learnings\Summary- Michael J Harrington

Any experience changes us, some for the better, some for the worst.  This experience made me a better person no doubt.  Mentoring the Joses helped me in many ways.  First of all I learned about other cultures.  I'm not normally around many foreign individuals, so it's weird for me to get used to having someone not speak English around me, and it was interesting to get their perspective on life.  Second, I learned about myself.  Sometimes you can only really see yourself in the eyes of others, and when Jose drew a picture of our time together I understood a little more about myself.  Third, I learned about children.  Children see the world in a new light, and it was very cool to hear what he thought about zoos and playing sports and moving in general.  My mentees have had experiences I've never had, and probably never will, but it was interesting to live through his eyes.

Something my mentee has seen that I haven't, a redwood.

I hope that I have changed my mentees too, and that they have learned something about American life or America in general from me.  And maybe learned some academics too, from all the homework we worked on together.  But all in all I know that I got something out of the experience, and can only hope that he did too.  Thanks for a great year and goodbye.

Me...and my roommate.

What I have Learned

Adama

I really did not know what I was getting into when I first signed up for this class. I was not really sure what we would learn about, or if I would really learn anything at all. But after taking part in the classwork, and getting the chance to work at AMIS I realize just how much I did learn about the  lives of immigrant children. Before the first day at AMIS I wasn't really sure about this whole process. I figured I would be paired with a student who I would not be able to understand and even if I could understand them we would have nothing to talk about because I figured our lives were too different. I was so wrong. My mentee Adama was just like any other 4th grade boy I have ever babysat. He loved to play games, loved dinosaurs, and loved cartoons. I realized after the first few meetings that I had judged these kids before I even got the chance to get to know them. I think that a lot of people do this. But through this course I have learned that immigrant children may have so challenges in their lives that other people don't have to experience, but underneath it all they are just kids who want the same chances and want to have the same experiences as any other kid. I think this concept was the most important thing this class has taught me, not to judge other ways of life just because they are not familiar to me. I that if more people in the world learned this, things could be a lot better for a lot of people.

AMIS

I am really glad that I took this class and was able to meet the wonderful people at AMIS. I will take the concepts that I learned in this class with me when I myself become a teacher so that I can help all the students in my classes become very successful.

Learnings/Summary; Nish Thiyagarajah

Over the past ten weeks, while I can’t exactly say this class has been the focal point of my life, I can say with honesty that I’ve been thoroughly surprised by it. The experience of mentoring Kevin, while fleeting, has been really great. I’ve learned a lot, and have been able to do a lot of reflection through these photo journals. My family went through issues involving immigration, and this class has allowed me to go back and, as I said, reflect a decent amount on everything in the context of my experiences and who I am today. 

First day at AMIS.

In terms of the mentoring at AMIS, I was first paired with Kevin when we showed up at AMIS all those weeks ago, not knowing at all just how this experience was going to go. He seemed at first to just hate me, seeming just apathetic about everything I said or asked, and though I’m not exactly proud of it took me several minutes to piece together that he really just wasn’t able to speak English.  Upon this realization, I was pretty doubtful as to how we’d ever develop any kind of mentee mentor relationship, given that my Spanish experience was a couple of years removed and never particularly developed to begin with. 

However, I quickly realized that the so called language barrier people seem to be so anxious about really doesn’t  have to come so far between people so as not to let them communicate with one another. We eventually became very friendly, and this was established through not just limited actual communication, but familiarity developing from simple activities like drawing, gesturing, and the like. The thing is that a lot of kids, especially young immigrant children, don’t yet file the same stereotypes that many of us do due to the ins and outs of growing up in America, so there’s no stigma in becoming comfortable with a person- if they get along, they get along.

In the last few weeks.

In my mind, culture is as important as ever, and Kevin, who always said he loved his home more than anything, and didn’t seem to like it here especially, even showed me that I’d like to learn a little more about my homeland’s culture and maybe cultivate some of that cultural competence. As I'm transferring to a different school next year, sadly I won't be able to continue the mentoring relationship, but I hope if anything, Kevin was able to learn from our time there that visible differences between people should make no difference in how we talk to or interact with one another, and also that his adjustment to living here goes smoothly as he grows older and gains some perspective.

Week 10 -- Learnings/Summary -- Sarah Arriola

The time I have spent over the last 10 weeks, both in the classroom and at AMIS, have been much more enriching than I ever thought they would be. I thought I was signing up for yet other class that would require lots of reading and out-of-the-box assignments that would ultimately leave me with little more than another grade at the end of the quarter. I couldn't have been more wrong. 

Spending time with my mentee, Hawa, at AMIS was really enjoyable, and it never felt like a class assignment. I was learning from her and we were having fun together, whether that meant coloring, playing games on her Nintendo DS, or running around on the playground. I didn't dread that time that we spent at AMIS. Rather, I looked forward to it. In fact, I have found that, although I don't really miss the time spent driving back and forth, I do miss seeing the mentees. 

I have learned a lot about immigration this quarter, both from the readings, the AMIS students, and the time spent in the classroom. One of the biggest things I have learned is that all immigrants are not the same. They all have different stories and have had different experiences. Trying to lump all immigrants into one neat group is like trying to say that all college students are the same; that they act the same, believe the same things, or have the same goals. It's simply not true. It's actually quite insulting to try and say that all immigrants are the same. If we, as a society, try to look at immigrants as individuals with different needs and different stories, we would all get along better and would be better able to relate to one another. We would realize that we actually may have a lot in common with many of the immigrants that we feel as though we are so different from. I realized this fact through my mentee, Hawa.

When we showed up at AMIS on that first day, I was sure that I was going to end up paired with some student that I may not be able to communicate with, and surely wouldn't have anything in common with. I was quite wrong. Hawa spoke exellent English, owned a Nintendo DS, and talked about the same things I would expect any other fourth grade girl to talk about. Over the weeks that we met, I realized that we had several things in common. We both had experienced moving to different schools, both had brothers that we fought with a lot, and both had family in far away places (although hers is quite a bit farther than mine). I came to like Hawa a lot, and hope to stay in contact with her in the future.

Hawa and I with her picture and certificate.

What this class has taught me is to always remain open-minded about the new people I meet, especially immigrants. The people that I will encounter throughout my life will all have different backgrounds and different stories. They will most likely all desire the same things -- understanding, support, and respect. I believe that the things that I learned in this class will definitely help me for many years to come. 

Everyone in line for all the delicious food we brought!

The students grabbing for candy after they broke the pinata!

Week 10, Learnings/Summary--Allison Miller

This quarter has sped by, and now that it’s coming to a close I must say that I am extremely grateful for the enriching experiences that this class has given me.  Being a mentor to an immigrant child taught me more about immigration firsthand, reinforcing what I was learning about in the readings every week. 

            Overall, I have learned about immigration as a whole; about the many different experiences that people have when immigrating, how the situation affects peoples’ outlook on their new land (i.e. leaving because of persecution vs. leaving for better opportunities).  I have also learned about the effects immigration can have on some individuals, namely culture shock.  However, that being said, I have also realized that just because someone is an immigrant, doesn’t mean that they are escaping persecution and experiencing culture shock in America.  Immigration is not a single experience that millions of people go through; immigrants each have their own individual stories, which may not be applicable to the rest of the immigrant population.  There is no such thing as a “cookie cutter” immigrant experience, so we must try to refrain from making general assumptions.

I really hope to stay in contact with my mentee!

            This experience has also taught me more about myself.  Throughout this blog, I do quite a few comparisons of my mentee, Lizbeth, and myself.  I compare her to myself at age 8, how I interacted with my peers, my experiences with schoolwork and family life.  Though there are quite a few distinct differences between us, I have come to find that Lizbeth and I (particularly at age 8) do share a number of similarities.  In terms of applying this to my life, it has shown me that no matter who someone appears to be, however different they may seem, it is quite possible to share similarities and thus relate to one another.  I think that this is something the entire world should take into consideration:  empathy.

            As I continue to pursue my career in nursing, I wish to always remember this fact.  Since I plan on eventually working at Children’s Hospital right down the street in Cincinnati, I will undoubtedly come into contact with many types of people who are different from me (be it religion, sexual orientation, language, and culture in general).  I always want to keep an open mind about people, and search for the similarities between ourselves so that we may find mutual respect and understanding for one another.  While I’m sure that it is not always going to be as easy to do this as it was with Lizbeth, I’m sure it is still possible, no matter what the circumstances.  I plan to pursue cultural competency as a goal, and implement the strategies that Vaughn discusses in chapter five of her book.  And I know that if I ever have questions about how to interact with those of another culture, there are a plethora of resources available to me to further educate myself.

Hamilton Week Ten: Summary

While I may not be going into immigration law or psychology, I know that the lessons that I have learned in this class will help me relate to and understand many people in a more complete way. Having a well-developed cultural competency will allow me to interact with those I come into contact with during my career more smoothly, and the readings opened my eyes more fully to the struggles that immigrants and their families deal with on a daily basis.

Other students in my studio groan about having to sit through another sociology lecture or complain about the aplia homework they had to complete for their economics class. Listening to them made me so much more appreciative for my time at AMIS. Unlike them, I was fulfilling my general education requirements in a meaningful way, and knowing that my time and efforts were making a difference meant a lot. Going to visit with Jose did not feel like going to class. Helping the girl’s action team finish their movie about health was never something that I dreaded. It was fun, and I hope to see Jose again when I return next year.

Quarter in Review

I am grateful for my further exposure to immigration in this class, but I still do not feel as though the work at AMIS was very beneficial.  Most of the mentees seemed to be stable and adapted to life in the US, with established cultural identities either as Americans or Hispanic/ African Americans.  My mentee already had a cell phone at the age of 8, whereas I did not receive one until I was sixteen.  She described a "typical" American youth's lifestyle, watching television regularly, living with two working parents and one sibling, celebrating Easter with egg hunts and candy, and hanging out with friends at and after school.  She is a happy, though shy, kid, but her shyness seemed more related to an introverted personality than to her status as an immigrant, as she remembers very little of Mexico anyway, identifying primarily as an American who happened to have been born in Mexico.

I feel that children of immigration are definitely affected psychologically by the uprooting, but Sara (and from my conversations with other mentors, many of the other AMIS students) did not seem to follow the case of an immigrant child needing any more support and embracing than the average American youth.  Regardless, I found the material engaging and educational, and it has led me to want to show more support for the immigrant community both in Cincinnati and my hometown of Chicago.

This class also reminded me of my own background and the fact that my family still practices Irish traditions as we still have a lot of family in Ireland and Irish American immigrant relatives.  Included are pictures from a family trip to Ireland in 2005, where we stayed with relatives in County Monaghan, listened to stories, ate meals in their home, and lived as they do.

[ERROR IN .JPG UPLOAD]
[ERROR IN .JPG UPLOAD]
[ERROR IN .JPG UPLOAD]

Week 9: Approaching Immigration

            With an aunt, many cousins, and newly adopted babies in my family having come from China (as well as Guatemala and Honduras), I am naturally extremely grateful for immigration into the U.S. being manageable and allowing me to have these wonderful people in my life.  And when it comes down to it, all Americans who are not of Native American descent have some immigrant blood in them.  However, I understand that the United States physically cannot handle to accept everyone who requests permanent residence, especially given the political turmoil and lack of stability in South and Central America as well as the Middle East.

            So now, the US struggles with the cost of immigration control in the current recession and the effort of identifying deserving immigrants for green cards in light of the rapid population growth as a result.  Also, given that the draft of the Vietnam War led many young Americans to flee to Canada, the USA Patriot Act of 2001 tripled the budget for Border Patrol along the Canadian border to address illegal reentry.

            Though it is devastating that many hardworking families cannot make it into the “land of opportunity,” it is an impossible situation for all involved, and there is no way of pleasing everyone.  So we are left with states like Arizona who feel abandoned by the Federal Government and attract attention to their cause by concocting a new law that causes great racial profiling and the unreasonable requirement of immigrants carrying their papers on themselves at all times.

            While I do not share the bigoted perspective of “the darn immigrants are takin’ all our jobs,” I do have to agree with the concept that we must deny a great deal of people seeking entrance (besides those seeking refuge from oppression and persecution, of course).

            Once immigrants have earned permanent residence or even citizenship, though, I am naturally very happy for them and interested in learning of their past and current cultures as well as welcoming them into the American lifestyle.

            I included a picture of my cousin Jenwei Tsai who moved here from China at the age of 16, alone, and graduated from the University of Illinois just weeks ago with a Masters degree in Agriculture.  This picture is of her researching for her thesis.

[ERROR IN .JPG UPLOAD]

            The second picture is of my adopted cousin Bo, whom my aunt and uncle picked up from China in November of 2009.

[ERROR IN .JPG UPLOAD]

Ben Hamilton Week Nine: Rethinking Immigration

The United States is a country formed largely by the inflow of outcasts. The colonization process began when people were not satisfied with the lives they were being forced to lead elsewhere. These dissatisfied groups realized that there was a fresh start awaiting them in the Americas. They abandoned what was at home and started new lives, requiring that they struggle almost constantly before they became successful. This tradition has continued during the following four centuries.  People come here to find better lives. They work hard to succeed, and add a great deal to our society.

My father explores the streets of
Ecuador alone. He gets a sense of the
alienation immigrants must feel when
they leave what is familiar and enter
the unknown.

            Considering our nation’s past, I find our attitudes towards new waves of immigrants very strange. The Suarez-Orozcos explain that our country generally regards immigrants of the past more favorably than those of the current era. This is evident when the Irish immigrants of the 1840’s and 50’s are considered. These new citizens were never regarded as valuable members of society. The “No Irish Need Apply” signs illustrate this clearly. Currently, however, the Irish are not stigmatized at all. I am sure that one day Mexican immigrants will not be seen in such an unfavorable light as they are today, but why is the hatred required in the first place?

            Jose does not seem to express any feelings of discrimination, but I do sense a feeling of inferiority in him. This is sad because he is an amazing young boy who relates to adults extremely well and receives great grades. His grades actually earned him a trip to King’s Island this year. Despite all of this, he tells me that he does not like to learn English. If he were from the United States, he explains, he would like to read and write and speak the language; he is from Mexico, however, and therefore does not like English. This feeling of separation is unfortunate and is no doubt an affect of the anti-immigration sentiments and alienated feeling he experiences in the states.

            The Suarez-Orozco text also speaks about the duality of immigration views held in America. One such view expresses our belief that people come here to work hard, gain a better life, and eventually become one of us, assimilated completely and losing all traces of their former identity. The other views them as s problematic, lazy, crime ridden group that only depreciates our national value. These views are sad, because they either deny immigrants their previous identities or deny them a place in our society.

Week 9 -- Rethinking Immigration -- Sarah Arriola

Growing up, my only real experience with immigration was listening to the adults in my town complaining about the immigrants that were coming over and stealing their jobs. My hometown obviously wasn't alone in this thinking. As it says in Children of Immigration, "A 1993 New York Times survey indicated that nearly 50 percent of all respondents believed that new immigrants are 'taking jobs from citizens'" (Suarez-Orozco x2 p. 37). At the time, I didn't know any differently, but now I realize that what so many people believe doesn't seem to be true. 

People claim that immigrants, usually referring to those who they believe to be illegal, are taking all of their jobs. This issue with this claim is that most of the jobs that immigrants are doing are the ones that many Americans, especially the ones that I would hear complaining, would never dream of doing.

View from the top of Monk's Mound in Collinsville, IL, a predominantly Hispanic town where many people are probably presumed to be immigrants.

Another issue with the people complaining about immigrants is that they seem to believe that all people who are of a different race, lately Hispanics in particular, are illegal immigrants. Many Americans fail to realize that just because someone is of  a different race, doesn't mean they didn't come to be in this country completely legally. This thinking is so backward to me, and something said in Children of Immigration explains why: "The United States was founded on the travails of immigrants" (Suarez-Orozco x2 p.36). Had it not been for immigrants, many who traveled to the U.S. illegally, this country would not be what it is today.

There are some people who are more accepting of immigrants...sort of. They see immigrants as people with potential, as long as they work hard and become true Americans, separating themselves from their old cultures and old lives. Suarez-Orozco x2 said it well: "They require...that immigrants become just like us. True differences must be erased, and cultural diversity must only be celebrated in superficial, 'folkloristic' forms" (Suarez-Orozco x2 p.37). So, although they aren't as negative about immigrants as the people I mentioned earlier, the way they act isn't really the right way to handle immigration issues either. There needs to be a third option.

My high school band in front of the Capitol building in D.C.

Instead of people either despising immigrants or demanding that they change who they are, they need to be more accepting of immigrants and realize that those immigrants, if given the opportunity, can make this county better than it has ever been. This idea needs to start with the people and spread all the way to Washington, D.C. where a stop can be put to all the anti-immigration laws and instead, new laws can be written that will help immigrants be treated more fairly when they come to the United States.

Rethinking Immigration- Nish Thiyagarajah

Being an American born child of immigrant parents, with an entire family in our home country, I have a fair amount of personal experience involved with the subject when it comes to immigration. My father and mother traveled here through Canada in the late 70s through asylum due to violence that was happening in their country, as well as my father’s attainment of a scholarship from no other than the University of Cincinnati. They had a relatively hard time adjusting, and early on it caused our family a lot of problems which created unnecessary stress. I think one of the biggest problems for a lot of immigrants is accepting a role of lower distinction in this country when compared with their home country, most likely because of the ability to communicate effectively. This became such a problem for my mom that she was pretty much desperate to leave, which she did.


In terms of legislation, I personally have a lot of problems with our current regulations. When she left, it voided their request for asylum and so my dad, who was basically working his ass off and just beginning becoming successful in his place of work, was forced to toss everything aside and care for my sister and I above anything and everything else. I was four years old back then, and my sister was 12. My mother has tried, repeatedly, for the past 14 years, to regain citizenship and travel back here to be with us again. But so much money thrown at lawyers, court proceedings, and failed musings simply on how to reunite a mother with her children, has forced us to move on with our lives, because with all that time grew a large distance, and I don’t mean the 10,000 mile distance from here to Sri Lanka, but an emotional one. It’s sad, but it happens. All the time, immigrants without valid visas are swooped up with no warning, leaving children and families behind with no warning or sign of their disappearance. Personally, my experience with it has left me no belief whatsoever in the status quo and completely detached emotionally in terms of everything that’s happened.


My personal vision of immigration is simply people just looking to get a better life for themselves and perhaps remove themselves from a despondent situation. Really its just laughable to me, that immigration can be such a controversial topic considering it’s the foundation of this country and we’re all technically immigrants, stupid as that might sound. The government, at the same time, is doing what they need to in order to properly deal with people who are breaking the law. I’ve just never understood the lack of empathy actively displayed by the institution.


In terms of rethinking cultural identity, while my answer might not be all that satisfying, it’s simply what you make of it. That is to say, one’s cultural identity is, to me, an encompassment of who they are, what they’ve experienced and the people they surround themselves with. It’s a really broad topic, and to be honest I am not a fan of these types of questions at all. I think there’s so many different ways to think about something like cultural identity, and the best approach in my mind is to simply have respect for culture in general but not to treat others any differently than you’d approach a random person who looks “perfectly normal.” Cliched, yes. But the golden rule has that moniker for a reason.

Week 8, Rethinking Immigration--Allison Miller

On my trip to San Diego, I noticed a lot of anti-immigrant sentiment.

 

 

In the small town that I grew up in, when I was younger I would always hear my friends’ parents complaining about how immigrants would come here illegally for the sole purpose of “stealing our jobs.”  Suarez-Orozco (x’s 2) summarizes this idea well:  “In recent years, the dominant anti-immigration narrative has ignited fears that immigrants are flooding our shores, taking our jobs, overwhelming our social services, and inflating our crime rate” (p. 38).  Since I was only in elementary school when exposed to these ideas, I didn’t really understand what they meant.  As I have gotten older, however, I realize how ridiculous this viewpoint really is.  As Suarez-Orozco (x’s 2) claims about immigration:  “the preponderance of evidence from the most reliable sources points to a relative economic benefit at the national level and modest economic costs at the local level” (p. 45). 

Contrary to the opinions I grew up hearing in my hometown, immigration actually benefits the economy, and many immigrants who are supposedly “stealing our jobs” are actually doing jobs that many Americans don’t like to do. 

            I think that since there are so many Americans who are all for this anti-immigrant sentiment, that the government needs to address this issue head-on by exposing the truth about immigration.  Americans should know that immigrants are helping our economy, not stealing jobs.  In addition, since so many people are under the impression that most immigrants illegally living in the United States, they should be publicly informed that this number is actually significantly smaller than they think.  I also believe that the American public should be taught more about the psychological stressors that immigrants face in the hopes that maybe our entire viewpoint will shift and we will see immigrants as equals.  The first step to acceptance is empathy, and many people do not partake in this empathetic attitude because they are ignorant to the facts.

Week 9- Michael J Harrington

Rethinking Immigration/Remaking Identities


I think that there are many issues with the United State's  view on immigration.  I honestly think that an open borders policy would greatly help not only the economy, but our thoughts on other races.  But one problem that many people make is the mistake of trying to forcibly stop people from thinking negatively of other races.  People will think what they want, it's very unlikely that by simply telling a racist that they are wrong and that they ought to change their thinking that they will.  If a person rethinks their opinion on immigration or other races it must be of their own accord, and it must be their own thoughts.  

I think that most immigrants probably have a very level look at races, not really having any racist viewpoints (except maybe a reverse racial view, like whites are inferior).  Me and my mentee never really broached the concept of immigration legislation or his view of legislation, but I can only assume that he wants a broader immigration and more open borders.  

Hamilton Week Eight: Immigrant Health

Life is fast-paced and full of turns

Leading a healthy lifestyle is something that all of us think about. Eating right, exercising, and getting enough sleep are all things that we pay close attention to. Many times immigrant families have more trouble achieving these goals than most of us do. In Psychology and Culture, Vaughn elaborates: “Immigration itself can cause illness and disease due to disrupted family and social networks and financial barriers and discrimination that prevent the establishment of a healthy lifestyle… Immigrants frequently work in low-paying jobs, face poverty, lack health insurance, have limited access to health care and social services, and have communication difficulties due to language differences.” Life can be fast-paced and full of turns; these factors amplify the day-to-day struggles that we all live with, often making the maintenance of a healthy lifestyle that much harder. The Girls Action Team I worked with after school on Mondays was focused on health. We were trying to fill the gaps in the girls’ understanding of nutrition and exercise, and after talking to some of the girls in our group I was amazed at the lack of knowledge some of them had regarding the topics. It disappointed me a lot; the future health situation of immigrant families will not improve until the children learn about healthy habits and their healthcare options here. Then they will be able to improve the wellbeing of their children and of future generations.

Re-Thinking Immigration

Before taking this class, I think that I was pretty ignorant as to what immigrants to this country really experienced.  Sure I knew that they had a lot to deal with, but I didn't realize how much it could truly effect the kids in the families. That is why AMIS is such a great place. It is a place where the children can be themselves, and live out their own cultures that they are most familiar with. This is a place where they can learn lessons in their own language and feel comfortable doing so. It is important that the children stay true to their own cultures while also learning about other people's cultures as well. Igoa suggested a great idea that can keep immigrant children connected with their own cultures while also learning about other people's cultures. The idea is to do a presentation on each child's own country. This way, the child gets the satisfaction of being able to present information about their own culture, and the other students get to learn and better understand the background and cultures of their class mates.

Before I took this class, I did not really understand the struggles that immigrants may go through, especially immigrant children. I know now that many immigrant children are just like any other child and they enjoy doing the same things that all kids enjoy. Our country is built on immigrants traveling to this country to build success and try to create a better life. In order to fully understand the people in out country, I believe that everyone should re-think immigration so that people can understand the cultures that make up this country.

A picture I took in Chicago- a city built on Immigration

Effects of Culture on Health- Theresa Lingardo

A bingo game my friend and I made for an afterschool program activity

Different cultures address different common issues in different ways. One of the things that varies the most is when it comes to health practices. A lot of different cultures have a lot of different ways of practicing medicine. Some groups are more spiritual about their health while others believe that medication is the best course of action. However, there is one thing that many cultures have in common, the need to help encourage mental health, especially for immigrant children. Being an immigrant child is not easy. There are a lot of stresses that can take a tole on such young bodies. A lot of the children have so much going on in their lives, and so much to deal with they just don't have a good outlet to just be a kid. I think that this is where a teacher comes into play. I believe that the teachers of immigrant children have a responsibility to help aid in the upkeep of the mental health of the children that they teach. This can be done by instituting a few simple activities in their lesson plans that are just plain fun, and let the kids relax and unwind a little bit. For example, the teacher can come up with fun games. The teacher could have the kids play a Bingo game with fun prizes, or a Jeopardy game with fun categories. Any of these options could be useful in creating a fun and interactive classroom that is a safe and relaxing place for immigrant children. Igoa also pointed out a good idea in Ch. 5. One teacher mentioned that she has her students keep a personal journal where they are required to write, but they can write about what ever they want (Igoa, 169.). I think this is a very healthy outlet for children. Writing things down and talk about it is a great was to keep a healthy mind, and in some ways, clear your head. Children who keep a journal are more likely to let their emotions out, rather than keep the stresses of their days bottled up.



My dance team



It is also important for immigrant children to keep physically healthy. A lot of cultures have different sports and physical activities that children can get into so that they keep moving and keep healthy. Getting kids interested in these activities is very important. A lot of times the parents of immigrant are very busy and have a hard time fitting these types of activities into their schedules. In these cases, it would be the best if schools could provide these types of activities for the children so that they can join and participate. Doing a fun activity is the best way to keep a young child physically fit, and it is also a fun way for them to meet friends and learn lessons like responsibility, teamwork, and hard work.

Intercultural Interactions- Theresa Lingardo

Intercultural Interactions are a very important part of growing up and living in the United States. There are so many people who come from so many different backgrounds and cultures, it is important for people to be open and aware of these cultures and the differences that may come about. I think that schools like AMIS are a great tool in helping people become more aware of just how many people there are in our own cities who come from different cultures, and it is also a place where people can come to learn more about those specific cultures. The kids who attend AMIS have such a great opportunity to expand themselves as well. Many of the kids at AMIS have similar cultures but some do not. This gives the kids a comfortable place to learn about each others backgrounds and grow in their own intercultural knowledge.
AMIS is also a great place for the kids to be able to learn about how to handle different situations concerning culture that they may happen upon. A lot of times immigrant children can feel overwhelmed by the differences they experience between themselves and other kids their age. In her book, Cristina Igoa gives helpful guidelines on good topics to talk about with immigrant children. For example, Igoa suggests that adults talk to immigrant children about what discrimination is, and how they can work to prevent it from happening. She also says that it is a good idea to teach the children to be inclusive. I think that a lot of the ideas presented in this chapter are topis that AMIS does a good job of addressing. The school continually works to make life easier for the immigrant children so they can focus on their education, which is so great.




Liberty, Kentucky



For me, a time where I had a very big intercultural interaction was on my service trips to Liberty, Kentucky. I have been on about 9 trips to Liberty, and each time I meet new people who live a completely different way of life than I do. First, there is a large Mennonite community in Liberty, and they lead a very strict lifestyle. They have to electricity in their homes and travel on horse and buggy's or by bike. They believe in a strong sense of community, and look to each other for support. The first time I met a group of Mennonites, I was extremely nervous. I wasn't sure if they would like me, or if they would judge me because I was from the city and lived with things on a daily basis that they did not. In a sense, I was judging them as well. But i was very wrong. The people that i met were so great! We all got along so well. We joked and talked about our lifestyles and what is was like to grow up where we did. It was a very eye opening experience for me. I leaned a lot that day about becoming more understanding of other cultures and realizing that underneath it all we are not so different.



In a horse and Buggy carriage