SEPTEMBER

Activity

What did you do? Problems

encountered? Successes? Feelings?
Ideas for next time?

Approximate number of
hours involved

Dance

Samba, criss cross, it was really hard

because you need to move your hip while
you jump within the timing. I need to
practice more

1h30

Gym

I tried to do pullups but I could only do 2 so 1h00

I changed to normal planks for 30 seconds
and that for 3 sets mixed with cardio. It
was really tiring,

Babysitting

I had to take care of Martin and Vicky for 2

hours, they behaved well enough. I had to
make sure they did their homework.
Luckily they behave well so I do not have
to get angry.

2h00

Hospital

This time there were 200 people, the food

we made wasnt enough which was really
bad cus there was people left out who did
not get the chance to eat. I was really sad,
next time we agreed on doing more food.

2h30

Babysitting

I had to take care of Mathias today, I was

in charge of making sure he got a shower
and dressed. He is hyperactive so making
sure he listens is really hard! It took me 30
minutes to make him pay attention. Luckily
he behaved.

2h00

Dance

Today I did samba again this time we did

Carioca. My teacher said she was
disappointed because none of us were
doing it right. Finally I learnt carioca
exactly and I made sure that my hip was
lined up with my face.

1h30

Dance

Today we did jive, american jump, it was

2h00
hard because I think I lack coordination so
jumping along with the rhythm costed me a
lot. I wasnt able to perfection it so I
practiced more at home.

Gym

Today I ran 45 minutes around my

neighborhood, I havent ran in years so it

1h30

was extremely hard. I felt my head was

going to pop. I need to practice more on
my resistance. Then I focused on my lower
body by doing 50 squats and three sets.
Dance

Today I did jive again, this step is called

the drunk marine. It was really cool cus I
never heard about this step before,
although it was really fast to keep up at
first I was able to do it correctly, it made
me feel proud.

1h30

Hospital

There was enough food for everyone, in

fact too much cus there was a full tank left
so we drank some and then the rest was
taken by Dieguito. I was really happy that
there was some left because that meant
that less kids were in the hospital.

2h00

Football

I played football with my cousins and

uncles, it was so cool. At first I was playing
not so well, I couldnt keep up with the
defense which made me feel a little upset.
At the end I ended up scoring 3 goals out
of 6, I thought that was really good.

2h30

Gym

I did planks mixed with cardio in order to

work on my abs and legs. In dance they
say that legs need to be strong and
balanced so I thought i needed to work on
my core more.

1h30

Dance

Today I did rumba, we focused more on

the movement of the upper body. I found
it really hard because you need to
contract your core while you push it in
and your waist needs to do a sort of 8. I
need to practice so much!

1h30

Gym

I did planks and sit ups because I need it

for my dance, if I do not have core
strength it is very likely that I wont be able
to mantain balance.

1h00

Babysitting

I took care of Celeste. I needed to look

after her homework, she is a really nice
girl and she behaved all the way! I felt
really proud

1h30

Dance

We kept practicing on the movement of

1h30

the upper body of rumba. My teacher

showed us a trick of moving the body in,
right, in, left. It made it so much easier!
Dance

Today I found out that we had a

competition. So we did rondas where we
get to dance our choreographies. i dont
have high heels so I practiced all of them
in my tip toes in order to get accustomed
to the heels.

1h30

Dance

I practiced on my samba choreography. I

1h30
am lacking movement and strength on my
facial expression, my teacher says it is
extremely important. I am really nervous.

Hospital

Today many people came, there were at

least 70 only in emergencies. It was really
sad but happy at the same time because
they thanked u so much for the food we
gave them

2h30

Dance

I do not have my high heels yet, so I

realized I couldn't go to the competition.
Anyways I decided to practice exactly as
if I was going because it made me
practice more and push myself a little. I
improved on my samba a lot!

1h30

Babysitting

I took care of 4 children today. They were

all really hyperactive so they made a
mess of the toy room. I was really upset
because i wasnt being heard.

2h00

Dance

I practiced chacha, we did New York, it

was really easy so I felt really excited
because I got the hang of it really fast.

1h30

Gym

I did cardio, I ran around my

neighborhood for a lot of time. I got really
tired, I wasnt breathing well so I had to
stop a lot of times to catch my breath.

1h30

Dance

Today we went to rehearse for the

competition at another place. I was really
nervous because I saw how my teacher
danced and it was really inspiring.

3h00

Dance

Today we went to rehearse again. I saw

that I couldnt do jive well enough
because I got lost catching the rhythm. I

3h00

felt really stressed.

Hospital

There was a lot of people this time and

enough food so they were happy because
they had something to eat. It was really
nice!

3h00

Dance

Today we did rondas and it was really

exciting because I was able to do
perfectly to rhythms which were samba
and cha cha, unfortunately I cant do
100% rumba and jive nor paso doble. I
need to dance so much more.

1h30

Dance

I did jive, the basic choreography. It was

really hard and tired because this dance
is really fast. I was so tired but happy.

1h30

Gym

I did cardio, I jogged around my

neighborhood for an hour, I was happy
because I felt I had more resistance this
time.

1h15

Babysitting

I babysitted two children. It was really

nice, because I did not have to argue
with them, they behaved the entire time
and everything I asked them to do, they
did not question.

2h00

Dance

I did jive and samba, I think I have gotten

a little better. I did not feel so bad
because I was not lost all the time.

1h30

Dance

I did jive, basically kicks. I couldnt do

them because they are really fast and for
that to work it requires a lot of speed and
strength. I practiced more at home.

2h00

Babysitting

I babysitted Celeste, she is a nice girl

and she behaves very well. She does
everything she is supposed to do.

1h30

Hospital

Today there was a big problem, two

2h30
people did not come so we lacked a lot of
food and many people did not have
something to eat. I was really sad and
upset at the same time.

OCTOBER

Dance

I did kicks again, I was better at it

although I couldnt jump at the same time
and my teacher kept telling me that I
needed to be faster.

1h30

Dance

I practiced rumba, this time I practiced

the march. The timing is really hard
because it is fast and slow at the same
time. I am really stressed.

1h30

Gym

I did cardio again, jogged around my

neighborhood. I feel like I have more
resistance because I am getting less
tired. It makes me feel good.

1h30

Dance

I did rondas, I was really tired so the bad

thing is that I couldnt dance as good as I
wished. I felt disappointed

1h30

Gym

I did some low impact workout, sorta

pilates. I havent done this in 2 years so it
was really hard for me to keep up
balanced.

1h30

Hospital

A lot of our people came and not so

many from the hospital so a lot of food
was left out. That was really sad because
we had prepared a lot. We planned and
organized more for next week to avoid
what happened now.

2h00

Dance

Today we practiced on our flexibility, I

realized that I am not that flexible at all
which was really disappointing because
sport dance requires a lot of flexibility.

1h30

Dance

We kept working on our flexibility,

surprisingly I am closer now to doing a
full split with my right leg on front. I need
to practice the same exercises but with
my left leg cus I am not that flexible at all.

1h30

Gym

I jogged for 1 hour. I was really relieved

because I had a hard day and jogging
makes me feel good.

1h00

Gym

I decided to go jogging again but this

time a little faster, I got tired really fast so
I had to stop every time and that was
really frustrating.

1h00

Hospital

A lot of people came, there was enough

drinks but there was a slight problem
because the bread was lacking and
people were left with no bread. I was
really upset because lately the
organization has not been too well.

2h30

Babysitting

I took care of 2 children, they were really

noisy so I got really stressed and it took
me a long time to make them keep silent.

2h00

Dance

I did rondas, from all of the five rhythms I

noticed that my weakest is Paso Doble, it
is too elegant for me and too slow. I like
the way it looks on my other friends
though.

1h30

Dance

I practiced paso doble at home, I feel I

am understanding its movement and the
timing which motivates me a little.

1h30

Dance

Today there was rondas again, there was

so much people that I bumped with a lot
of them and one friend stepped over me.
Luckily that didnt stop me from dancing.

1h30

Hospital

Finally there was enough food and the

right amount of people. I felt really happy
because there was few people in
intensive care meaning that less children
are in danger.

2h30

Dance

We practiced choreographies for all of us, 1h30

I loved it because all of us were
synchronized and it looked really
organized.

NOVEMBER
Dance

We practiced stationary, it was hard

because the movement of the hips
needs to be smooth but at the same
time strong. I thought it was really hard

1h30

Football

Today I went with a group to play football 2h30

in a field, it was really fun. We warmed
up for 30 minutes and then played
straight for 2 hours. I loved it

Football

I went with the same guys from

2h00
yesterday, we were all tired and our legs
hurted so much but we played for quite a
long time. I had to stop because my legs
couldnt hold it anymore.

Dance

I did my new choreography on samba, I

need to improve so much. I lack facial
expression and I know that the judges
look at that aspect as a really important
one.

1h30

Gym

I worked on my arms because they are

really weak. I did squats and push ups, i
did not know how but my arms ended up
hurting so much which made me realize
that I need to work so much more.

1h00

Dance

Flexibility, I lost my ability to reach the

split almost by 100%, I know that I need
to keep practicing and working on my
splits because jive at least involves a lot
of flex.

1h30

Hospital

It was really nice, I was in charge of

giving out the bread to people. I love to
see their gratitude faces, it makes me
value life more.

2h00

Dance

We practiced turning, spiral and feet

together. However we practiced to do 2
within one beat. I could not do it, it was
too fast for me and the balance required
was too much.

1h30

Gym

I jogged because I have not jogged in

weeks so I felt like I needed to go back
jogging again to improve my resistance.

2h00

Dance

I did jive, kicks again. I was really proud

because I have improved so much even
though I did not practice outside of
class.

1h30

Dance

We practiced stationary again, luckily I

got the hang of it and I was able even to
show my friends how to do it. I was
proud of me for a while.

1h30

Dance

We practiced a new choreography for

rumba. We have to go down a lot and

1h30

then stand back up slowly, I found that to

be really hard because I cant balance
well.
Gym

I did a program called Kayla Fitness for

my legs. It was so exhausting that I
needed to rest a lot, and drink a lot of
water. This made me feel weak.

1h30

Hospital

Today there was a lot of people in

emergencies, it was really sad to see
that there was even some people that
did not want to eat due to their
preoccupation.

2h30

Gym

I worked on my abs because I have

noticed that I have gotten fat. I did a lot
of sit ups and planks to get rid of the
grease around my stomach. I was really
weak and I had to drink so much water
to keep up.

1h30

Dance

I did the turns, it is really hard to do them 1h30

in a faster beat, I lose my control and I
start to go in the wrong direction. It is
really frustrating.

Hospital

There was a lot of people in intensive

care. It was really heart breaking to see
the kids interned, babies. It was really
sad!

2h00

Dance

I practiced cha cha, I cannot do fully the

hand to hand step. I get confused in the
transition moment that I manage to
mess up the whole choreography.

1h30

Dance

Finally, we were doing rumba. It is the

hardest, along with jive, rhythm for me to
dance because the timing is really
different and that distracts me and gets
me all confused.

1h30

DECEMBER
Dance

Today I did samba marches, it was really

easy to be honest. There wasnt any
difficulty because it was really straight
forward.

1h30

Dance

Today I did paso doble, the new

choreography. It was really hard to keep
up so it was hard for me to keep up with
my teachers rhythm. I felt frustrated!

1h30

Gym

I did the elliptic for 30 minutes and then I

did some ballet exercises that consist on
mixed planks. I got tired really fast.

1h30

Babysitting

I babysitted Celeste. I was in charge of

making sure she took a shower and did
her Spanish homework. She did no want
to take a shower so getting her to the
shower was really hard but at the end
she obeyed.

2h00

Collecting toys

I was in charge of taking toys and

organizing them for kids that lack
resources. There were so many toys so
it took me nearly 3 hours to arrange
them into 3 piles.

2h40

Collecting toys

I had to do the same thing but now with

little toys which I found even harder
because there were so many and some
of them were incomplete so I had to
throw them away.

2h30

Dance

Today we did rondas, first we warmed

up. I was really happy because I am so
close to doing the split with my right leg.

1h30

Football

Today I went to play football with my

cousin and his team too. They ran a lot
so I got tired really fast, I felt kinda
useless.

2h00

Dance

I did kicks again in jive because my

teacher says we are not doing them
correctly, it was so exhausting
because we could not stop.

1h30

Gym

I jogged around my neighbourhood, I

did not jog in weeks so I felt tired
every time, luckily I was listening to
music which motivated me a little.

1h30

Hospital

There was right enough amount of

food and people which made us feel
proud and satisfied because we
experienced organization issues
before but now it was ok.

2h00

Dance

I did rumba, a new choreography. I

could not keep up because my
rhythm is not that good, I was so
frustrated because I was one of the
few that could not dance the new
choreography.

1h30

Hospital

Today we made twice the amount of

drinks we did before, fortunately
there was enough people to drink it,
and some even drank twice which
was good because I know they are
really hungry and some do not even
have money to afford a meal.

2h30

French

I taught French to my sister as she

needs to take a test on two days and
she has trouble learning some
vocabulary. She is really obedient so
it was easy for me to teach her.

1h30

French

I helped my brother now with his

lessons because he as well has a
test on vocabulary and he cannot
remember all of it.

1h30

Candies for
children

Today I made candy bags to give out

next week to children that lack
resources. There were so many
candies but we lacked cookies. I
need to buy more to make the bags
fuller.

2h00

Candies for
children

I kept doing the bags for the children,

there was enough to make 200 bags.
It was tired but fun because we
talked while we did this so I did not
get bored.

2h00

Dance

Today was the last lesson of the

2h00

year! We did secret santa and gave

out our presents to our friends. It was
nice because almost no one forgot to
buy their present and everyone was
happy.
Gym

Today I did abs entirely by doing

situps, planks and v ups, 50 each for
five sets. I was so exhausted and
felt extremely tired.

1h00

Helping little kids

dance

Today we visited children and I

entertained them by dancing with
them along with the music. It was so
nice to see them having fun and
laughing.

3h00

Candies for kids

I helped giving out the candies and

helping children carry their presents.
It was amazing to see their faces
when they received a toy and a
candy bag with clothes.

2h30

January
Dance

Today I practiced a new

choreography for samba, it is really
hard because I have the right shows
now, and as they are really high is
hard to maintain balanced. I felt
good though cus I feel challenged.

1h30

Gym

Today I did legs, I worked doing

squats for 3o minutes and then I ran
another 30 minutes in the elliptic. I
haven't gone on the elliptic in such a
long time that I found it really
exhausting.

1h15

Dance

The lesson was on cha-cha, the

1h30
hand to hand steo was learnt. At first
I did not get it because it needed a
lot of coordination and I was
confused with the steps. However,
at the middle of the lesson I
managed to do the step 90%
correct.

Dance

Today we kept on practicing the

hand to hand step learnt on
wednesday, everyone was really
good at it including myself which
made me feel very proud.

1h30

Hospital

Today we went to the hospital

complete, there was even some
food left. luckily there wasn't too
many people because that means
that less children are interned,
which made all of us feel relieved.

2h30

Kindness

Today was the first kindness lesson,

we are planning on doing so many
activities in school to improve the
environment, we are planning on
having a flower day where we are
going to give flowers to each
person.

1h00

Dance

Today we did jive,we practiced a mix 2h15

between kicks and borracho
marinero or drunk marine. It was
really hard, I tried my best but I
couldnt keep up the technique along
with the speed of the dance. That is
why as soon as i got home I
practiced for 45 minutes more to
control my balance and improve the
step. I am really frustrated because I
cant do it.

Dance

Today we kept practicing the last

step, this time I had so much more
control of my balance. Therefore I
was able to perform the step not at
100% but at a 75% which is far
better than what I started with.

1h30

French lessons

I gave french lessons to Celeste as

she could not do her homework on
writting a recipe and the instructions
in french. It was really entertaining
for both of us.

1h30

Swimming

Today I went to swim at Club Los

Chillos, it was such a long time
since I swam that i have less
resistance and speed. I got really
frustrated so I swam 30 laps like I

2h00

used to before when I was a kid.

Kindnesss

Today we planned Rose Day along

with my classmates. We did the
name tags for all of the school in
order to get the tags for each rose
when the day comes. It was nice,
everyone finished their task and felt
motivated.

1h00

Hospital

Today the bread was missing, it was

so sad to see people who did not
have a piece of bread as they have
not got so much money so it made
me feel really sad to see them
drinking the oatmeal with nothing
else. Next time the guy from the
bread promised to come and we
planned to bring bread just in case.

2h30