Week 9/6 Blog

 

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: Debra Southard   

This has been a busy week. We took our first test. Students reflected on the connection between the time they studied equaled to the feeling of being prepared. We discussed time management and that will be an ongoing topic. Also in class, we have three former students come in and have a panel discussion. Current THRIVE students got an opportunity to ask questions without a teacher present. About anything related to college life and THRIVE. 

Individual & Family Health and Relationships:  Debra Southard & Lisa Garnier

Dating was the topic this week. We discussed how to start dating, how to break up, treatment of others, and values and how they play a part in behavior. Being in a safe relationship, the discussion was also what age should someone date. At the end of the week, we covered signs of abusive relationships. 

Agree or disagree… that’s the question that was asked.

Technology Literacy:  Lisa Garnier

This week we learned how to write a paragraph/paper in Microsoft Word. Students were to complete an outline and then write a paragraph about their first month in THRIVE. We also learned about the Notability app on the iPad for taking notes and annotating powerpoints and other documents that can be uploaded into the app. This is a great tool for organizing class notes, presentations, and other materials in one place for easy access to study for exams. 

Career Exploration: Michael Brunkhorst

This week the students worked with their 4150 class students to do their first Missouri Connections Assessment, the Career Cluster.  It won’t tell them what they ought to do but will help narrow down their choices of different careers based on their answers to about 48 questions.  The 4150 student will help them understand the questions and help keep them on-task.  Then I’ll give a copy of their results so that they can look deeper into what it says. 

Just a little exercise… during Friday’s PE individual time.

Second-Year Students:

Transition Planning I: Gary Manning

 We are discussing Professional Development Plans.  Within these PDPs I want the students to start thinking about their future plans after graduating from the THRIVE program in May.  Even though this is seven months away, this time goes fast.  This can be exciting and scary at the same time.  The students’ have some examples of PDPs.  I have also asked the students to talk to their families about the PDP.  What the students might be thinking of future plans and what the families might be thinking of future plans may be different.   

 

Internship I: Gary Manning

Internships for the students are going well.  We are getting ready to discuss creating a professional portfolio.  As the students are working their internships, they are also trying to impress their supervisors so the students can use that supervisor as a reference on their resume and maybe have their supervisor write them a recommendation letter.  During class, we discuss what the student may need to do at their internships to impress their supervisor.  

Plato: Debra Southard

Students are beginning to get plato worked into their day. Some of the first years work too long on one subject and then do not get other things done. But they are learning about time management so it's a process. Topics include Math, Language Arts, Reading, Health, and Careers. In a few weeks, students will have an opportunity to select a different topic rather than Careers. There are many new topics to pick from. 

THRIVE Activities:

A little fun with UCM Groups…

A bit of lunch at the dining hall…

Mentor Activities: Claire scheduled some time at the Student Rec Center to have some fun with Archery.  Looks like we have some great Archers...

Great Job Everyone!!  For more pictures please join our THRIVE Facebook and/or Instagram pages.

Important upcoming dates: 

Next Mentor Activity:  This coming weekend Savanna will help the students make Chicken Spaghetti.  Since we are making this in small groups please encourage your students to say “Yes”.  We’ve had a few back out or not sign up.

Four-Year program details: Over the next few months we will have opportunities for families to learn more about our 3rd- and 4th-year options.  The third year will start next fall, so families of 2nd-year students would be able to look at this option for their students. We hope to have documents ready in Early October and will have a Zoom meeting to discuss the changes.

"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."