Food for Thought - Grants for Educators with and Appetite for Learning
2005-2006 Grant Recipients
Jump to: Elementary Schools | Secondary Schools
Bugg: Danielle McCaslin
Collaborators: Jennifer Joyner, Leigh Ann Tedder, Debra Hall, Christina Riley, Christopher Szoch
This proposal is designed to provide more opportunity for hands-on, inquiry-based learning for third graders. Resources gained through this grant will fund the purchases of science kits as well as gardening supplies that the third grade team, the science specialist, university fellows and the Parent Teacher Association will use to integrate and apply the skills obtained during science instruction. The students will use the knowledge gained to improve and maintain the gardens surrounding the school.
Conn: Krystal Sanders
Collaborators: Cindy Hagelgans, Carla Massengill, Stephanie Anolick
The goal of this project is to create technology-based math and literacy centers. Professional development will focus on teaching teachers to integrate technology skills at a kid-friendly level by using age-appropriate teaching methods as well as tools that are appropriate for the children’s motor skills. We will follow the Train-the-Trainer model that WCPSS is moving toward as we will train one “expert” from each grade level and they will train their team.
Conn: Erica Schurter
Collaborators: Jill Maza, Nancy Hanley, Keisha Chapman, Michael O'Brien, Emily DeLuca, Amanda Lefeld, Meredith Whitmore, Jane Higginbottom, Carson Baird, Alston Davis
Just like books and chalkboards, technology is a tool. The Intel Essentials program teaches teachers how to think in the present and teach to the future, regarding technology not as one more thing to integrate into our lessons, but as a tool used to accomplish a task. As a result of professional development and collaboration, teachers will return to the classroom ready to model the seamless integration of technology into the teaching and learning process.
Creech Road: Marian Wheless
Collaborators: James Overman, Jamie Wineland, Catherine Raynor
Teachers of children in low incidence classes ( severe/profound mentally disabled, trainable mentally disabled, developmentally delayed, autistic and multihandicapped ) will work together to make and then be trained to use literacy kits. The kits will include materials that the teachers will need to meet literacy, math, communication, motor and academic goals for their individual students. In addition to a completed kit, teachers will receive a monetary stipend for participation and 1 CEU of literacy renewal credit.
Dillard Drive: Dail Rawls
Collaborators: Teressa Waszkowski, Janice Morgan, Dan Smith, Heather Smith, Sallie Whelan, Teena Rembach, Angela Poovey, Sarah Cannon
Continuous growth and development are paramount to professional success. Pained by an inability to effectively precipitate this growth, our staff set out to create opportunities for peer modeling where none existed, bolster existing staff development by ensuring time for reflection, and create programs to study best practices and research. As a result, we have completely reinvented our school’s staff development.
Dillard Drive: Melody Kendall
Collaborators: Meagan Swanson, Dawn Searer, Kristen Freeman, Ashley Aronson, Stephanie Callahan, Kat Savage, Claire Simmons, Janet Burgess
Words are power. In examining our data and staff self-assessment, we recognize a need to better train teachers to understand the critical skills necessary for the initial acquisition of early literacy skills. By facilitating growth in teacher knowledge and guiding improved delivery of instruction, our teachers will, in turn, empower primary students by helping them develop skill sets that ensure early literacy competence that act as a foundation for life-long learning.
Dillard Drive: Kathy VanDeventer
Collaborators: Julie Vandiver, Suzi Krutsch, Kim Minafo
After examining recent data, our staff is committed to developing higher-level opportunities for students. To do this, we will Let the Games Begin! Second through fifth grade teachers will be trained to enhance their thinking skills and develop oral communication with adults, then students. Later, student teams will be challenged to apply their divergent thinking strategies to research, create, and use games that evidence the skills developed. Peer and Community Councils will evaluate student efforts.
Durant Road: David Bode
Collaborators: Gail Morse, Maryanne Glick, Gail Kenon, Jane Higgins, Pat Kelly, Claudia Verpaskas, Teresa
Winstead, Shannon Friesen
“Fitness Fun” is designed to increase student achievement by addressing the problem of student inactivity and poor nutrition. The purpose of the grant is to enable my school to create a healthier school environment through the use of pedometers, heart monitors, and collaboration. Grade level teachers (grades 3-5) will have release time during the day to observe the use of pedometers and heart monitors, reflect on the integration of healthy live styles within their curriculum.
Durant Road: Carrie Beach
Collaborators: Lori Baldwin, Carolyn Geraci, Joan Cinann, Maija McAdans, Lisa Pisano, Julie Spaulding, Carol Corrody, Pat Kelly, Eleanor Farmer
This grant will embed professional development during the school day for teachers to collaborate and learn teaching techniques for autistic, ESL, learning disabled, and behaviorally challenged students. Using “train the trainer” model, teachers will collaborate practical ideas forming the basis for a program of intervention for students in PreK-5. Students will learn acceptable social, school, and home skills. This project will allow students to enhance their quality of life and increase academic achievement.
Fuller: Holly Marie Hamblin
Collaborators: Crystal Scillitani, Brandi Gill
Our goal is to provide extra mathematical support to our children in need. We will use mathematical methodologies learned in workshops to devise meaningful Math Book Bags. We will work with the first grade team to create engaging book bags that include hands-on materials, activities, and a parent-friendly instruction card. We will create a system to monitor the home and school check-out. These bags will reinforce math objectives for our struggling learners as well as challenge our students who are ready for higher thinking skills. We will use classroom observations and county assessments to measure how our Math Book Bags influence our student achievement.
Hunter: Carol Swink
Collaborators: Constance Martin, Judy Gilbreath, David Schwenker
The Young Scientists Conference is a student-led science conference for parents, school administration, and community leaders. This conference, organized similar to a professional development conference, integrates content areas to provide a more balanced curriculum. Inquiry-based science materials and science notebooks are currently implemented in each science classroom. Hence, the conference enriches inquiry teaching practices. Students will utilize expository materials as well as the inquiry kits to produce a conference presentation product rich in science content.
Reedy Creek: Allison Kuhns
Collaborators: Joy Gorman, Dixie U. Frazier
Teachers will participate in writing staff development specifically on the Writer’s Workshop. This staff development may take place on or off campus. After observing and participating in Writer’s Workshop training, teachers will work collaboratively within their grade levels to create common lesson plans and min-lessons pertinent to their grade level. After collaboration, teachers will then implement their lessons. Students will benefit from the training and collaboration effort, thus affecting their writing interests/ skills.
Timber Drive: Karen Waller
Collaborators: Nancy Finger, Donna Sides, Vann Taylor, Jane Meekhof, Melody Johnson, Michael Capps, Nicki Scott
Last year our school started a Storytelling Club, which has been hugely successful with students of all economic backgrounds, races, and academic levels. Our club, led by the media specialists, reached about fifty students. We want to take storytelling to the next level for all students through professional development and collaboration. We would like to invite storyteller and teacher Tim Lowry to teach workshops with students and teachers to perpetrate and sustain our program.
Timber Drive: Anne Safrit
Collaborators: Sue King, Lisa Guenther
Through the use of the Carolina Biological Organisms Kit, first grade students will improve their knowledge and develop a foundation for basic scientific thinking about organisms’ needs, behaviors and their changes. Lead teachers will attend comprehensive county training focusing on living organisms and will conduct a workshop for colleagues in which innovative teaching methods and risk taking will be encouraged. Teachers will collaborate to discuss best practices both during and after teaching this unit.
Turner Creek Road: Karen Berryman
Collaborators: Becky Martin, Mandy MacLachlan, Stephanie Powell, Ann Barksdale, Lisa Fleming, Denise Heeks, Barb Gustafson, Wanda Hanley, Lee Ann Hoskin, Sara Bowers, Allyson Rys, Amy Wickizer, Patty Dycus, Lissy Beebe, Ann Geer, Kathy Thompson, Megan Poole, Trish Brown, Melissa Bunn, Kelly Fuller
Daily writing is essential to building independent, proficient writers. Once seeds are planted, it is crucial teachers guide students through the writing process based on explicit, systematic instruction. Using data to analyze writing scores, 3-5 teachers, media specialists, curriculum specialists, /literacy teacher will collaborate, building consistency in understanding best practices. Using these strategies, our vision is for the team to design clearly defined mini-lessons that give teachers the tools for implementing a daily writing workshop.
Washington: Paula Hoffman
Collaborators: Jan Kidwell, Rebecca Viersen, Rose Ann Brown, Barbara Hayes, Jane Barbour, Toni Murphy, Jennifer Whittington, Ryan Ohlson, Sara Andrews, Valerie Hunter
Leaping into Language Arts is a program requiring collaboration from the Administration down through teaching assistants using Orchard Language Arts Software to effect teaching behaviors. All collaborative team members will use this research-based supplement to support our core teaching and accelerate improvement in our student performance. This directly correlates to our School Improvement Plan and Language Arts Adoption Program.
Yates Mill: Kimberly Grant
Collaborators: Debbie C. Allen, Cathy Kimble, Melissa Bowman, Lynn Williams
Literacy Learning in Action allows teachers to participate in three half-day professional development sessions facilitated by a team of highly qualified collaborators. The sessions will identify best practices in literacy instruction and will enable participants to align their instruction to these practices. Teachers will use their current data and Best Practices in Literacy Instruction (2nd Ed.) to identify areas for growth and generate a plan to increase student performance, particularly with Level 4 students
Jump to: Elementary Schools | Secondary Schools
Carroll Middle: Susan Klaric
Collaborators: Kay Springs, Betsy Cordle, Carol Evely, Lynn Wade, Roxanne Solberg
Two teachers experienced with students with severe disabilities will collaborate with an assistive technology specialist to mentor three teachers new to this area of special education. A workshop on ways to develop meaningful communication in nonverbal students will be provided. New teachers will visit the mentors’ classrooms to see communication technology in use. Mentors will help new teachers purchase communication devices and share best practices with them as they use these devices with their students
Lufkin Road Middle: Jill Bliss
Collaborators: James Palermo, Kathleen Vesser, Clarissa Green
Character Education is a strong component of our curriculum in Wake County. Our school’s data indicates that students don’t know what each character trait truly means. We will collaborate and create a unit that gives an in depth examination of our character traits integrating them with a study of poetry and short stories along with a computer application component. The end product will be a scrapbook. This unit will be shared with all staff members especially those new to the profession. It will utilize some teaching and planning strategies new to this grant developing team.
Moore Square Middle: Beverly Almond
Collaborators: Teresa Mullen, Trish Salpeck, Kathy Hartenstein, Sharon Glenn, Larry Leslie, Tonya Vinson, Florence Boggs, Mary Slagle, Kelly Taft, Milly Hodges-Lester, Diane Day, Lindsay Pippen
I will facilitate a two-day professional development workshop for 12 teachers to collaborate on current studies relating to sustainable life long reading and comprehension skills as they relate to achievement. The workshop will include collaboration between experienced and novice teachers focusing on current studies about comprehension and achievement, effective and sustainable reading practices, and new strategies and mentoring programs for all staff members, to augment the sustained reading program for students implemented this year.
Sanderson High: Paul Taperek
Collaborators: Cathy Moore, Wake County Cooperative Extension Service Staff
This grant allows a team of seven teachers to be trained in how to bring the 4-H curriculum into their classrooms. One of the new focuses in high schools is to make the curriculum relevant and to build relationships. After the training from the Cooperative Extension staff, these teachers will work with 4-H in selecting appropriate curriculum to implement in their classrooms that will enhance the connection between the students, teachers and community.
Wakefield High: Jodi Songer
Collaborators: Frank A. Cida, Rocco Piscian, Wayne Dubmansby, Mary Bynum
Horticultural therapy has been proven to positively impact the lives of countless individuals. The therapy involves the use of plants and gardening to help those with varieties of needs. The Horticulture classes and Construction Technology classes want to share this wonderful science, art, and healing with the Special Populations students. The concept of establishing raised gardens, which are handicap accessible, and providing tools that are specially equipped to meet the needs of those who are differently-abled is not new. This new garden addition, however, would be a pioneered initiative between three diverse subjects and students