Community T.E.A.M.S. continues to build excitement in the community. Parents continue to sing our praises and continue to bring in supplies (juice boxes, chips, cookies, etc). The children are amazing to work with and they all seem to connect. They are working hard to build new and great relationships.

Our Winthrop T.E.A.M.S. group has been phenomenal.  They are efficient, hard-working, focused and FUN! The kids love them and we love them.

Our second week consisted of the following activities and areas of learning:

We did a session on vocabulary building and the students learned 15 new words from their Language Arts curriculum. They learned words they didn't know before- that was a success! Mrs. Chasity Griffin, Teacher of the Year for Mt. Gallant, came in and taught a two day lesson on fractions. Mrs. Griffin worked with us last year as well. She focused on fractions because our sixth grade teachers told us that last year students struggled with fractions- our vision was to give this group a "jumpstart" in the subject area- again success!

Amanda Barnes, fitness trainer, came in and talked about healthy eating and nutrition. She conducted an exercise class with the students and focused on making good exercise and food choices. Health and fitness are an important issue for youth, Community T.E.A.M.S. is focused on helping in those areas as well. Lora Holladay, shared her expertise on note taking. This was an important skill in the success of 6th graders. Teachers informed us last year that students lacked ability in the area of note taking, so that was another area we wanted to tackle in advance!

Denise McCanty-McCoy, parent educator, spoke to our students about how to make a lasting "first impression" with their ability to introduce themselves and interact with others through social and language engagement. Students were able to practice introductions and answer/ask questions. Bruce McKagan continues to be impressed by the interest of students to create lyrics and music. We have actually written a song that MUZAK is now applying music and rhythm to. MUZAK has brought electirc/bass guitars, keyboards, drums etc. to the camp location and allowed students to get to know the instruments up close and personal. Students will travel to the Charlotte studio and record the song next week. We have some really talented young singers and writers within Community T.E.A.M.S.

Pat A Cakes Bakery shared a cupcake decorating class and offered to help/collaborate with Community T.E.A.M.S. throughout the year with various projects. Students also learned to open combination locks. The one thing that seems to hinder students from getting from class to class on time is the delay in opening their lockers. This will allow them to be prepared for such a task.

We wrapped up the week with a DYNAMIC trip the Saluda Shoals Wetlands in Columbia, SC. The students received and Eco-systems class and then were allowed to go into the wetlands and collect various species of fish and marine life. It was amazing to watch the children get excited about collecting tadpoles, fish, and crawfish. They were then able to take their species and view them under a microscope. This was a fantastic day of learning and hands-on outdoor fun. The weather was perfect for such an event.

As we venture into week three, we have more science, math and language arts. More teambuilding is also on the way!

Kim Johnson, Community Impact Director, United Way of York County, SC