2006-2007 Teacher Grant Recipients



Theresa Thompson
Eastside Elementary
Rogers, AR

This classroom bought a digital camera and case so they could share their communities with e-pals in other countries. In fact, over 60 students became e-pals with students in Denmark, England, Uzbekistan, and Finland. They took pictures of our school and community and shared our culture with overseas students.
Maryann Welch
NEES
Newark, DE

Scholastic multicultural books as well as a teacher’s guide provided Ms. Welch’s Title I school and third-grade students with an opportunity to explore the diversity in our world through reading. These books were an excellent resource when planning for Diversity Day. Her classroom’s focus was race, and they created a pledge against prejudice and racism after reading books such as “Martin’s Big Words.”


Josephine Diane Maione
St. Mary, Mother of Jesus/St. Frances Cabrini Academy
Brooklyn, New York

The students researched immigration to the U.S., especially the Ellis Island experience. They asked relatives or friends if they could interview them about their personal experiences as immigrants. As a group, they brainstormed important questions they wanted to ask their subjects and discussed how to present these ideas in a children’s storybook format. The students recorded their books on audio tape to be included for children too young to read them. These finished books and tapes were presented to the patients in Maimonides Hospital’s pediatric ward on May 29th.


Kimberly Taniguchi
Central Elementary
National City, CA

Storytelling Comes Alive

With the Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear? retelling pieces, students became different animals and worked together to recall the stories. Using these plush animals, students could stand them up and pretend play. During English Language Development centers, a group of students practiced themselves. By practicing retelling in several different ways, students were excited to try out all the materials provided to them.


Shena Charles
UpRiver Elementary
Fernwood, Idaho

To help her fifth grade students better understand plant and animal mitosis and meiosis, this teacher ordered two micro slide viewers and three different sets of micro slides so that students could see first-hand what the process looks like. Flowers were also purchased so that students could learn different parts of a flower. Students also used three potted plants and conducted an experiment to see how these plants would grow without any leaves, half its leaves, and all of its leaves. To conclude the unit, students grew flowers for Mother’s Day, enabling them to see the entire growing process.


Joanna J. Williams
The Autism Academy of Learning
Maumee, OH

Autistic students were given activities wherein they could further develop their ability to visually discriminate between shapes, colors, and two- and three-dimensional shapes. The students not only enjoyed using the attribute blocks, pattern blocks, and three-dimensional blocks during instructional time, but they also enjoyed playing with them outside of the structured teaching time.


Hollie Snyder
Hammond Central School District Media Specialist
Hammond, NY

Sell Your State

Students sold their assigned states using atlases. Students were expected to use coordinates to find the state they would be researching and in turn give the coordinates of the capital. This was the first time students conducted research, cited their sources, and worked with a brochure template.


Khailiah Canada
School: Community Education Partners Allegheny
Philadelphia PA

After talking about the contributions of African-Americans and how it affected our society, Ms. Canada asked the students to think of their own inventions. After the students make their inventions and decorated their project paper, they presented them to their peers. The project papers were hung for display in our school hallway.


Mrs. Carol Sowers
Adamsville Elementary
Adamsville, OH

Putting it all Together

Each morning, Mrs. Sowers’s students play Jeopardy to start the day. The categories include subjects like compound words, synonyms, antonyms, contractions, prefixes, and suffixes. If the answer is correct, they then move to the money drawer and count out the correct change that the question was worth. From there, they place the money in a basket that is then spent on a care package for our local soldiers serving in Iraq.


Kim Labinger,
Thomas Edison Elementary School
Glendale, CA

Recorders in the Classroom

100 students chose from blue, green, orange, and pink recorders. They learned to play tunes on the recorder, ranging from European nursery tunes to Beethoven's Ode to Joy and folk tunes from other parts of the world. They can now play two-part harmony and rounds. The students performed during two awards assemblies for the entire school and for parents and for the local community.


Carole Anderson
 Stoneview Elementary School
Lithonia, GA

Kitchen Chemistry

Students engaged in an inquiry-based, hands-on physical science learning program. Students investigated the differences between a physical change and a chemical change. Students received a better understanding of how daily lives are related to basic chemistry concepts. Ms. Anderson supplemented her curriculum with Mad Science of Atlanta.


April Johnson
 Chester County Junior High
Henderson, TN

Frog Jumping Olympics

Students learned how to produce origami and how it relates to math. Students used their knowledge of symmetry, congruent shapes, geometry, fractions, and problem-solving to figure out who how to make their origami frog jump the farthest or hop the highest.


Chris Burns
 Rainier Junior/Senior High School
Rainier, OR

Drum Communication

Students with emotional or behavioral difficulties and other health impairments learned to better communicate in this classroom project. Guest musician Obo Addy visited the classroom, playing a variety of authentic African drums. Addy discussed how the drums are used in his culture to communicate with one another and other groups. Students practiced drum techniques on sets brought to the classroom by Addy.


Ruth Hoenick
Atwater School
Shorewood, WI

English Language Learners in 4th–6th grade learned about the state of Wisconsin through reading texts and taking a field trip to Pike Lake State Park. Students learned about the impact glaciers had on the state and how they helped to form the land, lakes, rivers, and hills. After listening to a presentation by Ranger Terry, students explored the grounds, hiked trails, and experienced the lakeshore.


Bonnie Michelle Avery
North Harnett Primary School, Angier
North Carolina

Students engaged in a writer’s workshop every day. Ultimately, they planned, wrote, illustrated, and published personal or creative narratives using blank hard cover books. Each student received an award certificate at the end of the project in recognition of his or her writing accomplishment. Family members and school administrators were invited to attend a celebration in the classroom to honor the “authors” who shared their completed books with the class.


Anita Breen
Ell-Saline Elementary School
Salina, KS

Ms. Breen purchased the Total Reading Program for her classroom to assist students with reading disabilities. Because of time constraints, Ms. Breen focused her energies on a sixth-grade student who was reading at the first-grade level. With the Total Reading Program, this student was able to recite all of the alphabet letter sounds, and all but ten of the phonogram sounds and recognize them in words.


Lisa Kelley
Portage Middle School
Fort Wayne, IN

Give a HOOT at Home

Students participated in this interdisciplinary unit concerning the water sources surrounding the Fort Wayne, Indiana area. Students were transported to three different locations: Fox Island Environmental Center, Eagle Marsh, and Rockhill Park. They were then divided into groups and rotated about these areas to gain a better awareness of the geological importance of their hometown and the wildlife that surrounds the area. Students learned about environmental concerns and how to get involved with efforts to maintain and improve water sources.


Francine Canin
Susan B. Anthony Academy, I.S. 238 Queens
Queens, N.Y.

Ms. Canin purchased a listening center, which is available for use by 50 students. She focused her attention on students who have lived in the US for less than a year. Students can invite one to three friends to the center, which accommodates up to four listeners at a time. Students learn to share with others, select the most interesting story for themselves, and decrease frustration while reading by using combined senses.


Angie Marie McFarland
 Grandin Court Elementary School
Roanoke, VA

Ms. McFarland purchased leveled book sets for all students to use. Books were on multiple instructional levels and included a variety of fiction, nonfiction, and content-related topics. Students who were struggling to read the traditional basal series in their classrooms were given the opportunity to read books on their instructional reading level.


Brenda Mescher
St. Philip Middle School
Quincy, MI

If You Hopped Like a Frog

Students learned how to use the “Tic Tac Tow” method of ratios to determine the missing information. Students then read If You Hopped Like a Frog by David Schwartz, which details the outcomes if humans had certain animal characteristics. Students researched information about a chosen animal and completed measurements to determine what they could do if they were given certain characteristics. The class extended the project by using the rations to determine the amount of force needed to lift real animals on a lever, while experimenting with plastic toy animals and a ruler lever.


Melissa Pierczynski
LaSalle Springs Middle School
Wildwood, MO

Twain Times

Students culminated their novel unit on the Adventures of Tom Sawyer with a teacher-created Web quest. Ms. Pierczynski emphasized nonfiction writing and online research techniques, whereby students worked in groups to create a historically accurate newspaper based on a decade of Mark Twain’s lifetime. Students used Microsoft Publisher on classroom computers to create newsletters.


Elizabeth Spohn
Butler Catholic School
Butler, PA

Future City Competition

Students participated in the Pittsburgh Regional Future City Competition coordinated by the Engineers’ Society of Western Pennsylvania and presented in cooperation with Carnegie Science Center of Pittsburgh. During their twice a week, forty-minute class time, students start by using the software, SimCity3000®, to create a Future City design. Building a scale model, writing an essay about the city, and making a presentation intensify the need for students to apply skills that are a part of their daily academic pursuits.


Diane Ceccacci
School #17
Passaic, N.J.

Students enjoyed movement kits, which included a book in both Spanish and English for parents to read at home with their children after students complete the fun, physical exercise activity. Parents and students were both creatively engaged together in very hands-on activities that often included other siblings or grandparents.


Shannon Rice
Jefferson Central School

Students visited Erie Canal Village in Rome, New York; the Rosamond Gifford Zoo; and Museum of Science and Technology in Syracuse, New York. Students experienced a variety of exhibits and activities to enhance their curriculums. Through this interactive trip, students were able to interact with history by touring exhibits and viewing photographs and artifacts.


Deborah Crawford
Albert Schweitzer Elementary School
Holland, PA

Ms. Crawford purchased classroom materials in the form of games and manipulatives, which reinforce the acquisition of language and basic skills. Board games provided practice for color, shape, number, letter identification but also enabled the students to practice social skills in taking turns. Ms. Crawford increased the opportunities to practice basic concepts, and cognitively delayed students gained social development skills.


Linda Sinagra-Smith
Huntingtown Elementary School
Huntingtown, Maryland

Students competed in the Maryland MESA program competitions. Students learned how nature of science has affected scientific inquiry, technology, and the history of science. They also learned how to communicate effectively; identify attributes, units, or systems of measurements; explain the interactions of matter and energy and the energy transformations; analyze linear relationships; describe the rate of change of a linear relationship by a graph; determine the slope of a graph in a linear relationship; develop an understanding of the attributes of design; develop an understanding of engineering design; develop an understanding of the role of troubleshooting, research and development, invention and innovation, and experimentation in problem solving; develop an understanding of and be able to select and use construction technologies.


Tiffany George
Indianapolis, IN

Bookworm Kits

Gifted students in Ms. George’s class received additional reading texts to use for instruction at school and for independent reading practice at home with parents. Books were purchased and activities designed to challenge each child at her reading level and promote scholarship and excellence in her education. Students received kits with lesson outlines, activities, books, and all necessary materials. Remaining books were used in reading groups to enhance basal reading. Kits alternated between students, each taking home the kit once by the end of the school year.


Amy Laird
Kennesaw Elementary
Acworth, GA

Ms. Laird purchased literacy and math games and activities that students took home to use with their parents. By providing parents with activities to use with their child, it allowed the parents to see what skills their children need to develop. Activities taught students to identify and produce rhyming words and distinguish rhyming and non-rhyming words; demonstrate the relationship between letters and letter combinations of written words and the sounds of spoken words; demonstrate the ability to identify and orally manipulate words and individual sounds within those spoken words; connect numerals to the quantities they represent; and solve problems.


Wanda Meaux
 Mayfield Elementary School
Richmond, KY

Tiling It Up

Ms. Meaux purchased math tiles, and students combined computation skills, problem-solving, group brainstorming, kinesthetic involvement, reasoning and mental math.
With the purchase of Math Tile Activity Cards produced by Joyful Noise Publications, these skills were incorporated into classroom instruction. The Math Tile Activity Cards are by Ellen Lund.


Jennifer Wilson
Grant Ranch School
Littleton, CO

Entryway Entertainment

Ms. Wilson transformed the entryway of her school into a reading cove. Students were engaged to read a book instead of playing while waiting for parents. Students and parents are invited to sit down and read together before leaving for the day. Kindergarteners enjoy time before school to enjoy a book. Ms. Wilson has received donations from other classroom teachers and parents to continue to expand the use of the entryway.


Elisa Capers,
The Childrens Center for Early Learning
Brooklyn, NY

Ms. Capers purchased sorting materials and bins for her classroom. Students learned to sort materials by shapes and colors. The bins are also used during art time to keep the tables clean and materials sorted.


Susan Johnson
Dear Elementary
Richmond, MO

I’ll Show You What I Know

Students received activity bags to take home to parents. Bags contained items like leveled readers, sight words, alphabet stamps, sequencing cards, CD players, CDs, two headphones (for parents and students), and a certificate for parents to sign, indicating that the students were able to follow along with the audio text.

Jeffrey Bradley
Slauson Middle School
Ann Arbor, MI

To foster literacy, technology usage, and leadership, this teacher worked with his students to create “Podosphere.” Students produced, recorded, and edited three shows that were highly educational, informational, funny, and newsworthy for the school community to enjoy. This project appealed to a wide range of learning styles, encouraged technology use, and was a powerful tool to foster student leadership skills.
Stacie Wolbert
Immaculate Conception
Clarion, PA

Students investigated what energies we currently use and their effects on our environment. Students then learned about alternatives to non-renewable energies: Wind by making windmills out of some recycled milk cartons, sand, straws, and paper; Geothermal by making observations of how geothermal power works by using a hot plate, pan of water, and tin foil; Bio-fuels, by learning about making bio-fuels by combining yeast, karo, and warm water in a bottle with a balloon on top of it; and Solar, by building various solar-powered cars and other models. For a final project, the students created informational brochures that explain renewable V. non-renewable resources and they then chose a particular renewable resource to explain in their brochure. In a culminating presentation, the students presented their work at the EarthForce Youth Summit.
Laura Zilinek
Public School 68
Queens, NY

Students took part in a photojournalistic unit where they took pictures and developed film. Students chose specific topics of interest and captured these topics on film; categorized pictures and distinguished appropriate choices for the final product; wrote detailed captions about each picture; and finally arranged pictures chronologically, or in a way that tells a story. The end result was a class book full of photo essays that not only come alive, but engage our readers and carry with them great meaning.
Amelia Koopmann
 Peoria Elementary
Aurora, CO

Ms. Koopman purchased Spanish language books to send home with bilingual students. Monolingual parents often feel intimidated about helping their child to learn at home because everything is in English. But, if encouraged with mono or bilingual books, parents will have a valuable opportunity to read with their child in their native language.
Michelle Mills
Gubser Elementary
Keizer, Oregon

Students created their own resumes online and then determined their areas of interest and which jobs fall into those areas. Students did further research on these jobs once they learned their interest areas. Students learned about how much money they could make at certain jobs, what kind of education and skills will be needed, and what the job actually entails.
Harriet Hamlin
Francis Scott Key Middle School
Montgomery County, MD

Ms. Hamlin received funds to support the Maryland Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Academy (MESA) after-school program. With this program, students were able to: Explain that complex systems require control mechanisms; analyze, design, assemble, and troubleshoot complex systems; and analyze the value and the limitations of different types of models in explaining real things and processes. The program is designed to prepare students for professional careers in mathematics, engineering, science, and technology.
Monica Moon
West Elementary School
Russellville, Alabama

Ms. Moon purchased multiple copies of children’s reading selections and implemented a literature circle program. Students enjoyed various levels and genres of books to spark a new interest in reading. Most students are from non-English speaking homes, and these books provided them with extra practice materials and new reading experiences.
Belinda Riddle
Berea Community Elementary
Berea, KY

Kindergarteners traveled to the local Wal-Mart on a field trip to find a grocery item they would like to photograph. They completed a sheet telling us which aisle the item they selected is located in and what type of grocery item that it is. Each student was assigned a letter of the alphabet and their job was to find an item beginning with that letter. One student designed the cover, while the others located items. Students took their photos to school and each child illustrated his/her page with pictures. The final product was a bound class book entitled “Grocery Store ABC’s.”
Vikaash Moosai
Palm Springs Elementary
Lake Worth, FL

Students enjoyed 15 new books for a math library. Each book contains a calculation for students to perform. Students performed the calculation to get the answer. This activity motivated students and created an easy transition into the day’s lesson. After the students listened to the story, their second objective was to create their own story at home, using the same concept that was taught in the book, and three students’ stories were chosen to be read on the morning announcements.
Diana Tancer
Bellerose, NY

Ms. Tancer purchased two subscriptions of Scholastic Action and Junior Scholastic to encourage reading in the classroom. Articles are read and discussed in class, and students took their own magazines home for independent reading. The magazines were used to teach writing techniques for nonfiction such as the importance of headers, article layout, and graphics. Students used the magazine in shared reading lessons, as a model for article writing, to learn about an author’s point of view, and to build basic vocabulary skills.
Barbara Leventhal
Bretton Woods Elementary School
Hauppauge, New York

Intergenerational Afternoons

Each Wednesday, students went to The Arbors at Islandia East in Islandia to read, write, and converse with residents. The students were broken into small groups and spent about an hour each week during the school year with the same senior resident or group of residents. Everlasting bonds were formed, and respect and appreciation between the groups flourished. This is conducted as a living history lesson, as residents recount the Great Depression, World War II, and Jackie Robinson’s entry into baseball.
Xan Milne
Harlem High School
Machesney Park, Illinois

Pi Day

Students worked with elementary students to sell pies and messages to be delivered to staff and students on Pi Day. One group had a relay race where the participants had to solve math problems using Pi. The other group had an obstacle course the participants had to complete in 31.4 seconds. The students also sold Pi t-shirts, which were created by students.