How to Help Teens Plan and Organize Community Service Projects
Many school districts have made community service projects part of the curriculum, sometimes making the projects a requirement for graduation. Frequently, teens are asked to develop the community service projects independently. This means students must plan and organize the projects on their own. Some teens have a knack for organization. While other teens may be intimidated by the prospect of planning and organizing community service projects. That's the time when an adult from the community can step in to provide guidance and support. If you would like to learn how to help teens plan and organize community service projects, read the following steps.
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Instructions
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Develop a good working relationship with teens to help the projects get underway. Understand that students are more willing to commit time to projects when they are working with an adult they respect and admire and someone with whom they can count on for support.
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Schedule meetings regularly to help teens plan and organize community service projects. For instance, at the first meeting, provide students with a brief overview of the process. Explain the requirements for the projects. Give examples of projects that were successfully completed in previous years. Do yourself a favor and add any behavioral expectations that you will require from each student; send this information home in a note to parents.
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Direct the teens to identify issues of concern in the community that might be addressed with community service projects. Give teens the resources they need to come up with ideas on their own. Pass out local newspapers and magazines then ask the students to discuss their findings with each other. Have students share possible ideas for service with the entire group. Write a list of ideas for community service projects on the board.
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Allow for teens to voice their opinions about which community service projects they wish to tackle. Ask students to vote on their favorite idea for projects.
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Breakdown a sample community service project into its component parts then develop a timeline of goals to help teens plan and organize the project. Create a handout with the timeline and give it to students so that they can stay on task.
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Use your skills as a facilitator to get the ball rolling. Create a list of leaderships roles, such as a head coordinator or press secretary, then open up a dialog about each of the roles. For example, ask the teens about what the possible duties of a coordinator may be. After the students get an idea of the kinds of responsibilities associated with each position, ask for volunteers. Create a list on the board then put the list to the students as vote. Be aware that you may have to delegate tasks to teens who are hesitant to participate.
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Hold teens accountable for how they plan and organize the community service projects. Up the ante for students who do not pull their weight; ask them to share their progress aloud at meetings or in newsletters sent home to parents.
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Tips & Warnings
Keep parents informed about any progress the teens are making with the projects.
Always have at least one parent on hand to watch.
Have a contact list ready in order to tap available community resources. Keep a list of volunteer parents and business leaders handy.
Allow teens to see the progress they are making as they plan and organize community service projects.
