Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Week 3

What have you learned so for at your job placement? 

What have you learned about YOURSELF from your experiences at your job placement?

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow it has already been 3 whole weeks! It sure came by fast and slow at the same time haha. It has been 3 weeks and I honestly like my job as a mentor. Everyday my bond between my mentees' just keeps building, and building, stronger, and stronger. First week of work was just so tiring and frustrating, but I held on and soon about to get through week 3. I just want to say it's been an awsome week and most kids are great; So now im just looking forward for weeeek 4!!

coke said...

This job and the whole experience has been AWESOME! I JUST got back from Wonderland, where I had the livest time and I'm dead tired. But I figured I best write something and here I am.

As awesome as the trip was as a whole, the kids weren't little angels...at all. But hey, they're excited at wonderland, so its understandable, and even though we started out going around in small groups, we eventually all came together and had a great time!

That's pretty much been the story for the whole week, and the two weeks past while we were at camp! In other words, s'all good!

THIS IS THE BEST JOB I'VE EVER HAD!!!-and the first...-

Anonymous said...

3 weeks already? wow...

so far this job has been great. This job is so rewarding because, you teach/mentor/help these kids' futures, and although we may not see it in the weeks to come, dont be surprised if we hear their names later on in life doing amazing things!

Anonymous said...

I think we can all agree that the past 3 weeks have whizzed by! I hope all of you are getting use to your work and enjoying your work as well =). Yes, its not always rainbows and butterflies at camp however, we all must overcome our challenges and learn from our mistakes. My camp is sometimes disorganized and we made many changes but all in all we make the best of it and adapt to the changes to make camp a better place for the children. I definately learn something everyday about the kids, work and about myself. I have no regrets in applying this job and I appreciate everything that FOY have doen for us from the training, to the APM who been with us every step of the way and making us feel comfortable about our work and answering ALL the questions we have. Honestly, I look forward to work every week and this is one of the best jobs that young people can do. Not only do you build up on your skills as a leader and problem solver but you are also interacting with people everyday. One last note, whether we are aware of it or not, the kids that we work with are going to take memories away from them and even the little things that we do makes a huge difference in their life. Some of these kids need someone like us because of their situation at home. Enjoy the rest of the summer and be proud of yourself!

Anonymous said...

3 weeks alreadyy.. well everything is fine.. i actually like this job except that i was waiting for little kids to play with instead i got some office job.. im still ok with it.. i like the place, the people, co-workers.. and we are starting the training program next week i guess its gonna be better, communicating with more people..

Anonymous said...

This summer i have been working at ryerson junior and senior public school where i have to like supervise kids and communicate with them. From this job i have learned how to take care of kids whenever it comes to a problem where they are upset and i'm always
the first person to ask someone what happened. Ever since i got this job and have been working throughout the summer i have been so happy to finally have a job but at the same time i always try my best to speak to the students in mandarin sinece i know some. In this lifetime i will always try my best to work towards the language so i get a chance to communicate with others.

Anonymous said...

sick and wicked it has already been 3 weeks have done i have the most excited job placement it is amazing how i met two wonderful graduates from college and university who play basketball. There are so cool.I really learned alot from them about basket ball and i hope i enjoy every bit of it.And also giving back to the community and the children who i will be teaching basketball this summer.

Anonymous said...

3 weeks!!! wow well my placement has its ups and downs i mean i think my boss i bi-polar and there are some anal retentive caretaking staff as well as the fact that i have to deal with more than my share of insolent and brute-like co-workers. but other than that i feel this could be an excellent job experience! thanks FOY!!!!

Miyamz said...

im kinda pissed off at the fact that its been three weeks already and i havent had any interaction with any kids and i feel as though if i complain to anyone than ill get fired

Anonymous said...

WOW 3 weeks!!
I have to say that this job is the best job I've ever had!and I'm being very honest.
We are working with graduating students comming to Westview in September!! so you can guess how hard it gets at times because of the very little age difference. At the end of the day we are the Mentors and we do get the respect we are looking for after giving it to them first.
Overall its been great so far......we're going to the CN Tower tomorrow!! looking forward to that.

Anonymous said...

I can definatly say that this program is the perfect program for youths who want to be involved in thier community. Youths can learn many different skills as being part of this program. It has been a great experience working with kids and meeting new people.

Anonymous said...

This is my first year working with Focus On Youth. I think that this is the best program that I've
ever been involved with. I think it is amazing that Focus On Youth is hiring young teenagers from all these communities. Since I've been
with the program i have learned many great things about my own community that i did not know about before. I have also developed many
skills such as leadership, communication, team-building, social, and many more. Also i find that this program gives me an opportunity to strengthen any traits where I lack experience and knowledge. If i knew about this program i would've joined it along time ago i wish i could
continue with this program for the rest of my life. The reason i joined this program was so i could give back to the community, and make it a better community overall. Another reason why i think Focus on Youth is great, is that they are helping kids to get somewhere in their life, helping kids develop work experience, become a better person, and more aware of their own community. I think we can all agree on making this a program last much longer its already been 3 weeks and i wish that it doesn't have to end

Anonymous said...

The job has been awesome. The kids are just like the counsellors, so everyone meshes well. It's fun times, doesn't even feel like work!

Anonymous said...

Honestly,
as much as i love working with children, adopting new skills, facing new challanges , it has become clear to me that some of the staff that has been hired should not have been. everyone knows we are working with kids and not food you can sometimes just slack off with, you are not working with. these are human beings and when you sign the contract, agreeing all the following, you should have known better then to think that this is a quick AND easy way to make some more cash. so maybe next year there will be MORE people who will actually take this opportunity to make the best use out of it. don't get me wrong, i enjoy this job more than any other and for me it tops retail but if you are faced to work with people who are not equally pulling their weight or have no common sense about how to handle kids, this is NOT the RIGHT FIT for you. So HOnestly, to spare frustration, it is healthy for everyone to check themselves before they decide to take this job and think you will not have to do any work. It's about the kids, not just your money.
Thx

Anonymous said...

- check yourself before you enter this organization
- it is about the kids, not just your money
- have common sense and know how to handle children
- dont justt be in it for the money, you are working with human beings, not things, know the differance
- i love this job more than any other and the kids can tell who wants to be there and who doesn't, they're not lacking intelligence
- to start this organization is oneof the best ideas that is slowly but surely improving and growing and i am glad to take part in it

Anonymous said...

This job, both this year and last year, has taught me plenty. First and foremost, I have learnt that I never want to be working a job that I dislike. I discovered throughout this summer that working with people, and helping those around me is the type of career I'd like to pursue.

I have learnt that listening is crucial-- whether it's to follow direction correctly and promptly or to help a child solve a dispute between their peers. Without the capability to listen to others, you are lost in the world of communication.

Finally I have learned patience. Children take time, and require your individual time and support in order to succeed. Tasks are never perfected suddenly, it takes dedication, and time--patience. Being patient, you have to hide the fact that you'll often become annoyed and/opr upset with the kids you are working with. But in order to benefit those children, and your coworkers we should all be patient.

This job teaches me so much everyday--minuscule things that add to my character that i probably will never detect, but will help me in my future.

Anonymous said...

i love this.

Anonymous said...

let me start off by sayin that focus on youth is truly a great opportunity. i can say at first many ppl did not realize this fact @ training, but if you look at the bigger picture, its really like a dream job. at my placement, we get paid and a free lunch is provided also! like really how could anyone complain about that!

as the 3rd week has come to an end, i am seeing that the weeks truly do fly! in a couple of weeks, we will be having resume workshops so we can be ready for the workforce after focus on youth. i really like this idea because it goes to show that focus on youth is not jus a program that gives you a job, but a program that also mentors and prepares students for the future.
this program really is the key to improving the future of students in toronto.

Anonymous said...

i am enjoying my time at the placement provided by the focus on youth program. this program really is godsent...lol, however, i do have some constructive criticism that will make this program so much stronger in the years to come.
the first comment that i have is that i think that foyt students should get some kind of job description of what is expected of them before they start the actual placement. at least this way, us students can be prepared. i went into my placement and some of the staff that were hired by the actual organization outside this program, acted as if we were supposed to kno everything about our job. i think that if we had a day to get familiar with the objective of the camp or even the location of the camp(such as schedules of the day, registration for campers, locations of washrooms, location of first aid,etc.) it would be easier for us students to act professionally and efficient.

the next comment i have is about the training week and job training. i kno all that was taught during the training week was important (first aid, child abuse, leadership)however, i wish that we could also be trained on more realistic/everyday things such as discipling children who misbehave or are swearing/fighting and conflict resolution for children. i mean of course some of that is common sense, but still some kind of training in that area, would have helped us counsellors discipline the children properly, so they actually think before they swear/fight/misbehave again.

nevertheless, focus on youth provides excellent opportunities for youth in toronto, and i am happy to be here!

Anonymous said...

Entering week four?
Man oh man I'm exhausted... not from the job oh no, just physically and mentally drained... I don't think i`m getting enough sleep is what it is... Week 3 went pretty well..some counsellors were pretty grumpy mid way during the week and i ending up getting the anger && outburts from them but all I kept telling myself was "two more days til friday...just two more days" && HUZZAH I SURVIVED !
I really like all the different kids i get to meet each day, I had 3-5 year oldone day when i regularly have 6-12 and they were BEYOND adorable ! They asked so many cute questions i just kept saying "aw" all day. If only the 6-12's were like that...
time will tell :)

Anonymous said...

My first week at Focus on Youth was amazing. I was a participant in the project in its first year. I must noticed that this year it has gotten more organized. The workshops were amazing they were extremely informative yet entertaining simultaneously. We had enthusiastic leaders and coordinators that made the program run smoothly. I would like to see other students have the chance to be a part of this program, because I have experience the benefits and opportunities this program has provided. Its wonderful how we can make a difference with an idea a few committed people and a vision. I would earnestly like to thank everyone for making this opportunity possible for me; thank you all, and God bless. If there is anything that I could do to help the program progress please I will.

Anonymous said...

I have learned so much from work so far. I was moved from a different location to one farther from my house. But i realized that I love it. Kids are so different everywhere from there likes and dislikes. It's been a great experience so far. More fun times to come I'm sure of it! Looking forward for more to come!

Anonymous said...

I have learned so much from work so far. I was moved from a different location to one farther from my house. But i realized that I love it. Kids are so different everywhere from there likes and dislikes. It's been a great experience so far. More fun times to come I'm sure of it! Looking forward to more fun times to come!

Anonymous said...

all I have to say is that my placement is fun and great and i learn alot from kids!!!