Straight Talk

What is it? What’s it good for? How’s it done?

What is it?• Every other Thursday, the entirety of BYP sits down in a

circle for the last hour of the day.• One by one, coordinators read each youth’s straight talk: a

list of things they’ve done well during the past week (positives), and a list of things that need improvement/Standards violations (deltas)

• Upon finishing reading a youth’s straight talk, the coordinator stands and hands the youth their printed straight talk.

• The Straight-Talk concludes after the last youth’s ST is read. There is a round of applause and the youth are dismissed.

What’s it Good For?

• A method of ensuring accountability for the youth’s actions, whether positive or otherwise, on a regular basis.

• A means of charting individual growth and progress.

• A strengthening of group unity.

How’s It Done?Sample Straight Talk

Joey Jo-Jo (SPELLED CORRECTLY)10-30-2014

+(A brief, grammatically-accurate description of the good deed, as well as the date on which it occurred).

On Wednesday, October 29, You really helped develop a cool idea for the T-Shirt design. You were open to other people's ideas, and it set a good example for the rest of the group.

On Monday, October 27, you stayed behind after hours to help take out the garbage. This demonstrates a sincere appreciation for the work environment, and is of course a big help to the staff. We really appreciate it!

∆

On Tuesday, October 28, you were using your phone during work time. Please refrain from doing so; this is a distraction, and a bad habit that you don’t want to fall into. For this, you have earned a step in working hard. I’m sure you’ll have no trouble in stepping back next week. You have a very active mind, and often start very interesting and compelling discussions; perhaps consider leading a discussion group in the coming weeks!

---------------------------Violations Summary:(A list of violations, organized by date and category)(Format: M/DD: Category : Step(s) )

10/01: Being Present: Step 1 Pre-Warning10/01: Being Present: Step 2 Warning10/16: Being Present: Step 3 $10.0010/28: Working Hard: Pre-Warning 10/30: Being Present: Stepping Back to Step 3

How’s It Done?

• Keep the Positives and Deltas balanced. • Deltas don’t have to be negatives.• Positive framing: make an effort to write deltas in

an encouraging fashion. People tend to respond more positively to constructive criticism when it’s bookended by positives.

• For Standards violations, refer to the Standards Chart.

• USE CORRECT SPELLING AND GRAMMAR!

How’s It Done?

• Straight Talks are written in a Google Doc that is shared with the rest of the coordinators, as well as Jessi.

• The Past Week’s Straight Talks’ font color gets changed to red. The current straight talk’s text comes first, and is typed in black. – These are *NOT* for the youth to see. The

Straight Talks that are handed to the youth include only the current week’s comments.

Straight Talk Rules

• The Youth are not supposed to talk during the reading of the Straight Talks.

• The Youth should be making eye contact with whomever is reading their straight talk. Try to make eye contact back to the extent that you are able.

• If The Youth have any questions or comments about their straight talk, they have to wait until the following Monday to address them. After the conclusion of Straight Talk, they are promptly dismissed.

Examples

• A Youth was on their cell phone during homework time for reasons unrelated to school work.

• You overhear a youth make a derogatory comment towards another Youth. They’re friends and it was said in a joking manner.

• While spray-painting fence posts for a Gardening project, a Youth tags the side of the community center. When questioned later, they deny having done it. Upon questioning others present during the incident, it is revealed that the Youth was indeed responsible.