I know, we talked about service a couple months ago, so why do we bring it up now? There are all types of service, most of which involve service learning to some extent. Remember that you don’t need to “do it all” but it is good to know what is out there in today’s world.
So what is service learning? “Service learning is a community service on steroids, with intentional learning being the primary goal and the service secondary,” posts Roxanne Turner, Michigan State University Extension.
Service learning takes service beyond just showing up and participating. It allows a group of people, youth, your children, or any group, the opportunity to come up with the plan, assist in its implementation, and then look back on the service and evaluate if the plan could have been improved. Beyond that, it allows those involved to participate in an educational process that will help individuals to recognize their personal growth and gain a better understanding of the situation in the community because of the project.
Service learning is the first step in community service. Community service is valuable because it helps develop a life skill of service and volunteering, but it also impacts the people, program and/or organization that receives the service.
We should be very proud to be Utahns since Utah has been ranked as the #1 state in Volunteering for 10 consecutive years! How awesome is that. Those numbers are calculated only from those statistics that have been reported and recorded. How many more hours haven’t been recorded? Can you even begin to count the number of service hours you and your family have given?
Wendy Spencer, CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service said, “The people of Utah should be very proud for once again leading the nation in volunteer service. Volunteers enrich our communities and keep our nation strong. We salute Utah’s volunteers for your commitment and caring spirit.” I wonder how many hours were calculated for service learning?
Where can I go to help with community involvement? https://www.justserve.org
For a list of service ideas to do with your family visit: http://www.familieswithpurpose.com/community-service-ideas-families/