Tuesday Interview - Avaya & L'yrics

ABLE Minds talked to students Avaya and L'yrics. Both 5th graders attend ABLE HQ and are best friends. Here they talk about some of the things they like at school and ABLE, while imparting advice to fellow students.

ABLE Voices: What's your favorite subject at school?
Avaya: Writing.
L'yrics: Science and non-fiction writing.

AV: What do you like about ABLE?
A: I get homework done and then I can play a bit. Plus, there are snacks.
L: Same for me. I like how people communicate. The activities- double dutch, step. Children can learn and have fun. It's the best afternoon school.

AV: What do you like about your school?
A: I made a lot of new friends. Teachers are nice and they help you, but they won't give you answers...maybe hints.
L: Teachers there teach you more than you already know. Plus they help you with manners and respect. Work hard and be nice.

AV: What advice would you give your peers?
A: Be respectful. Do not talk back to your teacher. Always do work. Do not have a fit or be threatful.
L: Always try to get to college and worry about your education. Nothing else except your work, family, and friends.

S.A.T. Prep

We're looking for a few good students...

S.A.T. Prep classes were instituted into ABLE programming in spring of 2010 and since then we've been able to help 20 high school students with free instruction for the test. We're looking to recruit new students for the remainder of the school year and if you know of any high school students in need, contact Mark Pagán, ABLE program director, at mpagan@ncfc-dc.org.

S.A.T. Prep classes are every Monday from 6-8 at NCFC HQ.

White House Farmers Market

This fall, ABLE teamed up with City Blossoms for a very special program. Students worked in a public garden, harvesting and learning about plants and herbs. Within a few weeks the students created a business plan and at the end of November had a chance to sell homemade soaps and scrubs at a farmers market in DC. They did a tremendous job and sold the majority of what they made!

A congratulations goes out to our students and a thank you to City Blossoms and the White House Farmers Market for helping our students reach their goal!

ABLE Students and The Convention Center

Students at ABLE were asked to reflect on the above photo (by Steven Cummings). The expressions were then used to border the photo, now posted on a facade of the Convention Center.

Much thanks to DC Commission for the Arts for allowing our students to express themselves (and using their words as art)!

Med School at ABLE

ABLE had the pleasure of working with med students from Georgetown University last week. The med students showed our teens what happens to our lungs and how best to take care of them. Following a discussion, students created mock lungs by using balloons, straws, and soda bottles. This led to a great discussion and analysis of what makes our bodies work the way they do.

Special thanks to Oswaldo and his colleagues for helping our students!

High Fructose Corn Syrup

In Lost in the City, we examined and wrote about the health effects of high fructose corn syrup. Here are some pointers from Mercedes and Trinity based on what we learned:

I would advise you to avoid a lot of high fructose corn syrup. I would advise you not to consume process food necause it's linked to obesity. 24 million Americans now have diabetes, which is linked to high fructose corn syrup. So I would tell everyone to try to AVOID high fructose corn syrup due to your health. Here are 3 ways to avoid it:

1. Stop eating processed foods.

2. Look at the ingredients on your foods.

3. Try eating healthier.

Thanks for reading!

A Dynamic Partnership: Lifting Voices and New Community make a Great Team

New Community for Children and Lifting Voices have been teaming up for over year and wow, has it been a success! Here's how it works: Lifting Voices brings their writing workshops to youth in the ABLE program and helps foster a love for the written word. As you will see in the video below, these workshops have worked. Not only are the youth at ABLE writing powerful pieces that mean something to them but they are also enjoying themselves. So without further ado, watch this video and hear about two very different views of fatherhood as lived by the kids themselves and witness their enthusiasm for the written word: