Karen Taylor, Taylor Rolhfing, Aisha Beckwith, Mandy Pardys

Why do you like your school?

I like the school b/c we always do fun activities and we always stick together. We don’t go apart,like if there’s somebody bullying you, your friends won’t go awayfrom you like “oh my gosh, I don’t want to be bullied by them too” but they actuallytry to help you like a real friend.

Why do you like your school?

I like BTW school for many reasons. I enjoy art and music and I like how we have recessso we can be social with others, including others outside our classroom. Lunch is whenwe can be social too and eat food. Writing is also enjoyable, we learn about thingslike similes and metaphors.

Organizations/ Institutions

Students utilize both in and out of school programs to aid in their academic and social development.

Out of School Programs Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club

Kids Plus (Champaign Unit 4)

Champaign Park District

In School Programs Lego Robotics

Girl & Boy Scouts

America Reads/America Counts Tutoring

SOAR Individual Tutoring

Math Olympiad

America Reads/Counts

Organizations / Institutions

Students take advantage of several school based Mentor Programs such as:

One to One Mentoring

TALKS Mentoring

Big Brother & Big Sister Mentor

Organizations / Institutions

There are several local institutions that donate to schools and families.

First Presbyterian Church

Regional Office of Education

East Central Illinois Foodbank.

Salt & Light

Organizations / Institutions

There are many community organizations and institutions that offer parental and home life services:

Lutheran Social Services of Illinois

Young Lives (Teen Moms)

Child Care Resource Center

Women, Infants, Children (WIC)

C-U Public Health Districts

Frances Nelson Health Center

Illinois Dept. of Human Services

Prairie Center Health Systems

U Of I Psychological Services Center (Effective Black Parenting)

Organizations / Institutions

“ Unfortunately, we’ve lost many partnerships with community organizations and institutions that

provided community resources and volunteers.”

How can we get them back ?

Community Resources to Promote Literacy

Kids Plus Program Located in the school buildings After school until 6:00 pm Afternoon snack, homework assistance from America Reads tutors and Kids Plus

employees, academic enrichment activities, games, and crafts. http://www.champaignschools.org/afterschool/kidsplus.htm

The Reading Group A learning center which works with teachers, parents, and community members “to

overcome problems related to learning disabilities and illiteracy. One-on-one instruction and diagnostic testing are available.” –readinggrroup.org

Sylvan Learning Center Provides in-center and online tutoring in reading, math, writing, study skills, homework

help, and state test prep Based on the Sylvan Skills Assessment, the learning center tailors an individualized

learning plan to help every student achieve his or her academic goals. sylvanlearning.com

Parks in the community

“The mission of the Champaign Park District is to provide quality parks and recreation for our community”. - Adopted 10/03

The Park District offers more than 1200 programs and events each year.

The Champaign Park District includes 60 parks, covering almost 650 acres.

Hessel Park

Located at Grandview Dr. and Kirby Ave.

26.9 Acres

Includes:

- Picnic Area

- 1 lighted baseball field

- 4 lighted tennis courts

-2 volleyball courts

-playground

-paths/sidewalks.

Spalding Park

-Located at Harris Ave. and Harvard St.-15.9 Acres-Includes:

- 1 lighted basketball court- 1 lighted baseball field- 4 lighted tennis courts- Skate park- Outdoor pool- Playground- Trails

Things our students like to do at our local parks!

Play soccer

Play tennis

Swim

Play on the swings

Play football

Play on the slides

Biking

Literary Assets of Our Schools:

What We Need to Continue Doing

Reading Specialists

Intervention teachers/Literacy specialists work with the “at risk” students in the school.

Groups are small. Only about 5 students at a time meet with the specialists.

Meetings are daily and last for about 30 minutes, during the literacy blocks in the students’ regular schedule.

Intervention teachers and the students’ classroom teachers consistently update one another and discuss progress.

Progress is monitored and assessed every 6 weeks. DRA scores are analyzed.

Once they have completed an intervention cycle (6-9 weeks), students return to their regular classroom activities. Students are reassessed to determine if additional work with intervention teachers is needed.

Literacy-Building Activities

Classroom library

Word forming games (Scrabble, Boggle, Hangman, etc.)

Making and breaking words using magnet letters

Word sorts

Reading familiar books

Journaling about reading

The Daily 5

Read to self, read to someone else, word work, listening to reading, work on writing

School Library

Students visit the library once every week

Before checking out books, students work on reading skills and listen to stories which help to teach academic goals.

Help with research and writing assignments is offered in the library

Students can and are encouraged to renew books.

Students are taught the “5-finger rule”.

Local authors such as Alice McGinty and Janice Harrington make visits to the schools and present a variety of stories to the students.

ESL Team

ESL teachers work with students who speak a variety of native languages, including: Spanish, Arabic, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Mayan dialect,

Hindi, and more.

Between 1 and 7 students are seen for 35 minutes at a time.

Academic content is taught, but at a lower level. ESL teachers try to coordinate their lessons with the students’ classroom activities/assignments.

Students receive a variety of materials to assist them in their learning: Copies of posters on the wall Vocabulary cards Vocabulary journals

CHAMPAIGN PUBLIC LIBRARY

Judysbook.com Public Library review: http://www.judysbook.com/members/36593/posts/2006/4/310040/

“My daughter is the browser and she has so many books to choose from. I love the fact that she can find books for her reading level that will help her build her vocabulary and keeps her wanting more.”

“The library does many programs for the kids that allows them to read books enter a log and then they can win prizes or choose prizes depending on what is going on that month. They also have a spot to pick out words the children take to the desk and the people there ask questions that get those little minds working. I am just amazed at how well they handle the kids.”

“ There are plenty of computers for both kids and adults. There are also movies to rent, but I have not had the time to rent any. Even better is going to be the new library they are adding on which will have a coffee shop as well so you can sit back relax and enjoy your favorite book.”

The library hosts daily events which promote literacy and cultural awareness.

Students can read, listen to, and discuss books based on a variety of topics.

Some of the events teach students about the music, fairytales, and storytelling techniques of other ethnic groups.

*10/10 Americana Rhythms: Native American Music & Dance

*10/19 Meet Author & Rap Artist A. D. Carson

*10/25 Family Reading Night

http://www.champaign.org/events/month.php

• Each Champaign school has a Children’s Services librarian as their school liaison

• Librarians can place books on a school reserve system for teachers and students to quickly access.

• Librarians can present poetry and stories which teach students about other cultures.

• The library offers guidance to parents in understanding their children’s reading levels. It also provides information about standardized testing, along with practice tests for students.

The library website:

Book recommendations by grade level

Live homework help

Downloadable books, audiobooks, and videos

Some audiobooks are “read-alongs” which combine unabridged narrations with large-print onscreen text.

Improving sense of community

More school-wide planned activities for families

- Park outings

- Movie nights

-At-home reading program

Re-building relationships within community

- Local business pen pals to establish relationships with the community

- Utilize more community assets (ex-YMCA child care, local churches)

Improvements during the school day

Extend outdoor time for students (additional recess/exercise time)

- Since so many of our children enjoy sports in their spare time, we want to encourage this and create healthy habits from a young age.

Improvements for literacy

Schedule conferences with parents and literacy specialists

Send home tips to help parents work with their kids to improve their reading skills (Also available on public library’s website)

Offer to meet with struggling students in the morning, during lunch, at recess, after school

After 3 years in the ESL program, students require signatures from their teachers and the principal to continue. We need to push for these signatures.

Make sure students know about local library events and the programs available to them (flyers, guest speakers, announcements, field trips)

Students tend to choose high-interest/low-level books in the library. We should be encouraging them to choose books which present a greater challenge.

Keep the libraries open before and/or after school for students to study, read, or receive homework help.

Hold family reading nights and culture/family tradition shares.

Incorporate ESL students’ native languages into the classrooms

Check-up Plan

In 6 months…-classrooms should have established a business pen pal.

-At least 3 family school-wide family activities should be planned.

-Visible improvement in outdoor time school-wide.

- Have a literacy newsletter established within each classroom.