Community based learning and education can be viewed from at least two perspectives. One is a lens that focuses on engagement with service to the community, with all of the explicit and implicit values reflected by those contexts and activities. Another focuses on the learning and associated processes, objects for consideration in and of themselves. The essence of engaging in community based learning is the imperative to "learn from" the service and community experience(s) rather than to "learn about' them. Further understanding about and continuous improvement of community based learning may lie at the intersection of the context and the process. The intentions of this article are several: to concentrate on the learning dimension of community based learning; to elevate the role of reflection as an essential bridge between experience and learning; to examine the nature and requisite skills of reflection; and to offer a practical model that can be used to help students (and teachers) practice, develop, and refine their competence in reflection and meaning making. In the model, reflection is required to convert an event--something that someone participates in or that happens during a community based learning project--to an experience from which learning and meaning can emerge. The authors then discuss some implications of the model for making key decisions in designing and facilitating community based learning projects and programs. Finally, the authors note some of the risks involved in encouraging a citizenry skilled in reflective learning and practice. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)