and, of course, the monetary support from donors all help us offer more exciting creative learning opportunities to students. (See above for more ways you can help!)

The Big Summary:

Since September 1st, we have capitalized on the work of 3 Lab staff, 3 program interns, 4 paid mentors and 4 volunteer mentors. We have collectively served a total of 100+ students and 46 school staff!

Here's a breakdown of the services offered this Fall:

Central High School
Poetry Lab and individual Writing and Technology Mentorships

Murray Junior High
Visual Lab classroom activity lead by a certified art therapist

Highland Junior High
Poetry Lab and individual Writing Mentorships
Girls' dance group (Wellness Lab)

 West 7th Transitions
Poetry Lab
Technology Lab (making music/beats and movies)
Visual Lab (working with Adinkra symbols)

Highland Park Senior High
Wellness Lab with Ms. Duncan
Technology Mentor (blogging and video work with students)

Harding High School
Wellness Lab with Ms. Duncan
Writing Mentor

Como Park High School
Poetry Lab
Visual Art mentor

Battle Creek, Project Achieve and St. Andrews
Wellness Labs with Ms. Duncan

Hazel Park Middle School
Financial Support for experiential educational opportunities

2 Staff Training Events
"Approaches to Mindfulness, Relaxation and Focus" and
"Art Exploration with Nancy Ward"