Bullies and YOU

Sometimes, teasing can go too far.  You never know what is going inside someone's head or someone's heart.  Bullying can be physical, verbal, nonverbal and/or emotional.  It is when someone is repeatedly picked on often because of their appearance or social status.  NO ONE has the right to bully or to be bullied.  If you, or someone you know, is bullied.  Take a stand.  If you feel comfortable, stand up to your bully.  If you do not, tell someone...a teacher, a counselor, an administrator, your parent...anyone.

For more resources on bullying, explore the following links:
Teens Against Bullying
Dealing with Bullying
The Facts on Bullying
Surviving Cyberbullying

Teen Pregnancy and STIs

The following are links to more information from today's class.  Get informed!  Information is power!

Teen Mom Nation from Lisa Ling's "Our America"  An episode about the topic of teen pregnancy where Lisa Ling documents the journeys of four teenage families with child(ren).

StayTeen.org Information about STIs, Pregnancy, Protection, Relationships, and More!

<3 You, <3 You Not.

What is your relationship reality?  Read about relationships, STIs, teen pregnancy, types of birth control, dating abuse, and everything else relationship at http://www.stayteen.org/stay-informed.

Also remember inside Community Links HS, there is a health clinic, Alivio, where you can speak confidentially with a health professional surrounding these issues.  If you suspect you might be pregnant, you are interested in learning more about protecting yourself sexually, or any other questions...go there!  Your visit will be kept confidential even from your parents.

Young Chicago Authors

Did you enjoy the trip to Young Chicago Authors ( http://youngchicagoauthors.org/ ) today?  Get involved!  Make your voice heard!  CLHS sponsors a Louder than a Bomb Poetry Club.

Managing your stress

Image by Mark Hicks, Illustrator

Stress can be a good motivator.  It can motivate us to pursue a goal, but sometimes if we have too much, it can be unhealthy.

How does your body tell you when you are stressed?  How do you manage your stress?  Do you take time to stop and breathe?  Do you crank your music for awhile?  Do you go for a walk?  Do you talk to a friend?  It's so important to find ways that you can relive stress when it gets to be too much.  

Remember the AAA:

Accept:  Sometimes there are things you cannot control, such as a divorce or a move.  While you cannot control something, you do have the ability to accept the situation and make it the most positive outcome that you can. 

Adjust:  Sometimes there are stressors in life that you have the power to change.  For example, if you are constantly handing in homework late, you can make a study plan to hand it in on time.  If you are constantly fighting with your parents or friends, you could try understanding something from the others' point of view.

Avoid:  Sometimes you might be causing the stress.  Maybe there is a group of friends that whenever you hang out with them, you get in trouble.  This is up to you to change.  It takes strength. 

Once again...remember your counselor is there for you.  If there is a situation you feel you do not know how to handle, your counselor will be able to help you figure out the cause of the problem and arrive at the best outcome for you.

Talking to your parents about difficult issues...

...is incredibly stressful.  Think about your approach to them.  Think about your timing and choose a time when your parent(s) can really sit down with you.  When you talk to them, remember I-messages.  "I feel ______ because _______."  It will do wonders for opening your conversation.  Your parents might still get mad at you, depending on the situation.  Understand that it is because they love you and want the best for you.  Sometimes we forget that.

It is always good to create a stronger relationship with your parents in between those difficult times.  Spend time with them.  Talk to them.  Get to know who you parents are.  Get to know who they were when they were your age.

For more information, check out http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/Parents/talk_to_parents.html

The Road Not Taken / Peer Pressure

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. 

Robert Frost

Making Choices

In your own words...


What is a past mistake that became a learning experience for you?

• Trusting the incorrect person.  Always be careful with whom you share your feelings/thoughts with.
• A past mistake I've made was forgetting the people I've come to know.  It helped me realize that no matter where I go and who I leave behind, my past is my past.  I can't change that.
• Well it was not my mistake, it was my sister's.  It was to have a kid at age 15.  I see that is a mistake because now she wants to go out, but she has to stay at home because she has no one to leave her kid with.
• A past mistake was doing drugs all the time while going to school and during school.  This helped me to learn that there are consequences for every bad decision.
• A past mistake is not paying attention.  If you pay attention, you learn and you know what to do.
• Doing something I know I will regret.  Such as eating too much, knowing it's going to hurt later or something similar to that.
• A past mistake that became a learning experience for me was giving my dad so many chances and he would always blow them.  Now I know better than to give him another chance.  I'd like to thank him for making me strong.
• De que baja mis grados en 8th porque un hermano se murio.  Por eso baja de grado.
• Back in 7th grade when I wasn't doing well in all my classes and I was absent a lot.  I've decided to pay attention more in class and come to school more.
• I would hang out with friends until 9 or 10 and my mom would get worried.  One time, I had stayed over at my friend's house and my mom called the cops and a big mess happened.  After that, I learned to listen more to my mom's instructions and time schedule.

How have the people around you influenced you to make unhealthy choices?

• Some people on my block influenced me to smoke.  But I know that smoking is bad and can lead to a lot of bad things.
• My friend from school made me smoke, but I didn't want to because it will effect me in soccer.
• Going out with friends where there is no adult supervision.  And I was pressured to do stuff I didn't want to do.  I need to be confident and trust no one.
• A lot of people around my neighborhood.  It isn't safe to be there cuz they sell drugs, gangbang, so I have to be careful.
• When I was little, me my sister and my cousin started drinking.  And I didn't know I was epileptic.  When I was little, it made my life harder.  I wish I never did that.
• In my neighborhood, there are people who drink and use drugs.  In my house, some relatives drink beer once in awhile.  But I don't because I know better than that.  Also, I am better than that.
• They have made me choose badly and beat up kids same age as me.  I ended up in juvenile detention center for 3 weeks.
• My mom has influenced me to take the blame for things I didn't do to keep my loved ones safe.  My dad has taught me to let my dreams go.  My cousin, to disobey my mom.
• By making things seem like any other little thing when they're really bad.  For example, being sexually active and smoking.  These were things I knew were bad, but decided to explore.
• Most of my friends don't do their homework.  That makes me not want to do my homework.
• People did influence me by joining a gang.  But, I refused to because I know it ain't gonna get me anywhere.  Only to jail or 6 ft deep.

How have the people around you influenced you to make healthy choices?

• People around me have influenced me to make good decisions like in school or even personal decisions.
• The people around me influence me in a good and bad way.  The good way is that they can be smart and they know everything.  That they are trying to learn and the bad way is sometimes they can be a little distracted and they can talk when I'm trying to learn something in a class.
• The person who helped me make healthy choices is my best friend who is also my boyfriend.  Though he's known me for 2 years, he helps me go from wrong to right.  And I thank him for being there through thick and thin.
• To eat like salady foods and other good stuff.
• My family influences me to make healthy choices because they persuade me that when I make a decision, I need to think about it twice before I do it.
• Many people influenced me by telling me about how their wrong choices affected them and I shouldn't follow it.  Also, they encourage me to stay in school and get a good education.
• I try to have good influences in my life.  They haven't.  I try to make my own healthy choices.  I say yolo.

What decision making process do you follow when you have to make a big decision?

• I just ask people for help and advice.
• First I think about it.  Like if it will hurt me or anyone else.  How would my life be different when I choose that decision?  And about what would I like?
• Think more than once about the decision.  Go with my gut.
• Setting a goal.
• Think first and think about whether it's a good or bad decision for right now and in the future.
• I choose what's best for me while not affecting the people I care for.  I look for options.

We gotta dig deep...A Poem by Freshmen Group A

I wonder how I got there?  What choices I made for me to become what I became?
I wonder if I would really get there?

Keep trying to achieve your goals.

Stay in school.
Work hard in school.

Don't give up.  That's what losers do...

Doing better in school.

Do not ever use drugs, smoke, and other bad things.

Lack of interest.
Talking.

Athletic.  Hyper.

Awkward.

Eating as a small family at the kitchen table.

Spend time with my dad after my whole life and childhood without knowing him...

You did the opposite of what your family members told you...

Try and get out of the house more often!

I would like to know what it's like to be on your own in the real world,
But I have to do what I got to do to get where you are at.

I just mainly want my life to make me happy.  Doesn't matter how it is.
Are you famous??

How many iguanas do you have?
Do you have a girlfriend?  A boyfriend?

Yo quiero ser constructor.

In the end, you're the only one who knows where I'll end up.
Life is not as it seems.
It's a mix of our goals and dreams.
It'll get hard.  We'll get tired,
But we gotta dig deep.

Street art by Banksy.  "There is always hope."

Student Poets: Pablo A, Alfonso A, Sarah A, Jose B, Vanesa C, Brianna C, Javier C, Amanda E, Juan E, Giovanni G, Luis G, Rogelio G, Kenia G, Shantal H, Jose H, Esmeralda M, Humberto M, Mirna M, Yuri R, Julissa R, Leonardo S, Jesus S, Jose S, Victor V, Jesi V

Our Future Vision...A poem by Freshmen Group B

I wonder how I'mma end up in the future?  

Be yourself.  

Work very hard and do not procrastinate.  

Hard work pays off.  

Remember, she is doing everything and anything she can for your best.  

My dream is to be in the FBI.  

Doctoral Degree!  

I got the '69 Dodge Charger in the shop right now.

Successful.

You better graduate from high school & college.  That way you'll get a good job.

Don't let anybody bring you down.

Never give up.

Be successful in life.

You're a smart kid.  You play soccer and you're good.

Muy Bien.

Si se puede!

After college, well, it gets hard and life's ahead.

You'll be more successful.

Give your best on what you want.

You have it in you!

I'm still undecided.

Don't give up on anything and keep trying to achieve your goals and your dreams.

You have to ignore the people that will get you in trouble.

You can do it, I know you can.  After all, I'm you.

Make lots and lots of money.

Get to be someone in life.

You can change the world.

YOLO. [you only live once]

Street Art by Banksy.

Student Poets: Jesus A, Felicia A, Angelica A, Maria B, Juan B, Antonio B, Karina C, Isabel D, Kevin D, Vicente F, Fernando F, Fernando G, Paola G, Maria G, Ana G, Fabiana G, Maria J, Hector M, Antonio M, Yesenia Q, Ricardo R, Esther R, Robert R, Ilse S, Nancy S, Lupita Z

Can I still go to college even if I am undocumented?

YES YOU CAN!

Here is a very complete guide to what to do if you (or how to help someone you know) are undocumented.  There is a lot of information about the DREAM Act, college applications, financial aid, future job planning, and more.  The most important thing you can do is talk to your counselor before you are ready to apply.  This way you can create a plan together!  Remember, what you tell your counselor will remain confidential between you two.

http://www.chooseyourfuture.org/college/undocumented-students

What can you do as a freshman to plan for college?

To create a customized plan for your own college readiness, click here.

Does more education pay?

Did you know that individuals who have a college degree earn on average $22,000 more per year?  How much more will that make you over your lifetime?  What could you do with that kind of money?

Click here to check out the 5 ways ed pays campaign for some more facts about how your education will pay YOU.

Don't think college is for you?  Don't think you could get into a college?  Check out this link!

What's Next Illinois?

A lot of people have made comments about not knowing what they want to do after high school.  What's Next Illinois will guide you through high school, college, and career planning to help you determine your path.  This is a tool that all students in CPS use.  Take a look here!

Other useful college planning websites are:

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/
http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
http://www.knowhow2goillinois.org/

http://youcango.collegeboard.org/

And career planning websites:

http://mappingyourfuture.org/planyourcareer/careership/

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/
http://www.bls.gov/k12/index.htm

Malleable Intelligence

Did you know you can control how smart you are?  Your brain is a muscle.  It needs to be worked and it will become stronger and smarter!  Click here to read more.

"The Thinker" by Auguste Rodin in 1902.  

Since then, there have been 21 replicas made from his original mold!  

Learning Styles

Today, we took learning style surveys to discover whether we are visual, auditory, or spatial learners. 

• Visual learners learn best by observing quietly and using visual organizers.  These people tend to be quiet and attentive in class.
• Auditory learners learn best by talking and memorizing.  These people tend to be more outgoing and are good listeners.  These students can be easily distracted.
• Tactile learners learn best by doing.  They can be distracting to others and are very outgoing.  They like activities in learning that involve hands on practice.

Do these sound like you?  Learn more about your learning style and others at this link.  At this site, there are also tips to help each style of learner become a better student!

Calculating your GPA

Grade Point Average:

A=4  B=3  C=2  D=1  F=0

Add the point value for each grade.  Divide that number by the total number of classes.  Remember, for a Cumulative GPA, it is the total point value for ALL of your classes divided by your total number of classes.  If you get an F in a class, it will forever be calculated into your GPA, even if you make that class up.

Here's a GPA Calculator that will do that math for you.  :)

CPS Graduation Requirements!

Yesterday, we took a look at what is required of you in order to graduate.  Here is the list of the MINIMUM requirements to graduate into your next chapter in life.  (You probably will and should aim higher than these.)


Also, read CPS policies for grade promotion between 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade levels.  (Remember, your time will be condensed into 3 years.)

A Guide for YOU!

Study Skills

WHAT NOT TO DO. :)