Turkey? HAAMS!

There is a wide variety of previous HAAMS lessons, but they all include an interactive element to keep the kids engaged. For example, in a recent lesson focused on folktales and their morals, the middle schoolers were required to create their own short folktale after the presentation. Other times, there have been Kahoots or similar types of mini-quizzes, ranging from music to animals around the world. For holidays like Day of the Dead, Thanksgiving, and Lunar New Year, arts and crafts projects in groups help the mentees form a community and allow them to grow comfortable with one another. Having a community is a major reason why kids joined the club, as Mlak from 7-1 describes: “I wanted to be a part of a club that I felt comfortable in, one that was also diverse, [that] talked about serious topics but also had more fun topics.”

As Mlak said, being comfortable allows for coverage of more serious topics, such as stereotypes in horror movies (as a Halloween lesson) or some of the biggest concerns within Masterman—diversity, health issues, and school funding. These lessons were just as well-received by the kids, and many named them one of their favorite HAAMS lessons of the year. “The lesson about minorities in horror movies [was my favorite],” responded one student (who preferred to remain anonymous), “I loved the part where we passed around candy as we continued saying [our own] story!” Amanda from 6-5 claims that her favorite lesson was the one on Masterman’s issues, because “we talked about how to fix some of the school’s problems and it was a chance to see a lot of people’s points of view.”

On special occasions, mentors will bring food to share as part of a “country spotlight” series, which highlights the culture of countries around the world, chosen either by mentors or suggested by the students themselves. Ethiopia, Haiti, Panama, and Brazil have all been presented already, and they have all been big hits so far. Victor from 6-4 dubbed Ethiopia as his favorite lesson because “Everything was super interesting and the food was amazing!” Personally, my favorite lesson was the Haiti presentation because I learned so much while getting to eat amazing food—courtesy of Oliver Joseph—but all of the lessons have been awesome to view firsthand.

HAAMS also offers tutoring for middle-schoolers, where the mentee asks for a specific subject and gets matched with the best mentor for the job. They work together to find a time that's best for both parties, and it has been extremely helpful for the kids, describing their tutors as “very helpful”, “really patient and flexible”, and that they “explain everything in a way that I can easily understand.” Even if they aren't being tutored, on many occasions mentors will come around and help kids with their schoolwork if the lesson ends early.

To sum it up, HAAMS is a very beneficial club to both middle and high schoolers. I have the pleasure of getting to mentor the kids on a weekly basis, and it is one of the things I most look forward to every week. When asking the middle schoolers, they gave many different answers as to why they enjoy HAAMS—ranging from “the drive I get from Kahoots” to “meeting new people and having fun with mentors.” But one thing between them was common: HAAMS creates a diverse community that allows both mentors and mentees to feel comfortable and be their best selves, which is why the club is truly amazing. Everyone contributes, everyone has fun, and everyone leaves the building with a smile on their face.