ACE Spectrum
ACE Spectrum
Ace Spectrum is about you — the ACE Learning Centers.
It’s a quick sharing of ideas, inspiration, opinions and best practices among our continuing education organizations.
Please join the conversation.
San Francisco International High School Span Mentor Challenges Students to Find Answers and Solve Problems
At San Francisco International High School’s ACE Learning Center, it’s recognized that continuing education is linked to job readiness. The Span Tutor and Span Mentor Programs create jobs that build students’ professional skills and make them more employable beyond the SFIHS community. This is part of a series of SFIHS Mentors and Tutors who report on their experiences with the paid program.
By Guest Blogger Krizia, San Francisco International High School Alumni and Span Mentor
Can Krizia be more exciting that graduating with honors from SFIHS? Yes she can. She is now a Span Tutor.
I am Krizia, born in San Francisco, CA. My family moved around a lot, so I grew up all over the Bay Area. I graduated from high school in Fremont, CA and moved back to San Francisco shortly afterwards.
Kyle Halle-Erby is my connection to San Francisco International High School (SFIHS.) We met when I worked in the SPAN program and mentored some of his former students at City College of San Francisco. At CCSF, I was one of the founding members of VIDA, the organization supporting undocumented college students. Now, I am wrapping up my second semester at the University of California, Berkeley. Originally, I enrolled as an undergraduate student in the Social Welfare department. However, after taking a look at all my skills and interests, I found that quantitative research is what I truly want aspire towards. I am now fulfilling prerequisites for a Bachelor’s of Arts in Statistics.
At SFIHS, I support 9th/10th graders in Biology and Geometry, and 11th graders in Algebra 2. I mostly encourage groups of students to help each other out. The challenging parts are when I do not know if I should guide a student towards the answer, or just give them the answer if they are not getting my hints. It’s also challenging to only speak English with them because I want them to learn more English, but sometimes they need to use their translators when they don’t understand a word.
However, there are many fulfilling parts about working at SFIHS. It’s especially gratifying when the kids call me “Miss,” warm up to me, and tell me about their personal lives outside of school. A special rewarding moment was when a particular student, who gets distracted a lot and draws instead of doing class work, warmed up to me and trusted me enough to follow my direction about getting back to work and finish just one problem. So, now I just ask this student to do only one problem at a time. It’s so endearing when he checks in with me after finishing just that one problem.
Dogs, Cats, Students and Poetry Rock the Fifth Annual ACE Poetry Contest for National Poetry Month
By Guest Blogger, Riley, ACE Poetry Contest Mascot, Assisted by Martha Sessums
Riley here. Mascot of the ACE Poetry Contest. Chewing on a treat which is almost as good as chewing on poetry. Almost.
Do you believe it’s been five years since I started doing this? Being the Mascot for the ACE Poetry Contest. ‘Cause it’s April, and April is National Poetry Month. And ‘cause poetry is cool, our students are cool and they write cool poetry about technology.
Arf. Arf. Arf. Arf. Arf. Five years. Started in 2013 when I was a young pup. Now I’m a millennial pup. So cool.
Yup, Riley here, the official mascot for the ACE Poetry Contest. This year it includes all Alpha Public Schools, plus the Alpha/ACE Learning Center where the parents of Alpha students learn English and lots of other things. This is where I hang out and am so cute that John Glover, and whoever else sees me, is inspired to give me treats. Treats are second only to poetry.
Also joining us are the usual poet masters – Oakland International High School (OIHS) and San Francisco International High School (SFIHS). Did you see Breakfast’s post last week? He’s the mascot of OIHS, and jumped right into his position as cat poet and cheerleader. He’s got great moves, especially across a keyboard.
Looks like Lobo will be the SFIHS Mascot this year. He’s a howler poet. Great presence and style, as expected from tech-styling San Francisco. I wonder if he gets to ride those white busses around the city and down the peninsula? I’ll ask him next time I see him.
The rules of the contest are like previous years. The poetry topic is “learning with technology.” As usual, each school and ACE Learning Center will manage and judge its own contest. The prizes are rich – $75 for first prize, $50 for second, and $25 for third. They will be given in the form of credit card gift cards so the winners can spend the money on anything they want. Treats for me, perhaps? (You knew I was going to suggest that.)
Any type of poetry is accepted, from traditional haiku to slam. Rhyme on a dime to free verse.
For the first time this year we will have a special guest – one of the feral cats at KALW radio will be introducing some pretty wild poetry. The radio station, Along with America Scores Bay Area, has a special program for student poets – they get to record their poems and they are posted on the radio station’s web site. Now that can dial-up the fun.
So there it is. It’s the beginning of the best month. Poetry Month. Looking forward to some cat and dog and student poetry and wisdom. It’ll be a treat.
Poetry With Breakfast – A Cat Gets the Jump on ACE Poetry Contest for National Poetry Month
By Guest Blogger Breakfast, Oakland International High School ACE Poetry Contest Mascot
I’m Breakfast. Obviously up early for poetry and the ACE Poetry Contest celebrating National Poetry Month. How about you?
Breakfast here, reporting live from the warmest, snuggliest lap in the universe…
This lap happens to belong to a person, and the person works at a place called Oakland International High School (OIHS), where students from all over the world come to learn English and learn about each other’s cultures. Even more exciting: next month (like April) is National Poetry Month, and I hear the kids at school are going to be doing some creative writing. I’m so stoked, I think I just hit someone in the face with my tail.
The theme for the ACE Poetry Contest is technology, which in my opinion is fascinating. I love technology! The Internet lets you reach out to so many people — like I’m doing right now. I think I should be a YouTube star — don’t you? I already have all the humans in my house under my command, so it must be time to expand my reign. I want my furry little face on every screen in the world. But all that aside, by far my favorite, favorite thing about technology is the sounds a keyboard makes when I walk all over it with my little pawsqdswefvi6uk,0-[.
I’m sure the students at OIHS have lots of amazing, creative ideas of their own about technology too. Love it, hate it, can’t live without it? Write about it in a poem. And while we’re at it let’s write poems about all the other things in the world that deserve to have poems written about them too. Like snuggly laps, sunny lounging spots, crunchy little bugs and freshly dug garden beds. In times like these, we have to appreciate the little things.