Reasons to be a CAS coordinator

It's not always fun and games being a CAS coordinator.  A lot of the time is spent going through the portfolios on Managebac and writing notes.  Often the notes are things like - read the note I wrote last week or please see previous note...  Not the most satisfying part of the job.  I also spend a bit of time each week writing this blog.  Which is OK.  But sometimes I think that not many people read it.  Not all students have activated their subscriptions despite the fact that we are now nearing the end of the DP.  Sometimes, something happens that makes it all worth it.

Well done Axel

A couple of months ago I wrote on my blog about a group of volunteers that help young refugees by providing homework help twice a week.  This group is called, Fånga Framtiden Tillsammans. (Seize the Future in English or FFT for short).  Each year they have a party in December for the for the volunteers and the refugees.  I thought it might be nice if this year we could organise a presents for the students - movie tickets.  They are mostly young people who go to Swedish Gymnasium and are studying Swedish. Giving them movie tickets would give them the chance to do something enjoyable that they otherwise couldn't afford.  To pay for the tickets, I would need about 5000kr.  At first no one came with any suggestions but then one day Axel asked me about it.  He was interested in doing something and through Facebook found a donor who would buy the tickets.  This evening, Axel and some other grade 12 students are going along to the party to help set up.

Axel has inspired other students to ask about becoming volunteers.  To do this you need to be able to speak Swedish - a plus if you are good at maths as there is often a shortage of maths help!  You can sign up via www.volontarbyran.org/fanga-framtiden-tillsammans or you can contact them on Facebook.  You can come once, twice or however often you like - you sign up the day before depending of how much time you have and how many students are coming.  They meet between 6 and 8PM at 2 locations on Södermalm.

Thank you Axel - for both reading my blog and taking action as well as inspiring others.

More inspiration from Nepal

Kresimir gave an informative and inspiring presentation about the Nepal Project in advisory this week.  He even responded to some thought provoking questions from classmates about the project its feasibility and sustainability.  Whilst it can be hard to be questioned when one is doing a good thing, Kresimir handled it with finesse.  What pleased me the most was the way students were able to engage in reflective and critical dialogue about what we do in school.  Sometimes I think that students just join projects because they have to do CAS or it looks good in their university applications and they don't really think about what they are doing.  When we are asked to defend our ideas, we are given a chance to show why it matters and how we care. We will always have to face people who question what we do and it is good to have the answers ready as Kresimir did.  This is a good example of something to reflect about in your CAS portfolio.  (That's a hint).  Great work by the Nepal group to raise 5800kr through the sale of candy canes. ( Note: the 11th graders were very active in this!)

Rhino group gets it together!

Yesterday I couldn't make it to the rhino group meeting so I left a note on the board in my room.  To be honest I have been rather harsh.  They have had a goal to raise awareness and €300 for the KZN project which is part of the African Conservation Trust.  The deadline for the fundraising is the end of December.  Yesterday they had €73 Euros to go.  They have had a gala evening with some wonderful performances by classmates - unfortunately the attendance was quite poor.  They have sold friendship bands, post cards and rhino cookies.  They know that if they were to sell cupcakes they could make the money in a week.  People here love cupcakes.  I have insisted that everything they sell has to have a connection to the project and everyone who purchases something must be given a message about the project.  That doesn't make it easy. But doing something good, should not always be easy.  Yesterday they surprised me. They had raised over €30 more and are hoping to get the rest of the money today.  Look out for the rhino cookies and think about how you are helping save one of the world's most amazing creatures from extinction.   You can see their fund raising page at SIS Rhino Group

Update - on the afternoon of the 15 they were just €7 from their goal.  Not bad!

The Power of the Pen

The Amnesty Group that is now mostly grade 11 students are continuing the activism that grade 12s had begun with a new Right for Writes campaign.  This year the focus was on Zeynab Jalalian who is detained in Iran.  She has medical problems and is in danger of losing her eyesight if she does not receive health care soon.  The SIS group collected 52 signatures that will be sent with others from the Amnesty office to the Embassy of Iran.  You can still sign the petition electronically if you didn't get a chance.  Click here.  

A lot of people wonder if it really helps to write letters.  The fact is, it does.  Read here about some of the successful letter writing campaigns that Amnesty has led in the past.







I have spent so much time writing about the things that make it great to do my job that I haven't checked your CAS portfolios today.  Make sure you go through them over the break and look at previous blogs and notes to see what needs to be done.

Enjoy the break and keep up the good work.