Context:

In my internship I decided to do a service learning project with my third graders. We decided to collect books and school supplies for Buladean Elementary school in Mitchell County. Kyrstal Lowery and Samantha Gibson also worked on this project with my class, so we could collect many supplies.  I presented the idea to the students by showing them a map of Mitchell county and Bakersville, which is the town the school is located. I also gave them some facts about Mitchell county and the school, so they understood why we were collecting supplies. I gave the students a letter to send home to their parents explaining what we would be doing for the three weeks we collected supplies. The students also wrote letters to Buladean Elementary students, so we could get a pen pal program started with the school. The letters were sent off to the school along with the books and supplies.

Impact:

My students had never done a service learning project, so this helped introduce what service learning meant and how it can help others. My students continued to bring in items to put in the box for three weeks, so I know this project meant a lot to them because they were not required to bring in anything. When the service learning project was first introduced many students had thought of books they could bring from home and ready to share with others. I believe it was important for the students to communicate with the students who they were giving to because it made the project more real for them. They got to tell another students about themselves which helps their communication skills and students can learn about others who are the same age. This service learning project made me a better teacher because I got to be an example by bringing in items and then students brought in more items to add to the box. It is important for me to be a role model for my students. I believe every class needs a service learning project every year because helping others needs to instilled in our students at a young age.

Alignment:

I have met Standard 1, Indicator 4, by having students write letters to other students in another county. They are communicating with others to learn about others that are different from them. They were shown how to write a letter and what it includes by me and given an example.

I have met Standard 1, Indicator 8, by having students write rough drafts of their letters and then revised them because they are going to be read by other students. They learned a letter needs to be neat, proper grammar, and appropriate content are important.

I have met Standard 4, Indicator 6, by showing the students where Mitchell county was on a North Carolina county map. Then students were handed out a Mitchell county map and they had to find the town of Bakersville on it.

I have met Standard 15, Indicator 1, by involving students in a service learning project that involved another school in a different county of North Carolina. They had to collect items outside of school and look for items in their house that they might want to donate. Students had to take time outside of class to finish their letters if not done in class.

I have met Standard 15, Indicator 3, by writing a letter to the parents explaining to them what the class would be doing for their service learning project and what ways they could help. I also wrote a letter to the principal of Buladean Elementary to thank him for working with us.

I have met Standard 15, Indicator 4, by printing off maps of the counties in North Carolina and the county map of Mitchell County for students.

I have met Standard 15, Indicator 7, by explaining what service learning means to the students and the students collecting supplies.