The Consortium for Public Education

The Consortium For Public Education is a member of the Public Education Network.

The Consortium For Public Education • 410 Ninth Street, McKeesport, PA 15132 • 412-678-9215 (phone) 412-678-1698 (fax)

GRANT AWARDS
Round 36 - Spring, 2005 (Page 1 of 2)

PRIMARY/ELEMENTARY LEVEL AWARDS

Title: March "Math" Madness
Level: Elementary
School: Bentworth Elementary Center, Bentworth School District
Contact: Cathy L. Wonsettler

What do the NBA, first day of spring, building a birdhouse, and baking cookies have in common? MATH, of course! March ”Math” Madness is a community event that will celebrate the role of mathematics in everyday life and be a kick-off for the “Getting Ready for PSSA” campaign in the school. Interactive activities, discussion groups and information areas will be organized into “booths” where students, teachers, community leaders, the State police, the PA Game Commission, and even the staff of “Curves” fitness program will offer unique twists to appreciating the importance of math. Games, cooking, sports, stories will reinforce academic skills in a fun math fair.

Title: Out of This World in 3rd Grade
Level: Elementary
School: California Elementary School, California Area School District
Contact: Elaine Shannon

This project finds third graders investigating the solar system using a motorized model, creating a mobile of the solar system, singing songs about the solar system, and writing mini books. All these activities will enhance a regular unit of study but will give the students visual and hands-on reinforcement of these lessons.

Title: We're Growing Peanuts
Level: Elementary
School: California Elementary School, California Area School District
Contact: Elaine Shannon

This grant project finds third graders learning the science of growing plants, geography, map reading, the work of George Washington Carver, measurements, writing skills as they grow peanuts, how to make peanut butter, creating a cookbook of peanut butter recipes and then using the peanut butter to make bird feeders.

Title: Learn and Laugh
Level: Elementary
School: Charleroi Area Elementary School, Charleroi Area School District
Contact: Marlene Oreski, Barbara Kendra, Claire Prati, Christine Polkabla, Paul Simpson, John Hisiro

This program finds first graders building their reading fluency as they read various animal storybooks with the librarian. After reading ten books the students will choose their favorite to read to a kindergarten buddy. A culminating activity will include a visit from a Shriner clown who will share a story with the children.

Title: The Circle of Drums, Part II
Level: Elementary
School: South Allegheny Elementary School, South Allegheny School District
Contact: John McLaughlin

This grant helps expand the “drum circle” concept as a means of developing musical expression and creativity by adding multiple timbre percussion instruments such as Remo talking drums, African Snake Drums, and a African Dumbeck to the hand drums. Students will develop multi-layered ostinatos (repeated patterns) and experiment improvisation through this rhythmic ensemble concept.

Title: Bringing History to Life with Art and Flowers
Level: Elementary
School: Jefferson Elementary School, West Jefferson Hills School District
Contact: Elaine Harmon, Dan Owen, Connie Kocis, Joyce Schmidt, Karen Cerqua, Kirk Salopek, Natalie Fink

This grant will enable students to create interactive learning centers focused on the life of Thomas Jefferson. The first learning center will be a wall of paintings commemorating the many talents of Thomas Jefferson. The paintings will be done by the elementary art students in collaboration with high school art students and students from the California University of Pennsylvania. The paintings will be displayed permanently in the school foyer and a study guide, complete with puzzles, games and fact sheets, will accompany the display. The second learning center will build on a previous 1996 butterfly garden grant by incorporating plants from Jefferson’s Monticello garden. The interactive learning centers will bring history to life with art and flowers as they learn about the life and times of Thomas Jefferson.

Title: Reading and Storytelling with Flannel-board Stories
Level: Elementary
School: H.W. Good Elementary School, Yough School District
Contact: Linda Casey Kustra, Jennifer Klobucar, Shawn Klobucar, Elaine Trentin, Dawn Hildenbrand

This grant will create compact, quick to retrieve, everything a teacher/student/parent needs to enact a story--kits to promote the development of reading, listening, speaking and interpreting literacy skills. Second graders will comprehend, enjoy and remember stories better as they use objects such as flannel-board characters and props to enact or view a performance. Students will also perform their stories to kindergarten children. This project will be integrated into the Accelerated Reading Program already in place and has the potential to be expanded to other subject areas.

Title: Reading and Writing Resource Center
Level: Elementary
School: Mendon Elementary School, Yough School District
Contact: Cheri Pergola

Through this grant a resource center will be added to the classroom for students to access writing materials and enrich their reading skills through activities in the center.

Title: Over the River and Through the Woods...to Mrs. Yackovich's Kindergarten We Go
Level: Elementary
School: Mendon Elementary School, Yough School District
Contact: Elaine Yackovich, Rosemary Castine, Erin Lawson

This great idea project intends to build on children’s natural love and curiosity about animals to motivate them to learn basic skills in Math and Reading. The classrooms will have learning centers such as “Reading Raccoon” where children will match paw prints with upper and lower case letters on them and “Danny Deer” reading center where students can listen to a story and place picture cards in the proper sequence. Students will engage in interactive, hands-on woodland-based themed activities that support the PA Educational Standards.

Title: Kindergarten is "Dino-Mite"
Level: Elementary
School: Mendon Elementary School, Yough School District
Contact: Rosemary K. Castine, Elaine Yackovich, Erin Lawson

Using a dinosaur theme as a motivational tool, this project will enhance the math, reading and art lessons for Kindergarten children. Fifth graders will work on dinosaur activities with the younger students at a math station, a reading-readiness station and a craft station. Guest readers will share dinosaur stories and the unit will culminate with a “Dino-Mite” celebration.

MIDDLE/INTERMEDIATE LEVEL AWARDS

Title: Fluorescent Funk
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: Charleroi Area Middle School, Charleroi Area School District
Contact: Regina Moorby, Laura Piecknick, Denise Bilott, Jane Staranko

Fluorescent Funk is an interdisciplinary music and fine arts program that will engage the visual and auditory senses. Students will play improvisational instruments such as buckets, glasses, steel pipes modeling a style of Stomp, but with a twist – the program is performed in the dark. Instruments, props and backdrops are painted with luminous paint and brought to life under a black light. Both music and art classes will collaborate to complete the production and the culminating program will be a rhythmic performance that will stimulate the audience with visual and auditory creativity.

Title: 7 C's of Character Education - Children and Community Cooperating, Creating, Collaborating, Caring and Celebrating
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: Frazier Middle School, Frazier School District
Contact: Vincent E. Rafail, Barbara Mehalov, Mary Liston, Elizabeth Ainsley, Janet Reed, Shari Hohol, Sue Elliot, Rod Staggers

The purpose of this project is to build knowledge of positive character traits, conduct projects that will display positive character traits, and involve students in community activities which foster the positive traits that they have developed. This program integrates character education into every aspect of the middle school curriculum and the community. Throughout the school year students will complete small weekly projects and activities. In addition, each grade level will complete a project in cooperation with the community or presented at the community’s Pioneer Days. Sixth graders will create a “Character Quilt;” seventh graders will make posters and a Pioneer Days’ float; eighth graders will present the play, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown for the community. All of the activities and experiences of this project will build positive character and behaviors in the middle school students.

Title: Study-Hall-Ways-to-Reading
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: Finley Middle School, Ringgold School District
Contact: Dr. Helen J. Kish

This grant will initiate a study hall library featuring adolescent literary works and where the books are borrowed by a class period. Students will be encouraged by the study hall teachers to use this resource for pleasure reading. A bulletin board will be available for student critics to post their reaction for others to see. The goal is to get the middle school children reading for pleasure.

Title: After School Conditioning
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: Finley Middle School, Ringgold School District
Contact: George Overton, Jr., Mike Messenger, Richard Fine

This grant will initiate an after school-fitness program as another strategy to fight childhood obesity and enhance the student’s overall physical state. The after-school sessions will begin with warm-up and flexibility exercises followed by strength training with exercise bands, speed training with jump ropes, and dot drills, and running laps for aerobic conditioning. Proper techniques for exercise and sports training will be emphasized as students gain a life-long habit of good exercise and weight control.

Title: Celebrating Diversity - A Classroom Quilting Project
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: South Allegheny Middle School, South Allegheny School District
Contact: Lisa N. Duval

This grant project finds seventh graders creating a classroom quilt to celebrate the students’ cultural diversity. After the students are introduced to non-fiction literature that focuses on civil rights and cultural diversity, they will engage in activities and discussions about various cultures and customs. Students will then research their own family histories and design a quilting square to reflect their personal heritage. Students will also learn basic embroidery stitches and other means of design to complete their quilt.

Title: Coffee, Tee and Poetry
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: Pleasant Hills Middle School, West Jefferson Hills School District
Contact: Carol Adams, Mary McTigue-Ditoro, Mary Kay Moorehead

This great idea project hopes to instill the love of poetry in seventh graders as they write original poetry to showcase their artistic and linguistic techniques. Students will study famous poets and poetry from Emily Dickinson to Dr. Seuss. They will write nearly 20 original poems and compile them into an illustrated and bound poetry book. Each student’s favorite work will be shared with other students in a variety of ways including a tee-shirt design incorporating their work. Finally their students will be part of a Poetry Coffeehouse where they will wear their “po-e-tees” and hear a guest poet speak.

Title: Schoolyard Habitats: An Opportunity for Peer Collaboration
Level: Middle/Intermediate
School: Pleasant Hills Middle School, West Jefferson Hills School District
Contact: Jennifer Cramer, Suzan Peterson

The goal of this program is to offer a development experience among seventh and fifth graders that center on environmental education resulting in a collaborative yearly schoolyard improvement activity. Fifth graders will work with seventh graders to inventory the schoolyard habitat using field guides and measuring devices. They will collect data and enter it into the project’s print and digital diaries. Based on the information gathered they will select a plant/tree to add to the natural habitat for the identified local species. Parents, local businesses, state agencies will be invited to participate in this program.

(Pg. 1 of 2)

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