Some suggestions for your experiences

Hi! Miss Elena has kindly given to me this information regarding to possible opportunities for service. It is through the "Servizio civile". You can find a list of associations and places where to collaborate as a volonteer. The info is in Italian but if you are interested in some association rergarding elderly, disalbes, children, health, environment and artistc/cultural assets please come to see me or ask your peers to help with translation!Servizio Civile

Servizio Civile 2Servizio Civile

Servizio Civile projects 1Projects

What is CAS?

Here the Grade 11 students (2016-2017) brainstorming about their understanding of CAS

CAS Advisors' 2016-2017

Advisors

Introduction to CAS (students)

But...What is CAS?? CAS presentation

Some thougths after our first year

Here some problems/considerations we found after our first year of CAS. Hope will be useful to improve!After our first year

ISB CAS projects archive

After our first year of CAS we are trying to create a database with the CAS project completed. Maybe you can have a look to have some ideas...ISB CAS project archive

Brief introduction to CAS (advisors)

Dear advisors, here CAS in a few words...Brief introduction to CAS

Posible advisors profiles

Here you can find the profile of some teachers that would be glad to be your advisor. Please read those profiles and fix an appointment with the theacher you think can be the appropiate for you.

(What does "appropiate" mean to you?: Does this teacher has some skills that can be useful? Is she/he nice? Do I have a good relationship with this person to work with him/her for 18 months? Can I learn interesting things for me?...)CAS advisors

Welcome back!

This is an "official" welcome from your CAS coordinator. I hope all of you had a great summer. Now we have to start from the beginning working hard. It is the time to start thinking in your CAS experiences and to have some ideas you could:

- GET INFORMED  (radio, tv, newspapers...). If you want to help better to know who needs you...

- VISIT some local NGOs; you don't know that you are interested about something until you know that this thing exists...

- Go to the TOURIST office in Bologna. If you want to help in your local area better to know your local area...

- Visit the SALABORSA, in this place you will  learn/understand a lot about the fauna and flora of this amazing city...

- GO FOR A WALK arond the city. It is good for your mind and your sould.

- JOIN some local clubs (sports, games, reading club...) How are you going to learn anything about this city locked in your room?

- START using Managebac. Don't tell in december that you don't knew how to use it, It is an old excuse...

- START doing/writing something (your profile for example). To start your experience the best thing you can do it is to stop wondering and to start acting (yes, june is closer than you think...fortunately...)

Where to upload your reflections

Your reflection can have any format: video, photo, written...or a blog! Here an example!

http://casjourneygiorgia.blogspot.it/2016/06/the-day-before-myp-completion-ceremony.html

Some CAS examples

Here some ideas

How to write your profile

An example of a profile:

MY BIOGRAPHY:

My name is ___________, I have just turned 16 years old and I live in Bologna, Italy. I speak English (as a second language) and Italian (as a mother tongue). My passions are: archeology (social service with archeological groups located in my city), painting, taking artistic pictures (landscapes, food), creating small objects with polymer clays, listening to music (modern genres – commercial music), reading (mystery books), watching movies/documentaries/tv series, swimming, walking a lot and discovering new places ... and of course going out with my friends and getting to know new people ! Psychology and Arts are my passions as well!

 INTERVIEW TO MYSELF: 

1. What am I interested in? I love reading, swimming, dancing, painting, travelling and visiting new countries, listening to music, I also like looking at advertisements and trying to understand techniques and reasons for choices of specific words, images, symbols … but the “thing” I love most is PEOPLE. I love meeting new people, not necessarily getting close friends with them, but getting to know them, their culture, their interests, their ways of living, their points of view. For this reason, I like surfing the Internet since it gives me the chance of getting in touch with different cultures and traditions. I am also really interested in cooking, especially cookies and cakes, but I also like healthy food recipes and preparing vegetable and fruit smoothies. 

2. About what issues do I feel most passionate? It depends from the definition of the word “issues”. If with this word we mean “social problems” affecting the global community, I think that the aspect that involves me more is children in areas affected by war. Last year I made a big Artwork titled “Last birthday”: I created a huge cake with polymer clay, candles and decorations and, as background; I chose the pictures of some children taken during war in Syria. “The last birthday” means the end of childhood, hopes, dreams, peace because of war … it does not necessarily mean death but it symbolizes the end of happiness: even when the war will be over, these kids will not be “children” any more since their perception about life will be completely different. This was the initial reflection that triggered my artwork, but what struck me most was that when I surfed the Internet to find the list of the conflicts happening daily in the world, I realized that they are countless … From that day I have always been interested and deeply touched by the situation of children in war areas. Of course I could not help directly to change all this but maybe be I could help by fundraising to improve the living conditions of these children (to buy food, medical assistance, shelters …). 

3. What are my talents? I believe I am good at drawing and creating in general, using different kinds of materials: polymer clay, clay, natural elements (such as branches, leaves, pebbles), magazines (collages), newspapers. I think I am also good at getting in touch with people, understanding and helping them, sharing life with them. 

4. What skill/talent would I like to improve? I have good organization skills but I believe I need to become quicker in developing and carrying out all my activities. So I think that in order to improve this aspect, I should try to get involved in many different CAS short experiences, because this would help me in trying to reach the goals of one project in the shortest time possible and then switch to the next one. I am very precise and try to give the most in everything I do, so I believe I need to start speeding times. 

5. What am I already doing that could be part of my CAS programme? I have been working for an archeological association since I was 8 years old. I have invested many hours during my weekends on this activity. I know this “job” very well but now I think that I should try something different: challenges make you grow and now I feel it is the right time to start widening my horizons. It goes without saying that it would be easy for me to include these service hours among my CAS activities: Service – as taking care of our archeological findings is an activity that benefits all our community, enriching our museums – Action – as digging in order to bring to light something really interesting implies a lot of physical efforts and contributes to a healthy lifestyle – Creativity – since putting together all the broken parts of an Estruscan/Villanovian vase or of a plate (these are just examples) requires a lot of imagination (see pictures). I could think about a short experience connected with archeological social service, such as for example preparing some leaflets for archeological exhibitions or organizing short conferences, in our territory, about the Villanovian / Estruscan periods, to help people become more aware of the origins of their own culture…However I would prefer being involved in something completely different. I believe that the essence of the CAS experience is represented by GROWTH and CHALLENGE and insisting with the same activities would mean losing these aspects. There are no real aims and goals in keeping on doing always the same things.

 6. What would I like to be involved in? I am really open to any kind of new experience: assisting people in hospitals, teaching Italian to foreing people, fundaraising for associations such MSF, cleaning public parks … However I would like to build up my CAS experience myself, looking for possibilities and evaluating them. I would not like to be involved in something suggested by someone else. It would not have the same “value” for me. I believe the best thing to do is to think it over and look around , starting form the local community and, after, expanding to the global one. 

7. Are there any local clubs or community associations in which I could be involved? I live in a small village and I know all the inhabitants really well: there are different local community associations in which I could be involved and be welcomed by its members (some collect old books for the school, other associations fundraise to buy new toys for the kindergarten … ad so on). ANT is present on every village celebration and they are often looking for volunteers. MSF is ready to involve me for fundraising: they had already asked me last year but, at the end, I chose to cooperate with Gift of Life and Emergency, so this year it could also be the turn of MSF ! Maybe I could evaluate it for a short CAS experience. 

8. What would I like to learn more about? I would like to learn more about the possibility to set up a sort of business for fundraising (regulations, age etc): for example, I know that in my village there is a huge request for bamboo canes that are used in kaleyards to help tomato plants grow up and I was thining about selling them (I have many in my property) to fundraise for some “good causes” such helping regions affected by war, natural hazards and so on. 

9. What have I always wanted to try but haven’t yet? I have always been thinking about teaching Italian to foreigners outside the school and I would love to see them learn and improve thanks to my activity. I believe it would be a really rewarding experience. However, I have never had the time to organize this activity. 

10. What other questions may help? Write down two and answer them. Would you be ready to share some of your CAS experiences cooperating with one (or more) of your peers ? I believe that one of the main goals and aims of CAS is organization and cooperation so I think that sharing a short project with one of my peers would help me grow since it would mean looking at things also from a different perspective and point of view. Have you ever thought about carrying out one of your CAS activities abroad ? Yes, next summer I would like to make my social service at St Jude’s hospital in Las Vegas. This hospital is dealing with children affected by cancer and other deadly diseases. This year I could not join them since I was not 16 years old yet but next year I would like to go. I have already contacted them and I am waiting for the final confirmation.

CAS on Managebac

How does CAS look on Managebac?

CAS (Student) handbook

Dear all,

By popular demand here you can find the CAS (student) handbook. (Student) is in brackets because I think this document will be very useful for advisors too. Mainly pages 13-15). 
Soon I will upload a summarise of Learning outcomes (LO) boundaries.

Enjoy!!

(Student) handbook

Ask yourself!

To make a good reflection ask questions to yourself related to the learning outcomes:

 What kind of abilities do you think you already have? And what skills did this activity teach you? 

• What do you understand by passion? Can be this activity defined as a "passion" to you?

Through this experience did you learn something important that you can apply in your daily life?

Does this activity help other people? How?

How were you before and after this experience? How did you feel by being involved?

Being more specific…

— What kind of characteristics do you think a football player should have?
What is the relation between body health and healthy mind? 

                           “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.” 
                                                                                            Voltaire

Example of weekly reflection

— 17 February. I wouldn’t say my football ability is terrible but I would like to improve on the skills I already have. During secondary school, I would occasionally play football, however, in my opinion; there was no real passion behind it. I played football just because I had to, however, over the given two year period; I’ve grown to the sport and began watching a lot more on TV. This has driven me forward into building upon the skills I have into a better player overall. Also, this would help me keep fit and healthy whist studying the IB. The first week, I filled in the midfield role to push for a 3-1 victory over the opposing team. Good start to a promising future I thought. 

Learning outcomes

LEARNING OUTCOMES

1.                Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth.

2.                Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken developing new skills in the process.

3.                Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience.

4.                Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experience.

5.                Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively.

6.                Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance.

7.                Recognize and consider the ethical implications of their actions.

The reflection circle