THRIVE Blog for Week of August 19-23rd.
THRIVE Director Notes
Posts on this Blog will be directed to help families see what is going on in our THRIVE Program. Items discussed on the Blog have already occurred. To keep updated on what’s coming up please refer to the THRIVE activity calendar or UCM activity calendar.
First-Year Students:
University Foundations :
Topics of discussion this week included: what is an emergency, how to use the activity app, using the discussion board, answering emails, students were asked to email Mrs. Southard three things they learned and one thing they are worried about. What to do if they are lost on campus or cannot find a class. Students were also asked to read the syllabus for the class by Friday. Students could get in groups and read it together outside of class. We reminded students to use their resources. We also covered getting to study hall on time and correct behavior in the hallway. Reminded students to take meds. Discussed their hometowns and the size of the schools they came from.
Daily & Independent Living Skills:
In DILS (Daily Independent Living Skills), we spent the first week learning about the course itself, going over the syllabus and course expectations, and completing various assessments. The assessments covered student skills in the areas we will focus on in class this semester which are Personal Safety, Health & Wellness, Careers & Work Ethic, and Personal Finance. I think we are off to a good start, I look forward to week 2.
Technology Literacy:
In Technology Literacy, we learned about Blackboard course pages, how to submit assignments on Blackboard, created folders in student Google drives for each course and discussed the importance of saving their work in the drive and on their computers. We also talked about email etiquette and learned the difference between formal emails (to instructors, campus offices, etc.) and informal emails (to parents, friends, family, etc.). Week 2 promises to hold more tech adventures. Stay tuned!
Relationships 101:
Meets once a week on Fridays. The first class we discussed Friendships, qualities of a good friend. Behaviors that could end a friendship. Students were assigned homework. We discussed mature behaviors expected in college.
Second-Year Students:
Transition Planning I:
The class has started off well. We have started our book study on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey. We discussed good habits and bad habits. We all have these types of habits and we can learn from our habits. The students had to send me 3 goals that they have for the semester. These goals can be personal or professional goals. We will visit these goals throughout the semester and see how they are doing to meet the goals.
Internship I:
All students have started their internships. The internships can be overwhelming when they first start. However, we know all of them will do good at their internships. The students' supervisors have been very pleased with how the students have done and showed professional communication skills, professional dress, and just overall professionalism. We will continue to work on all of these skills to help them be successful.
Plato:
First-year students had some difficulty working on Plato. All the students had new assessments in writing, math, and reading. Several students asked for help. It is important that students do the best they can on the monthly assessments. These determine the grade level for each student. Which in turn creates prescriptions for the month based on the score of the assessment. So, if the students get help on the assessments the month’s prescriptions may be too difficult for the student. Several students were required to attend study hall to complete plato hours.
THRIVE Activities:
Mentor Activities: It’s Smoothie Time with Sam...
This weekend Sam has created some great smoothies that the students were able to make. We suggest that the students attend these weekend activities, but it’s up to them to sign up and go to the events. Here are some of the pictures of the event.
Important upcoming dates:
Down Syndrome Guild Walk: For the 2nd year THRIVE is a sponsor for the Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City’s Step up for Down Syndrome. We will be putting together a team of 10 students that will go to Arrowhead Stadium to walk for this event, held on October 26th from 10 am to 2 pm. We are excited that we are able to do this and see our students show support. We have 7 signed up so far.
Softball sign-ups are in the classroom:
We have posted softball sign-ups in the THRIVE Classroom. We have to have 11 players to participate. The students have until Friday to sign up. I’ll then enroll a team if we have enough players. I’ll keep the parents updated and once we know about time for games I’ll let you know. If your student signs up we’d like them to have a glove. We do have some gloves that were donated by a family last year, so if your student wants to play and doesn’t have a glove they can still play. As long as they don’t have mandatory study hall...
Special Olympics group to be on UCM Campus:
We have a group from Special Olympics attending UCM in late October. We will have a couple of students help with giving tours of campus and will also have a group of students help with an activity in the evening. We’ll be talking more to the students as we get more information.
Family Day: Family Day is September 28th. We will have a THRIVE activity that weekend along with activities across campus. I’ll be updating as we know more. Unfortunately, I have a nephew getting married in Colorado so you will have to enjoy your time on campus without me.
The students can also try out for the Talent show a few weeks prior for a chance to be in the Talent show. Here is a link to the events that they had last year. They are in the process of getting this year’s events scheduled but should give you an idea.
Homecoming Weekend is October 12th Put it on your calendars. The students will be able to participate in several activities. We normally have a float that the students help with and the students walk in the parade.
"This blog is a programming blog written by the director and staff of the THRIVE Program on the University of Central Missouri campus. This blog doesn't accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions.
The views and ideas expressed on this blog are purely the blog owners. This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest. We are simply telling you what we plan to do in our program and using the blog to help spread what we are doing on a weekly basis."
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