Formatting code for WeberClinicalCounselingPracticum
Week 1:
My practicum site for the fall semester is at the Compass House Youth Shelter. The first day that I technically started was on September 1, 2009; my orientation day. Orientation was an essential part of the program because it gave me a firsthand look at the location in which I would be working in for the next couple months to come. In addition, it provided some vital information and statistics regarding Compass House and the services it provides. Essentially, Compass House provides safe shelter and services for runaway and homeless youth, in an atmosphere supporting dignity, respect, and self-sufficiency of each youth. Some of the specific services that these youths receive include: safe shelter, food, clothing, immediate intake and assessment services, crisis counseling, referrals, advocacy and after care, needed emergency services, and individual, family, and group counseling. All of these services are provided at the shelter twenty-four hours a day, however, there is a limit of thirteen kids that are allowed to stay overnight. This is because the shelter only has thirteen beds, therefore, the rest of the kids can get services from Compass House, but sleeping arrangements will be provided for them at other shelters. It should be noted that these youths that are allowed to receive services must be between the ages of twelve to seventeen. This information was necessary to learn because it gained us insight into the shelter lifestyle before we started.
Week 2:
On Wednesday September 9, 2009, I went to Compass House for my first day of my internship. On this day, once again, I was given a tour of the house and a brief introduction to each youth client. After that, I was sent into the house on my own to mingle and be a mini-supervisor for the clients. One of the activities that I participated in with the kids was a game of monopoly. The game lasted a good two hours and it was a nice transition into getting to know and talk casually with some of the youths at the shelter. It was interesting to note the different personalities that were presented by just playing a simple board game. For example, Client A had a tendency to be shy and hesitant when reaching for his game pieces or chance cards. In fact, sometimes he would reach all the way across the board to move his piece instead of asking for someone closer to do it. Whereas in contrast Client B was more bold and competitively tried to hoard all his property pieces together. Another more informative thing that I got to do was read some of the case files of the youths. It was intriguing to read the files and learn that Compass House attracts youths for all sorts of reasons. For instance, we had a client that was court ordered to be at the shelter because she was in the middle of a custody battle and then we also had one who had been kicked out of his house because his mom didnt want him anymore. From these files I learned that although some kids are court ordered to come to the shelter, approximately two-thirds are runaways and homeless youths whom have left their homes many times before.
Week 3:
Today, September 14, 2009, I worked the hours of 7-11pm and it is the start of my third week. These hours are very different from the day shift (i.e. 3-7pm) that I work on Wednesdays and Saturdays because it deals with different duties. For example, when I arrived I was right in time for a group lecture and dinner. The lecture was about HIV and the youths were encouraged to ask questions about its diagnosis, course, and consequences. It was interesting to note that the kids were not shy about asking anything that pertained to the disease. In fact, they pretty much asked a good half hour worth of questions. After the lecture, dinner was scheduled. Consequently, I monitored the kids while another supervisor made dinner. The lot of us, eight youths and one other intern, went into the living room and watched the beginning of the football game between the Buffalo Bills and the Patriots. During the game, I tried to talk to a client whom only spoke Spanish. From this, I learned that I should probably brush up on my Spanish skills because Compass House does not, unfortunately, have any translators on staff that can easily communicate with the client. When this does occur, usually they try to use hand gestures. Luckily, I knew a few essential words like comida, me nombre es, and baρo. Following dinner came chores and then bed.
I worked on Wednesday September 16, 2009, and Saturday September 19,2009, to complete week 3. The highlights of these two work days involved various activities. Probably the most interesting one was that I was allowed the opportunity to sit in on an intake process. An intake process involves all the information gathered from a potential intake client. Compass House gathers interviews from whomever brings the kid, the kid themselves, and the parents/guardians of the kid. Usually, the parents or guardians are essential sources of information that give background details that the kid neglects to mention. Furthermore, the person who brings in the kid is sometimes the police whom are more then willing to digress on information pertaining to the immediate situation that the kid was picked up in. The most intriguing aspect of this process, however, is the client themselves. The emotional range that is reflected in their attitude, verbal responses, and behavioral nuances is incredible. Many defense mechanisms are invoked in the sessions by the client like denial, regression, projection, sublimation, etc. For example, one client in particular was dropped off by the police for some truant behavior and when questioned by Compass House supervisors he denied the entire thing.
Week 4:
This week has, so far, been more relaxed then previous weeks mostly because the shelter has had some of same clients as previous weeks. Although it is hoped that the clients' situations are improved, sometimes the same clients come back repeatedly. Therefore, I knew a lot of the clients when I worked. This actually was a different experience because instead of having to reintroduce and get to know the clients, we already had a tenuous bond. This aided in our interactions because they were more open and trusting. Some of the highlights of this week included a humongous rummy tournament. This card game involved myself and a bunch of clients all interacting and competing for the elusive title of "Rummy Card Champ." Needless to say, I ended up losing miserably; however, it was so much fun watching the kids strive to win while still maintaining casual respect and appreciation for all card players.
In addition, this week has also allowed me the opportunity to get to know some of the other interns that work at Compass House. It was interesting to learn that most of the interns come from UB and Canisius rather than Buff State. Furthermore, some of the interns had varying approaches for mingling and interacting with the kids. For example, some interns just sort of plopped themselves down and started randomly talking, whereas, others were more inclined to wait until a kid spoke to them. I, myself, had more the type to plunk myself down and either talk, suggest a game, listen to them, etc.
Week 5:
This week included September 26-28 only. It will not include this upcoming Saturday like normal because I am not able to work that day. During this week, Compass House had a higher rate of males to females. Therefore, the activities that I participated in mostly revolved around football. For instance, we either played it outside or watched it on television. When we were watching it on television, many of the boys were teaching me the fundamentals of football...or rather trying too. Mostly we had heated discussions and debates revolving around the players, specific plays, and whether or not we should reenact some of the plays outside. At this point we usually are already outside with the football.
Another activity that I also thoroughly enjoyed was playing pool with some of the residents. I must admit my pool skills are a bit shaky; consequently, there was a lot of laughing and joking that went on. It was a blast.
Week 6:
This week introduced a more in depth look at the type of paperwork that the Supervisors at Compass House Youth Shelter have to fill out. This opportunity presented itself to me on October 5, 3009, probably because this was my Monday late shift. Therefore, most of the kids had homework and the like, which allowed me to sit in on log-in sheets, invoices, etc.
In my other two shifts this week, my activities mostly revolved around conversing with kids and participating in activities with them. For example, we had a huge monopoly tournament that involved eight of us all crowed around this little board in the kitchen. It was hilarious crowding around the board bartering for same-colored property and trading for railroads. Other times we played videogames, watched movie marathons, and talked with each other. One client in particular helped me improve upon my dismal pool skills. This was one of the highlights of my week because during this discussion he vented about some of the conflicts that he was having in his life and his anxiety about where he wanted to go. From there, I was able to subtly inform the Supervisors so that they were aware of the topics to talk about with this client in particular.
Week 7:
This week involved card tournaments, dinner, chores, and college applications. Client A had some college applications that she was filling out by herself in the lounge when I arrived at the shelter. When I asked what she was doing, she immediately started pelting me with various questions concerning the different essay questions. Together we worked on brainstorming ideas, creating an outline, and formulating an essay. I had a lot of fun working with her and listening to her future goals and aspirations.
In addition, during this week I was in charge of answering the phones and making calls for residents.
Week 8:
During this week, we had a couple of kids whom had originated from Mexico at our shelter. Thus, we had to work with a couple of translators and were focused primarily on finding other locations to which they could go to. Finding other locations was necessary because we did not have anyone working at our shelter that spoke fluent Spanish. While the kids were there, however, I was trying to find activities that would keep them occupied that did not necessarily require a lot of communication. Furthermore, while the other supervisors were on the phones with the various agencies involved in these specific cases, I was also fielding calls from other parents and relative calling in to check on the other various kids at the shelter.
An even that I organized this week was a videogame tournament. I decided to go with videogames because on Wednesday, October 21, there were mostly boys whom needed our services. Therefore, they were more inclined to like this game then, for example, Monopoly or Jenga. The boys had a lot of fun playing this basketball videogame, and were merciless in pointing out how terrible I was at this particular game. Needless to say, it was a lot of fun.
Week 9:
This week consisted mostly of answering incoming calls and learning new paperwork. The paperwork that the Compass House supervisors have to fill out actually consists of a variety of documents. The paperwork that I learned how to do was the daily log. The information that is input into this consists of any direct information referring to the kids. This could be anything from physical complaints or illness to problems with the family. The problem that I was learning to input regarded one client having an attitude problem with another supervisor. While entering this information into the log, I mentioned who was involved in the incident, the actual words being spoken, and any other miscellaneous details that I felt were imperative to the case.
Other activities during the week spanned from playing pool in the basement to watching Batman movie marathons on television. The Batman movie marathon was actually on ABC family on October 31. It was almost a mini party for the kids because there was a lot of candies and treats donated to the shelter that day as well. Therefore, the lot of us were nibbling on fudge while entering into heated debates about which version of Batman was superior.
Week 10:
This week, November 2-7, was an interesting week because I was able to partake in a couple of intake processes. These processes are interesting because, as mentioned in previous entries, it gathers a lot of background information pertaining to the client. For example, the intake paperwork asks about their previous homes, family members, and physical disabilities. Of course, there is a lot of other information gathered too because, in general, this information is six pages long. It also takes approximately forty-five minuets to complete because sometimes the supervisor needs to ask questions of different counselors, agencies, and relatives that are involved in the minors life. In particular, this client talked the multitudes of houses that the client had lived at previously. She also mentioned that she moved around to so many different locations because she was living with various relatives who were willing to take her in when her mom refused to help her. This gives the supervisor a hint of the life that the client had led and may give some indication of the strenuous relationships between the client and family members.
Another activity that I did this week was give tours to new incoming residents at the shelter. For example, any new clients that came in were directed to me so that I could show them the interior of the house, more specifically the rooms they were allowed into and the areas they were to avoid. It was a good way of being able to communicate with the clients and earn their confidence.
Week 11:
November 9-14 was a week for adventures. I went on many walks this week with my clients because the weather was a lot nicer. For example, three clients and I went to Burger King and got food for lunch. We took the food back to the shelter together and ate it, while continuing talking about the randomness of life. It was nice to walk with the clients and interact with them in a different setting, even if it was just walking to and from Burger King.
This week I also had the pleasure of organizing the best kickball tournament ever. It was a lot of fun because we had a lot of kids at the shelter this week; eleven in total when I was there. Approximately ten of us went outside and set of our field together and played a game. We had fun dividing up the players and competitively keeping score of runs. It was fun playing the game with everyone and a lot of kids were really disappointed when the game ended.
Week 12:
This week I planned a pool tournament for all of the kids. There were approximately seven kids who participated in this activity. I, myself, am absolutely terrible at this game; however, many of the other kids are amazing at it. Naturally I was out in the first round, but I stayed and cheered on other people and was a mini referee for the following games.
Another activity that I participated in was a volleyball game with three clients and another intern. Both of us, as interns, decided that the kids needed some fresh air. Therefore, we pumped up a ball and divided up the players and created some semblance of a volleyball court. We ended up playing a couple of games before dinner. The dinner that was this week, after the volleyball game, was pizza. The excitement after the volleyball game was only enhanced with the pleasure of eating pizza.
Of course, I also helped with paperwork and phone calls during this week as well.
Week 13-14:
I combined these two weeks because I took off time for the Thanksgiving holiday. Thus, I was only at work on Monday during the week of Thanksgiving. That day was fun though, because I had another client intake that I did by myself and I was able to supervise another walk to Burger King.
The week of the fourteenth is actually this week. This past Monday I helped with dinner and supervised the chores that the clients are required to do. It was actually really slow on Monday, surprisingly. In fact, there were only two clients there that day.
My practicum site for the fall semester is at the Compass House Youth Shelter. The first day that I technically started was on September 1, 2009; my orientation day. Orientation was an essential part of the program because it gave me a firsthand look at the location in which I would be working in for the next couple months to come. In addition, it provided some vital information and statistics regarding Compass House and the services it provides. Essentially, Compass House provides safe shelter and services for runaway and homeless youth, in an atmosphere supporting dignity, respect, and self-sufficiency of each youth. Some of the specific services that these youths receive include: safe shelter, food, clothing, immediate intake and assessment services, crisis counseling, referrals, advocacy and after care, needed emergency services, and individual, family, and group counseling. All of these services are provided at the shelter twenty-four hours a day, however, there is a limit of thirteen kids that are allowed to stay overnight. This is because the shelter only has thirteen beds, therefore, the rest of the kids can get services from Compass House, but sleeping arrangements will be provided for them at other shelters. It should be noted that these youths that are allowed to receive services must be between the ages of twelve to seventeen. This information was necessary to learn because it gained us insight into the shelter lifestyle before we started.
Week 2:
On Wednesday September 9, 2009, I went to Compass House for my first day of my internship. On this day, once again, I was given a tour of the house and a brief introduction to each youth client. After that, I was sent into the house on my own to mingle and be a mini-supervisor for the clients. One of the activities that I participated in with the kids was a game of monopoly. The game lasted a good two hours and it was a nice transition into getting to know and talk casually with some of the youths at the shelter. It was interesting to note the different personalities that were presented by just playing a simple board game. For example, Client A had a tendency to be shy and hesitant when reaching for his game pieces or chance cards. In fact, sometimes he would reach all the way across the board to move his piece instead of asking for someone closer to do it. Whereas in contrast Client B was more bold and competitively tried to hoard all his property pieces together. Another more informative thing that I got to do was read some of the case files of the youths. It was intriguing to read the files and learn that Compass House attracts youths for all sorts of reasons. For instance, we had a client that was court ordered to be at the shelter because she was in the middle of a custody battle and then we also had one who had been kicked out of his house because his mom didnt want him anymore. From these files I learned that although some kids are court ordered to come to the shelter, approximately two-thirds are runaways and homeless youths whom have left their homes many times before.
Week 3:
Today, September 14, 2009, I worked the hours of 7-11pm and it is the start of my third week. These hours are very different from the day shift (i.e. 3-7pm) that I work on Wednesdays and Saturdays because it deals with different duties. For example, when I arrived I was right in time for a group lecture and dinner. The lecture was about HIV and the youths were encouraged to ask questions about its diagnosis, course, and consequences. It was interesting to note that the kids were not shy about asking anything that pertained to the disease. In fact, they pretty much asked a good half hour worth of questions. After the lecture, dinner was scheduled. Consequently, I monitored the kids while another supervisor made dinner. The lot of us, eight youths and one other intern, went into the living room and watched the beginning of the football game between the Buffalo Bills and the Patriots. During the game, I tried to talk to a client whom only spoke Spanish. From this, I learned that I should probably brush up on my Spanish skills because Compass House does not, unfortunately, have any translators on staff that can easily communicate with the client. When this does occur, usually they try to use hand gestures. Luckily, I knew a few essential words like comida, me nombre es, and baρo. Following dinner came chores and then bed.
I worked on Wednesday September 16, 2009, and Saturday September 19,2009, to complete week 3. The highlights of these two work days involved various activities. Probably the most interesting one was that I was allowed the opportunity to sit in on an intake process. An intake process involves all the information gathered from a potential intake client. Compass House gathers interviews from whomever brings the kid, the kid themselves, and the parents/guardians of the kid. Usually, the parents or guardians are essential sources of information that give background details that the kid neglects to mention. Furthermore, the person who brings in the kid is sometimes the police whom are more then willing to digress on information pertaining to the immediate situation that the kid was picked up in. The most intriguing aspect of this process, however, is the client themselves. The emotional range that is reflected in their attitude, verbal responses, and behavioral nuances is incredible. Many defense mechanisms are invoked in the sessions by the client like denial, regression, projection, sublimation, etc. For example, one client in particular was dropped off by the police for some truant behavior and when questioned by Compass House supervisors he denied the entire thing.
Week 4:
This week has, so far, been more relaxed then previous weeks mostly because the shelter has had some of same clients as previous weeks. Although it is hoped that the clients' situations are improved, sometimes the same clients come back repeatedly. Therefore, I knew a lot of the clients when I worked. This actually was a different experience because instead of having to reintroduce and get to know the clients, we already had a tenuous bond. This aided in our interactions because they were more open and trusting. Some of the highlights of this week included a humongous rummy tournament. This card game involved myself and a bunch of clients all interacting and competing for the elusive title of "Rummy Card Champ." Needless to say, I ended up losing miserably; however, it was so much fun watching the kids strive to win while still maintaining casual respect and appreciation for all card players.
In addition, this week has also allowed me the opportunity to get to know some of the other interns that work at Compass House. It was interesting to learn that most of the interns come from UB and Canisius rather than Buff State. Furthermore, some of the interns had varying approaches for mingling and interacting with the kids. For example, some interns just sort of plopped themselves down and started randomly talking, whereas, others were more inclined to wait until a kid spoke to them. I, myself, had more the type to plunk myself down and either talk, suggest a game, listen to them, etc.
Week 5:
This week included September 26-28 only. It will not include this upcoming Saturday like normal because I am not able to work that day. During this week, Compass House had a higher rate of males to females. Therefore, the activities that I participated in mostly revolved around football. For instance, we either played it outside or watched it on television. When we were watching it on television, many of the boys were teaching me the fundamentals of football...or rather trying too. Mostly we had heated discussions and debates revolving around the players, specific plays, and whether or not we should reenact some of the plays outside. At this point we usually are already outside with the football.
Another activity that I also thoroughly enjoyed was playing pool with some of the residents. I must admit my pool skills are a bit shaky; consequently, there was a lot of laughing and joking that went on. It was a blast.
Week 6:
This week introduced a more in depth look at the type of paperwork that the Supervisors at Compass House Youth Shelter have to fill out. This opportunity presented itself to me on October 5, 3009, probably because this was my Monday late shift. Therefore, most of the kids had homework and the like, which allowed me to sit in on log-in sheets, invoices, etc.
In my other two shifts this week, my activities mostly revolved around conversing with kids and participating in activities with them. For example, we had a huge monopoly tournament that involved eight of us all crowed around this little board in the kitchen. It was hilarious crowding around the board bartering for same-colored property and trading for railroads. Other times we played videogames, watched movie marathons, and talked with each other. One client in particular helped me improve upon my dismal pool skills. This was one of the highlights of my week because during this discussion he vented about some of the conflicts that he was having in his life and his anxiety about where he wanted to go. From there, I was able to subtly inform the Supervisors so that they were aware of the topics to talk about with this client in particular.
Week 7:
This week involved card tournaments, dinner, chores, and college applications. Client A had some college applications that she was filling out by herself in the lounge when I arrived at the shelter. When I asked what she was doing, she immediately started pelting me with various questions concerning the different essay questions. Together we worked on brainstorming ideas, creating an outline, and formulating an essay. I had a lot of fun working with her and listening to her future goals and aspirations.
In addition, during this week I was in charge of answering the phones and making calls for residents.
Week 8:
During this week, we had a couple of kids whom had originated from Mexico at our shelter. Thus, we had to work with a couple of translators and were focused primarily on finding other locations to which they could go to. Finding other locations was necessary because we did not have anyone working at our shelter that spoke fluent Spanish. While the kids were there, however, I was trying to find activities that would keep them occupied that did not necessarily require a lot of communication. Furthermore, while the other supervisors were on the phones with the various agencies involved in these specific cases, I was also fielding calls from other parents and relative calling in to check on the other various kids at the shelter.
An even that I organized this week was a videogame tournament. I decided to go with videogames because on Wednesday, October 21, there were mostly boys whom needed our services. Therefore, they were more inclined to like this game then, for example, Monopoly or Jenga. The boys had a lot of fun playing this basketball videogame, and were merciless in pointing out how terrible I was at this particular game. Needless to say, it was a lot of fun.
Week 9:
This week consisted mostly of answering incoming calls and learning new paperwork. The paperwork that the Compass House supervisors have to fill out actually consists of a variety of documents. The paperwork that I learned how to do was the daily log. The information that is input into this consists of any direct information referring to the kids. This could be anything from physical complaints or illness to problems with the family. The problem that I was learning to input regarded one client having an attitude problem with another supervisor. While entering this information into the log, I mentioned who was involved in the incident, the actual words being spoken, and any other miscellaneous details that I felt were imperative to the case.
Other activities during the week spanned from playing pool in the basement to watching Batman movie marathons on television. The Batman movie marathon was actually on ABC family on October 31. It was almost a mini party for the kids because there was a lot of candies and treats donated to the shelter that day as well. Therefore, the lot of us were nibbling on fudge while entering into heated debates about which version of Batman was superior.
Week 10:
This week, November 2-7, was an interesting week because I was able to partake in a couple of intake processes. These processes are interesting because, as mentioned in previous entries, it gathers a lot of background information pertaining to the client. For example, the intake paperwork asks about their previous homes, family members, and physical disabilities. Of course, there is a lot of other information gathered too because, in general, this information is six pages long. It also takes approximately forty-five minuets to complete because sometimes the supervisor needs to ask questions of different counselors, agencies, and relatives that are involved in the minors life. In particular, this client talked the multitudes of houses that the client had lived at previously. She also mentioned that she moved around to so many different locations because she was living with various relatives who were willing to take her in when her mom refused to help her. This gives the supervisor a hint of the life that the client had led and may give some indication of the strenuous relationships between the client and family members.
Another activity that I did this week was give tours to new incoming residents at the shelter. For example, any new clients that came in were directed to me so that I could show them the interior of the house, more specifically the rooms they were allowed into and the areas they were to avoid. It was a good way of being able to communicate with the clients and earn their confidence.
Week 11:
November 9-14 was a week for adventures. I went on many walks this week with my clients because the weather was a lot nicer. For example, three clients and I went to Burger King and got food for lunch. We took the food back to the shelter together and ate it, while continuing talking about the randomness of life. It was nice to walk with the clients and interact with them in a different setting, even if it was just walking to and from Burger King.
This week I also had the pleasure of organizing the best kickball tournament ever. It was a lot of fun because we had a lot of kids at the shelter this week; eleven in total when I was there. Approximately ten of us went outside and set of our field together and played a game. We had fun dividing up the players and competitively keeping score of runs. It was fun playing the game with everyone and a lot of kids were really disappointed when the game ended.
Week 12:
This week I planned a pool tournament for all of the kids. There were approximately seven kids who participated in this activity. I, myself, am absolutely terrible at this game; however, many of the other kids are amazing at it. Naturally I was out in the first round, but I stayed and cheered on other people and was a mini referee for the following games.
Another activity that I participated in was a volleyball game with three clients and another intern. Both of us, as interns, decided that the kids needed some fresh air. Therefore, we pumped up a ball and divided up the players and created some semblance of a volleyball court. We ended up playing a couple of games before dinner. The dinner that was this week, after the volleyball game, was pizza. The excitement after the volleyball game was only enhanced with the pleasure of eating pizza.
Of course, I also helped with paperwork and phone calls during this week as well.
Week 13-14:
I combined these two weeks because I took off time for the Thanksgiving holiday. Thus, I was only at work on Monday during the week of Thanksgiving. That day was fun though, because I had another client intake that I did by myself and I was able to supervise another walk to Burger King.
The week of the fourteenth is actually this week. This past Monday I helped with dinner and supervised the chores that the clients are required to do. It was actually really slow on Monday, surprisingly. In fact, there were only two clients there that day.
