Highlights and updates from Guardian volunteering week 2014: Monday

Gadget workshop at Age UK Camden’s Tavis House, part of the Guardian’s volunteering week 2013. Photograph: David Kirwan/Guardian.

6.54pm BST

That's all from the volunteering week live blog for today

Join us on the live blog tomorrow for the latest news from volunteers at London Wildlife Trust's Camley Street Natural Park, Age UK Camden's Great Croft Resource Centre and the Cutting East project. We'll also be reporting on the Manchester project at the Sure Start Centre in Stretford and hope to bring you updates from the New York projects.

6.38pm BST

update on Pentonville

The writing session went well today at the prison – I've just picked up a short tweet from one of the volunteers.

@GNMVolunteering @GDNclaire it was great thanks!

— Anna Leach (@avleachy) June 9, 2014

5.21pm BST

And some great feedback from the people who attended the workshops.

Jonathan you are a star! Thank you for all your help

Here's Jonathan with one of the workshop attendees both looking very happy!

All smiles at the end of the day at Age UK Camden's gadget workshop.

What a wonderful workshop I have learnt so much and feel a lot more confident using my tablet independently

Thank you Kay I wish you could come back more often! You have been a fantastic instructor

and a lovely quote from June, one of the workshop attendees,

I can do this all on my own now, thanks Ruby

Updated at 5.35pm BST

4.59pm BST

update from Age UK Camden gadget workshop

we are.one.big gadget family :)

I think it's VW for volunteering week . . .

Updated at 5.17pm BST

3.45pm BST

update from EGA

No news as yet about how the workshops went over at EGA this morning but Martin Luther King won the mock leadership elections.

Good job I didn't put money on the result.

@GNMVolunteering @EGA_School @MichelleObama it was MLK! #GNMVolWk

— LauraOliver (@LauraOliver) June 9, 2014

And, it had to happen at some point, our first Guardian volunteering week #epicselfie from Tim Beal.

Volunteers week, teaching leadership at EGA #GNMVolWK #epicselfie http://t.co/l5sMJQvjwb

— Tim Beal (@BealTim) June 9, 2014

Not sure what aspect of leadership Tim is covering there. But I think he might be leading in the most people in a volunteering week photograph competition, if there was such a competition, which there isn't, so no more #epicselfies please!

3.26pm BST

I've just heard back from our audio producer who volunteered at the prison radio class this morning. All went well. It was a full session with lots to do including preparing material for broadcast and supporting students develop their writing ideas.

3.23pm BST

Pentonville newsletter class

We've got two more volunteers in Pentonville prison at the moment, this time running a writing workshop for the newsletter class.

The class produces a monthly prison newsletter, Voice of the Ville. Outside of volunteering week Guardian and Observer staff have been volunteering at the newsletter class, running sessions on all aspects of writing and news production, for over five years now since we partnered with the prison after our move to Kings Place.

2.07pm BST

And some more pictures of the Guardian volunteers at Tavis House, this time hard at work with the members of Age UK Camden who been attending sessions throughout the day for support with their IT and gadget problems.

Photograph: Jan Stevens/Guardian

Photograph: Jan Stevens/Guardian

Photograph: Jan Stevens/Guardian

Photograph: Jan Stevens/Guardian

1.00pm BST

The team is made up of staff from different departments, although Ruby recruited a good number of volunteers from her own finance and procurement colleagues.

Also on the team is Tanya Cordrey our chief digital officer. If any of the Age UK Camden members have an IT problem she can't solve then we're all in trouble.

Updated at 2.08pm BST

12.30pm BST

Gadget workshop – Age UK Camden

At last we've got an update from the volunteering team down at Tavis House for the Age UK Camden gadget and IT drop in session.

Ruby Uppal, Guardian volunteer project manager, has reported all is going well – in fact she said:

What a brilliant project!

The attendees who are so lovely and grateful for our help.

12.16pm BST

Guardian volunteers are involved in an ongoing mentoring project with senior students at EGA. This project was set up after last year's volunteering week.

Seniors at EGA also have a mentoring type role with other students at the school.

Here's some advice from the senior students involved in today's project on what makes a good mentor.

A good mentor shows and helps you, but doesn't tell you what to do

The most important thing is to be approachable

12.04pm BST

more from Laura @ EGA

We are having an election to demonstrate good leadership. We've got to choose from Martin Luther King, Michelle Obama or Mother Teresa

Tough choice – but my money's on Michelle Obama winning this one.

She visit EGA in 2009 and met with students again at Oxford University in 2011.

Senior students at Elizabeth Garrett Anderson school hold a mock election as part of a leadership workshop with Guardian volunteers for volunteering week 2014. Photograph: Laura Oliver/Guardian

You can read excerpts from Michelle Obama's special message to EGA students in this article.

Updated at 12.05pm BST

10.40am BST

and more from EGA . . .

Students sketch out their ideas of good . . .

Already impressed by ideas from EGA yr10 pupils on leadership #gnmvolwk pic.twitter.com/lnIBikSuMp

— LauraOliver (@LauraOliver) June 9, 2014

and bad leadership.

Depicting good and bad leaders with yr 10 at Elizabeth Garrett Anderson. A stark comparison here #gnmvolwk pic.twitter.com/aSPKIpKgeI

— LauraOliver (@LauraOliver) June 9, 2014

10.24am BST

Quick check-in from Juliet Fowler at EGA school

3rd year of working with pupils @EGA_School always v exciting - leadership skills with yr10 girls #GNMVolWk

— Juliet Fowler (@JulietSFowler) June 9, 2014

Juliet has been supporting the Guardian volunteer project managers Laura Freeman and Corrin Woollcott organise the project this year. It's great to have such experience hands on board.

Last year Juliet led the volunteering team at EGA. She talks about why she got involved in last year's video.

Volunteering week 2013 – Guardian volunteers and community partners talk about their experience and what they get out of being involved

9.37am BST

Guardian volunteering week 2014

Guardian volunteering week starts today, over 250 staff have signed up to take part in 15 projects in London, Manchester and New York with our community partners. We will be live blogging the week's events, starting today . . .

9.37am BST

And we're off . . .

Volunteering week gets off to a flying start today with staff volunteering at 4 projects. In London with Elizabeth Garrett Anderson school (EGA), Age UK Camden and Pentonville prison. And this year it's an international volunteering week with staff from our US office volunteering with projects at New York Cares.

And today's volunteers are already hard at work. Who said that media folk don't get into work early? Exploding this myth is one of our audio producers who arrived at Pentonville prison just past 8.00am to take part in the prison radio station class. And it's an early start for another team of volunteers who are back to school for the first of two days of workshops on leadership skills with senior students at EGA.

We all know the Guardian is now digital first, so hopefully there will be no red faces at the gadget workshop at Age UK Camden's Tavis House.

And later on in the day our New York staff will be working at one of New York Cares' project helping to provide lunch at the Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) centre.

Updated at 9.40am BST