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Posted 6/24.

A new student is placed into your class.  The student is currently living with relatives outside of town. They do not have transportation to outside of school events.  Two weeks pass and your class has a required after school show-case.  The new student does not attend.  The next day, you talk to the student and they explain their situation.  You talk to your administration; there is no reasonable way for the student to attend outside of school performances.  It is suggested that alternative assignments be given to make up the credit.

A few months pass; your program has had a couple more after school events.  A few other students notice that this student does not attend.  They ask the student why, but the student does not give them a reason.  You notice discord starting to occur within your class.  You overhear two students say that they probably aren't going to attend the next show-case either.

What actions would you consider?

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Project 2/Final Project Information; Posted 6/23

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Project 2/Final Project Information; Posted 6/23

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Based on school report card submissions and classroom discussion, I've replaced project two with a proposal for your final projects.  The original second project would have been redundant and low-level for where we are at. (Please take that as a compliment.)  Furthermore, the final project may take more time than I originally anticipated.

Project two is now replaced with a final project proposal that is due Thursday, July 2. This will segue directly into the final project.

PDF link for anyone that does not have Powerpoint: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VjS-nH1oJkAIzopJYD2doGRpmkgoZOZy/view?usp=sharing

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Reading/Listening/ Discussion: Unsheltered And Uncounted: Rural America's Hidden Homeless

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Reading/Listening/ Discussion: Unsheltered And Uncounted: Rural America's Hidden Homeless

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Posted 6/22

Text article with link to 4 minute audio at the top.

Suburban/Urban teachers: what questions do you have about rural homelessness? Rural teachers: what are the significant challenges that come with being homeless in a rural area as opposed to an urban/suburban area?

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Unsheltered And Uncounted: Rural America's Hidden Homeless

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Charles Bowers takes long, quick strides down a worn, dirt path and stops in front of a tall thicket of bushes. He lifts a hand to signal that he's spied something. He's leading me on a tour of camps made by homeless people in wooded corners of Fayette County, Kentucky, and there, slightly up the hill, is a patch of blue.

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Posted 6/22

Another example of shelter-life.  This student was very driven.  I always wonder about the students that aren't driven/don't get a news segment made on them.

Comments welcome but not required.

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Posted 6/22

If you are particularly interested in a more in depth visual study of homeless shelters, watch "Shelter" or bookmark it for later.  The content is very raw: language, mature themes, and disturbing stories and images.

This is a very tough watch, but for all of the negatives, I found inspiration and appreciation for the helpers and saviors in the video.

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Shelter Documentary - Covenant House New Orleans

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From Vice Documentary Films, executive producer Michael K. Williams (The Wire) and the Peabody award-winning Renaud Brothers, SHELTER tells the raw and emotional stories of our brave young people as they seek help and hope at Covenant House.

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Posted 6/22

A glimpse into what a homeless shelter actually looks like.

Comments welcome but not required.

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Growing Number of Homeless Families Overwhelm San Diego

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One family chronicles their struggles during their stay in a homeless shelter.

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Posted 6/22

Mother's day and father's day can be difficult for some of my students. It makes me think of some aspects of my program. My Band Parent Association (BPA) is a small but mighty group that helps our organization run a little smoother. Recently, the BPA has looked towards providing more social-emotional support where necessary. A number of our students don't have parents that show up for concerts or ceremonies. For award and recognition nights, our BPA puts a system in place to ensure that every student has either a “surrogate” band parent or another faculty member that is there for them. For marching band or pep band senior night, many of the band parents (or even the director) will walk with the student, ensuring that the student gets recognized and also has an escort for the event. Our students take to it very well, and as a result, many students look at our BPA as an organization that they can trust and that has their best interests in mind.  Consider the needs of your organization and what you could appropriately put in place to help.

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Reading: Student Stability vs Mobility, Due June 26

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Reading: Student Stability vs Mobility, Due June 26

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Posted 6/22

No discussion required; this is simply a snapshot of some quick facts about student mobility and stability and a small but useful opinion from a school superintendent.  Side note: Your school may vary, but I have found the most success with advocating for programs or new ideas by approaching them as a pretend-administrator instead of a music teacher.

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Reading/Discussion: McKinney-Vento Act, Due June 26

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Reading/Discussion: McKinney-Vento Act, Due June 26

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Posted 6/22

The McKinney-Vento Act is something that I recommend all music educators become at least semi-familiar with.  You can certainly read the entire act posted in optional resources but the practical applications document listed below may suffice for your needs/interests.

Discussion: what are some specific challenges that you as a music teacher have had/would have in educating and assisting a homeless student and/or a student with frequent mobility (moving in and out of a school)?

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Posted 6/22

A student moves into your school her senior year.  She had spent from pre-school to junior year in her previous school district, and family circumstances forced a move right at the start of her senior year.  In March, your group is selected to perform at a State-level festival happening in May.  You give ten weeks' notice and tell the students and parents to put this event on their calendar.  A week before the festival, the student asks you to miss the festival to go to the prom at her old school.  She's a senior and the most experienced player in her section.

What do you/have you done?

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Project Information: Poverty Research Project: Due July 9

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Project Information: Poverty Research Project: Due July 9

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Project Information will be posted on June 22.

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Reading: Defining Homeless in Youth, Due June 26

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Reading: Defining Homeless in Youth, Due June 26

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Posted 6/22

The file below explains some terms used to describe certain situations of homeless youth.  The document also has links to government resources for understanding runaway and homeless youth and the McKinney-Vento act.

Comments welcome but not required; discussion in connected post.

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Book Awareness (maybe a recommendation?)

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Book Awareness (maybe a recommendation?)

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Posted 6/22

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family in Culture and Crisis by J.D. Vance.

The book examines one person's experience growing up in rural poverty.  His family moves from Kentucky to Ohio to escape their situation.  The author grows up to attend Yale Law but reflects on members of his family that are unable to escape their situations.

This is a polarizing books among my circle of friends.  Some us related to it, while others thought that the author was on a bit of an ego trip (although I suppose it's hard to avoid this when writing a semi-autobiography/case study of your family).  I've had friends that lived in rural areas both praise the book and also speak out against it due to generalizations.

I read this book when it was released four summers ago.  Disclaimer: it appears that the marketing of this book has changed since I first read it.  There's some promises that reading this will help people understand current political situations.  It's been four years since I've read the book; I'm not sure if this holds true, or if this is just timely marketing.

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Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

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Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis [Vance, J. D.] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

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Comments welcome but not required.

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For your reference.

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6/25/2020 Note: I'm not sure if you're notified on this, but your Padlet Portfolios have been updated with some questions or feedback regarding your topics. Please let me know if you have trouble accessing these.

Topics for this week includes comparisons of poverty in rural, urban, and suburban areas.  We'll also talk about student mobility and explore the McKinney Vento Act.

Updates for this week will take place on Monday 6/22, Tuesday 6/23, and Wednesday, 6/24 (today is the most content).

Projects information for our second project will be available Tuesday.  With the classes permission, I would like to change the due date from July 2 to July 9.  Please email privately at donstinson83@mac.com if you are opposed to this.

All school report card projects were viewed on Saturday and feedback was delivered.  If you did NOT receive anything from me, please let me know!