In my previous posts, I described the very rewarding experience of volunteering at Little River Elementary School. I am so fortunate to have had this opportunity to read to students who have yet to develop a positive relationship with books. I hope that my visit inspired them.
While I truly enjoy this experience, there was a not-so-pretty side to it all: the ugly. The ugly is the sadness and hardship that these students have had to endure. In just the five hours that I was there and the brief interaction I had with these kids, there was one boy and one girl who shared with me that their relative was in jail. One was a mother, the other an uncle. Mom was in jail because she fought with Dad; Uncle was in jail because he robbed a bank because the family needed money. Now if this doesn't bring tears to your eyes, I don't know what will. It is just heart-breaking to know that six year olds have to live in these situations. One can only imagine why these students might be behind academically. Could it be that there is no one home helping them? Yes! Could it be that they have so many other things on their mind that it is impossible to focus on school work? Yes! It is so clear to see that they need us.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Making Reading a Priority
This past Monday, I spent the day at Little River Elementary school as my previous post mentioned. I absolutely love spending time with the children at this school, and each time I go, just when I think it can't get any better, it gets better.
On this trip, I decided to bring students from my middle school with me. I have gone 4 times previously and have enjoyed the interaction with the young children at this elementary school, but I also love instilling the need for this in my middle school students. As the advisor for my school's chapter of the National Junior Honor Society, I had the opportunity to bring the members to Little River Elementary to read to the students and donate school supplies.
We spent the day in the Media Center, and we were so fortunate to have "Media Mama" make a schedule for us in which all Kindegarten and first grade classes came to the Media Center on a rotation schedule. This means we worked with over 250 students in one day! As the students arrived, we greeted them at the door and introduced ourselves so they wouldn't think we were strangers. We then went to our reading spot with about 3-5 students in hand.
One thing that I love about this school so much is their Media Center. Even though it is a Title I School, it makes it known that reading is a priority. The Media Center has beautifully painted walls representing Florida's history, and it has a variety of reading spots from beach chairs and blankets to tents and rocking chairs. It's great!
We spent about 30 minutes with each group during which time we read to the students in our small groups. I can't even begin to explain how much these students relish this one-on-one interaction. While they were reluctant to sit with me at first, it only took minutes to have them enthralled by the story I was reading and wanting to share their own stories. In fact, just a few minutes into one rotation I looked over at one of my 8th grade students who was sitting in a rocking chair reading to his 4 first grade students. Well one of the boys in his groups placed his hands under his chin and was leaning his hand/chin on my student's knee/leg and was just admiring him as he read. I will cherish this photo for a long time.
It was not hard to see that they don't get much quality time with older relatives at home, and this positive interaction with me and my middle school students made these kids feel special. Media Mama even reminded us of how special this day is for them because their parents and older siblings work multiple jobs and are hardly ever home. This means no one hardly ever reads to them nor are they shown what a positive thing reading is. This was reassured to us when one of the teachers came in with her first grade class, and she told us that one of her students who is now in 4th grade found out me and my group were coming, and the student asked her teacher if she could come because that was her favorite day of first grade (when I was there a few years ago)! That just gives me goosebumps.
On this trip, I decided to bring students from my middle school with me. I have gone 4 times previously and have enjoyed the interaction with the young children at this elementary school, but I also love instilling the need for this in my middle school students. As the advisor for my school's chapter of the National Junior Honor Society, I had the opportunity to bring the members to Little River Elementary to read to the students and donate school supplies.
We spent the day in the Media Center, and we were so fortunate to have "Media Mama" make a schedule for us in which all Kindegarten and first grade classes came to the Media Center on a rotation schedule. This means we worked with over 250 students in one day! As the students arrived, we greeted them at the door and introduced ourselves so they wouldn't think we were strangers. We then went to our reading spot with about 3-5 students in hand.
One thing that I love about this school so much is their Media Center. Even though it is a Title I School, it makes it known that reading is a priority. The Media Center has beautifully painted walls representing Florida's history, and it has a variety of reading spots from beach chairs and blankets to tents and rocking chairs. It's great!
We spent about 30 minutes with each group during which time we read to the students in our small groups. I can't even begin to explain how much these students relish this one-on-one interaction. While they were reluctant to sit with me at first, it only took minutes to have them enthralled by the story I was reading and wanting to share their own stories. In fact, just a few minutes into one rotation I looked over at one of my 8th grade students who was sitting in a rocking chair reading to his 4 first grade students. Well one of the boys in his groups placed his hands under his chin and was leaning his hand/chin on my student's knee/leg and was just admiring him as he read. I will cherish this photo for a long time.
It was not hard to see that they don't get much quality time with older relatives at home, and this positive interaction with me and my middle school students made these kids feel special. Media Mama even reminded us of how special this day is for them because their parents and older siblings work multiple jobs and are hardly ever home. This means no one hardly ever reads to them nor are they shown what a positive thing reading is. This was reassured to us when one of the teachers came in with her first grade class, and she told us that one of her students who is now in 4th grade found out me and my group were coming, and the student asked her teacher if she could come because that was her favorite day of first grade (when I was there a few years ago)! That just gives me goosebumps.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Read-a-Thon!
I am looking forward to my in-school experience next week at Little River Elementary School. This Title I school is an amazing school with great diversity. Their school diversity reflects the surrounding community with 83% of the students in the school being minorities. Approximately 58% of the students are classified as English Language Learners, and in fact, Little River serves as a bilingual center. More astoundingly, 83% of the students are enrolled in Free/Reduced lunch, and the school has a 58% mobility rate (up nearly 15% in the past decade). Little River is a C school and has had difficulty meeting AYP in past years due to the minority subgroups' low test scores. Clearly, the choice to volunteer at Little River was an easy choice.
Having already spent 4 days (over 20 hours) at this school reading to students, I realized the students need much more than me; they need peer role models! Therefore, over the past month, as advisor to my school's National Junior Honor Society, I/we have been collecting new and used children's books through a school-wide book drive. I am please to announce that we have collected over 300 books! We also collected over 500 folders, 300 erasers, and 1,000 pencils, all of which will be donated to the students at the elementary school.
Here is what is going to happen. Next Monday, I am going to volunteer a day at Little River Elementary school, and I am bringing 17 National Junior Honor Society members with me. We will spend the day visiting with K-2 students and will be reading to them as part of a partnered literacy project we like to call a "read-a-thon." What the students at the school are missing are books and someone to read them to them, so we are bringing just that! We will spend the day reading, promoting literacy, and donating school supplies. I can't wait!
Having already spent 4 days (over 20 hours) at this school reading to students, I realized the students need much more than me; they need peer role models! Therefore, over the past month, as advisor to my school's National Junior Honor Society, I/we have been collecting new and used children's books through a school-wide book drive. I am please to announce that we have collected over 300 books! We also collected over 500 folders, 300 erasers, and 1,000 pencils, all of which will be donated to the students at the elementary school.
Here is what is going to happen. Next Monday, I am going to volunteer a day at Little River Elementary school, and I am bringing 17 National Junior Honor Society members with me. We will spend the day visiting with K-2 students and will be reading to them as part of a partnered literacy project we like to call a "read-a-thon." What the students at the school are missing are books and someone to read them to them, so we are bringing just that! We will spend the day reading, promoting literacy, and donating school supplies. I can't wait!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Money, Money, Money...Money!
I was reading an article in the paper today of interest: "Vouchers May Get Big Boost." The article discusses how tuition vouchers for low income students to attend private schools might get a boost in spending. While this seems like wonderful news, it leaves many of us to wonder...well what about the struggling public schools?! Well this opens up a big topic for debate, and I am not quite sure where I stand in it. While I am excited for the 3,500 low-income students in Orange County who are given this wonderful opportunity, my heart also goes out to the thousands upon thousands of students who do not get this opportunity. And I also think about the Title I schools and the lack of funds they are receiving. In these hard economic times and budget cuts, things seem to only be getting worse. Yet vouchers for public schools are increasing from a $3,950 scholarship a year to $5,500a year. It just seems to be contradictory with the financial state of the nation. Is the money really going to where it should be going? That's a tough question to answer.
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