What Did You Do This Summer?

What Did You Do This Summer?

For one bright and driven nine-year old, the answer to this question is different than one might expect. Generally, teachers get a response anywhere from Hawaii to camping to nothing. However, Hollis can answer this question in a variety of ways. She might send you to her YouTube page, or perhaps her WordPress blog. No, I bet she would recommend you check her Facebook page to better understand what she's been up to this summer. Hollis has spent her entire summer juggling her soccer ball to raise money for St. Jude's Children Hospital.



After only one month of fundraising she has raised $11,000. Yes, $11,000. This is not some little bake sale; she is crushing fundraising and is nearing her goal of $20,000 for the summer.

I had the chance to chat with Hollis this evening in order to learn more about what she is doing, why she's doing this and how social media has helped her in her efforts.

Mike: How did you come up with this idea? 

Hollis: I got my juggling skills from soccer. I've been practicing juggling for a while and putting some of those videos on YouTube. My mom heard about St. Judes Children Hospital and what they do for children and suggested that I combine my soccer skills with the opportunity to help children. It's good for kids at the hospital and good for my juggling skills.

M: Why did you choose to use social media to spread the word?

H: I became familiar with it (social media) because my mom would post pictures or videos of me- soccer, juggling or dance. Now it’s fairly normal. For Juggling for Jude, my mom spreads the word with Facebook and Twitter (I’m not old enough yet) and I also blog with Wordpress. Using Facebook allowed more people to donate and help. It spreads the word to more people and that helps kids. (editors note: Social Media increases reach- make sure positive thoughts are reaching farthest.)

M: Any experience with Social Media before J4J?

H: Not at school, but I made some videos of me juggling earlier this year and my teacher saw it. She was impressed and shared it with some other people. I like using YouTube. The video always stays there. Mom immediately takes my score and puts it straight to YouTube. It's a great way to spread J4J around to other people.

M: Did you learn about Digital Citizenship during the school year?

H: I’ve seen some magazines and articles on social media and Digital Citizenship. Some friends at school had an Instagram account, and their parent's didn't know it was a public account. WHAT!? We were like, you've got to make that private. They had to switch it to a private account because their account wasn't for a good cause. This is different because it is helping kids. (editors note: This Social Media usage has purpose!)

M: You realize this is uncommon for young people to do with their summer, right? Ever want to take some time off?

H: (Laughter) Yah, there have been times when I didn’t want to juggle. I had to fight through it- focus on the fact that I'm helping kids. Even when I was on vacation in Hawaii. I’m tired, I’m on vacation, but my mom reminded me that kids in the hospital don’t get vacation. (note: Hollis ended up with a then new record of 216 juggles while on vacation. And that video has been seen 499 times).

M: Any goals for the Fundraiser?

H: Yes, somewhere around 400 juggles and the fundraiser ends on August 31st. (note: at this point, I realized that I was unclear with my question, but it also illustrates how adults think compared to children).


There are a few important take-aways that make this a great case study for teachers and adults.
1. Social Media, when used appropriately and with the help of responsible adults, can enact change on a variety of scales. Hollis started by sharing this with her family, then the community that her family works with (TJ's Gym, San Rafael).

2. Hollis recognized something that many adults need to look at more closely. Using Social Media for a good cause is great. We all love cat videos, but let's keep things positive and maybe take some time to help a few people, or share an idea or offer inspiration. Being a creator of internet content and not just a consumer is something that we can all try to do more often, and it is a skill we can all share with our students.

My hope in writing about this is to spread the word and help this kiddo, but more importantly I hope this will inspire others to use Social Media in a positive way, for a good cause and with positive content that might even help a person or three. So, when you ask your students what they did this summer, keep Hollis in the back of your mind....