AEF Grants Have Done So Much and

Jon Moss, Grade 4 Teacher, Pine Grove School: Piney’s Hideaway is designed to enhance the outdoor classroom at Pine Grove School. Additions to the gathering lesson area will be a white board for science, math, reading and writing instruction. A storage shed providing a site to hang and store the white board, will also protect mobile seating options from the elements as well as frequently used materials for grade level lessons.

Devin Van Patten, Kindergarten Teacher: Kindergarten students at Pine Grove School will benefit from the positive effects of using educational games to improve lesson engagement, retention of skills learned, and the connection of learning to the real world. Games purchased are standard based or classic childhood games that can be modified to be standard based.

Jon Moss, Grade 4 Teacher: By providing 4th grade students with access to new periodical texts on a regular basis, students will improve reading engagement by being introduced to fiction and non-fiction articles in a generally unfamiliar text type. The addition of periodicals presents both reluctant and enthusiastic readers a variety of text types, and genres that support the learning process as they read of real-world applications that correspond to classroom topics.

Ginny Conn, Grade 3 Teacher: The Read Aloud Challenge was developed in response to research which indicated that reading aloud to students who have already learned to read is an important element in their growth as readers. Fostering reading comprehension, expanding an interest in reading and enjoyment of books, and building vocabulary skills are some of the benefits to reading aloud. On a monthly basis, families were supplied with an age appropriate, classic children’s book and encouraged to read the book together as a family.

Lori Manaitis, Grade 2 Teacher & Alescia Ford-Lanza, parent. Grant funding for second grade classes to purchase tools such as weighted lap pads, stress ball fidgets and sensory cushions for better engagement, greater time on task, and channeling energies more appropriately and efficiently.

From Lori Manaitis, grant recipient: All materials have been purchased and are in use in the classrooms. The students LOVE the tools. We have introduced them one at a time and made sure that all students have had the opportunity to “experiment” with each tool. Now the tools are available and students nonchalantly grab them when they need them. We have been working hard to utilize the tools in ways that help students to focus and sit in comfortable positions while learning. They love trying things out and are working through which tools work best for them. We have also discussed how these tools can help us achieve the goals we have created for ourselves through our class Social Contracts. We are looking forward to watching the students grow in their use of the sensory tools throughout the year.

Mary Labowsky, PGS 4th grade teacher, Funding provided an interactive moon in each Grade 1 and Grade 5 classroom district-wide, so students can see patterns and phases of the moon every day, supplementing the the curriculum.

Here is a quote from a first grade teacher as to how the AEF Grant has advanced learning: “In our first grade classroom we have incorporated the Moon into our morning meeting routine. We use it weekly to observe the changes in the moon. We have synced it up to the moon cycle and it has been great to reinforce the students observations at home with their moon journal and make it consistent with observations followed up the next day in class. It has helped enhance learning in our classroom and made this lesson much easier to teach and also made it more effective!”

Jon Moss and Christopher Grgach, PGS, Grade Pre-K thru 4 – The grant will fund the proposed academic components: a sign language panel, a Braille panel and an alphabet panel that will allow primary students to practice their language skills. In addition, it will fund a mock storefront that kids can use to practice basic skills offering an authentic application of math lessons that are taught even into fourth grade.

Christopher Grgach and Jonathan Moss, PGS, Grade 3, Reading – “Graphic novels” use drawings to enhance the story. They have been found to be very effective in encouraging boys to read. Funds will purchase texts leveled on the Fountas and Pinnell Guided Reading rating system to benefit different types of learners.

Lisa Fenn, RBS with Erin Dorsey, PGS and Laura McDonnell, RBS, Grade 1, Science – Scientific inquiry that investigates the life cycle of the frog culminating in a “Swap and Hop Day” when all 1st graders will gather to share results and release their former tadpoles. Collaboration between the schools will be enhanced by a web blog of frog progress.

Leigh Ann Bacevich, Community Project Leader & Gail Dahling-Hench, Principal, PGS, All Ages, Natural Science – The mission is “to provide a fun and educational classroom where the whole community can explore, learn, and develop a relationship with one another and nature.” Located on 2 acres adjacent to PGS. Broad community support and collaboration.