Hosting a Shadow

     I have been a student ambassador since 9th grade, and hosted a ton of shadows in both 9th and 10th grade. There aren't as many people that want to shadow 11th grade though, so when I got to host a shadow on November 26th, I was super excited. I really like our school, so I like telling people about it, and I also like being a useful student ambassador, so shadow visits feel like they're really helpful. I think that this falls under Service and Learning Outcome 1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth. It had been so long since I hosted a shadow that I felt a little rusty, so it was a good time to brush up on my skills to make sure that I did a good job.

School Play

     A week after Hair, I had to turn around and get ready for a new production. The whole week of Monday, November 12 was tech week and then (on Friday and Saturday) productions of our schools play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. I wasn't actually in this production, but I was on the tech crew. I was head of the light/sound team (consisting of my sister and me), and I designed, programmed and ran lights, while she did the same for sound. It was my first time designing and programming lights, which was very exciting, but I had had a lot of previous experience running lights and sound for a show. It was a fun job, especially since it was a school play and I got to hang out with all my friends during and after, even though I never really understood the plot.
     I think that this week demonstrates Creativity and Learning Outcome 5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively. Whenever I had run lights and sound in the past, I had had to to both at the same time. I learned from this experience that having someone else doing half of it makes the whole job go a lot smoother and better.

Hair Performances

     On Friday, November 9th through Sunday, November 11th, we had our performances of Hair the musical at Wildfish Theater. The shows went really well, and it was so much fun. The shows were also extra exciting because we were directed by a director from HSPVA instead of our typical director at Wildfish, so the performance was the first time that she saw the full show. I think that this demonstrates Creativity, because this show takes a lot of creativity, especially from the ensemble. We have to make a lot of choices as actors in general, but especially in this show. I think that this experience as a whole also demonstrates learning outcome 1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth. I met a lot of new, very talented people though this show, and I feel like I have learned a lot from working with them and watching their different acting styles. I feel like I also learned a lot from working with a different director.

Last Volleyball Game

     We had our last volleyball game on Monday, October 29th. It was a home game against Esprit, and I got to be the libero, which was super exciting. It was kind of funny though, because it was a last minute decision, so we didn't have a jersey for me, so I had to wear an old basketball one. We played really well and won! It was a great way to finish up our volleyball season.
     I think that this falls under Activity and Learning Outcome 5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively. It was obvious that we had practiced hard as a team, and our improvement from the beginning of the semester was amazing. I can't wait to play again next year!

Post Oak Quad Party

     On Friday, October 26th, my band played for Post Oak's quad party. It was super fun, and we were very excited to be asked to play. We had a few technical difficulties, but I think everyone enjoyed our performance, and it was another good opportunity for us to practice playing in front of a lot of people. I think that this demonstrates Creativity and Learning Outcome 2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process. We had to figure out how to work the sound equipment, which was very difficult. We learned from our mistakes though, and should be better at it and much more efficient next time.

Local Music Festival

     On Saturday, October 13th, my band and I played at the Local Music Festival at Evelyn's Park. It was an incredible experience, and we all had so much fun. It was only our second gig, so we were not used to playing in front of that many people. It was extremely exciting and nerve-wracking, but it went very well. I think that this demonstrates Creativity and Learning Outcome 1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth. This was especially from watching all the other bands perform. I was able to recognize a lot of areas in which I probably need to grow in my confidence and musical ability, and it was a great learning experience for me.

Rehearsal for Hair the Musical

     On Sunday, I had rehearsal for Hair the musical, which I am doing at Wildfish Theater. Rehearsal lasts from 5:30 - 9:30, which is difficult and energy consuming, but also very exciting and rewarding. Rehearsals are always super fun, and we have a bunch of kids from both HSPVA and Washington Carver High school, which is great because we get to meet a lot of new people as well as have a big, diverse cast. We always run music for the show for the first couple of hours, and then block and run through different parts of the show for the rest. We have a great time.

     I think that this demonstrates Creativity and Learning Outcome 5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively. In musical theater, you have to work collaboratively with your cast for everything, especially in this show, where we are onstage pretty much the entire show. We have a great time and learn a lot from working with each other.

Bearkats Volleyball Games

       This week, on Tuesday, September 25th, and Friday September 28th, we had Bearkats volleyball games. These games were really fun to play, and it was obvious that our team was improving very fast. We were so much better at playing in general, but especially playing together than we were last year, or even last week. We had a really great time playing these games and were looking forward to playing together more the next week!

       This was definitely under the activity part of CAS, and I think that it demonstrates Learning Outcome 5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaborative because we worked together really well, and all our games so far have gone really well even if we didn't win.

Volunteering at The River

       On Saturday (September 22nd), I volunteered at The River Performing and Visual Arts Center. It is an organization I have been volunteering with for several years. They are partnered with Theater Under the Stars, and they provide music, dance, art, and acting classes for children and young adults with disabilities. They offer classes during the summer, but I always volunteer during their fall and spring classes every Saturday. Saturday, September 22nd was their first class of this semester. I went and volunteered from 9:00 - 12:45.
       In the past, when I have volunteered there, I have been assigned to a class with a few other volunteers, a teacher, and a TA to work with all four age groups of students, who rotate through the class. I have been in acting and music class most often, and I usually stay with the same class for the whole semester. This semester however, I have been assigned to the 8-12 age group rather than an individual class. This means that I always stay with this age group and rotate through all four classes with the same group of students. This was a new and more challenging experience for me. In the past, I have been able to focus on the art area I was in and learn how best to engage kids in that art area, but this time I had to learn how to keep the kids engaged in all the classes, as well as learn their routines in all the classes.
       I am considering this a Service activity, and I think it demonstrates learning outcome 2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process.