During class meeting a few months ago, I asked my thirty 3rd grade students a very open ended question, "What does community mean to you?" Wriggling with excitement, some of them immediately responded by saying "it's where I live" or "my classroom at VOICE charter school." Others pointed to their parents, policemen and soccer coaches as members of their community. But then Deliah, thoughtful and reflective as always, raised a quiet hand and said, "It's the nursing home my grandma lives in. I go there after school some days to visit her." Pausing for a second, I let that sink in---both for my students and for myself.
Traveling back home on the subway that day, I couldn't help but gravitate back to that moment in class meeting. What Deliah said made me realize that I had yet to fully understand what community really means. The truth is that the word embodies such a complex idea, containing so much meaning. This fall I decided that teaching my students how to become engaged members of their communities was a top priority. Strengthening ties with those in our community can only benefit our student's educational experience. Through this process, I am continually finding new meaning to the word.
We began the year with a strong focus on serving those in need. Our 1st grade students wrote letters to troops overseas and our 2nd grade decorated a local shelter for the holiday season. In December, our 3rd grade class performed some of their Winter Holiday concert program at the Midway Nursing Home in Flushing and our 4th graders caroled at The Center for Rehab in Astoria. We also just organized a school-wide book drive for Hour Children---an organization next door that provides supportive services to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women and their families.
In December, we began reaching out to parents in our school community with workshops on how to best support their children. We held workshops in Reading, Writing and Math across all grade levels. We also provided our parents with education on healthy snacks. Finally, we just started the VOICE Youth Service Council with the goal of empowering students to be active community contributors. Members of the Youth Service Council are organizing different projects to show their appreciation of various individuals in our school community who often go unnoticed but are important parts of our community. For example, our 3rd graders are creating posters entitled "Getting to know our bus drivers" and creating pamphlets on bus safety to distribute around the school.
Through these projects our students, despite being no more than seven or eight years old, are exploring what community means to them. They are making a lasting impact in their communities and building relationships with the people they are connected to. Most importantly, through their efforts, our school is becoming a stronger community.
Traveling back home on the subway that day, I couldn't help but gravitate back to that moment in class meeting. What Deliah said made me realize that I had yet to fully understand what community really means. The truth is that the word embodies such a complex idea, containing so much meaning. This fall I decided that teaching my students how to become engaged members of their communities was a top priority. Strengthening ties with those in our community can only benefit our student's educational experience. Through this process, I am continually finding new meaning to the word.
We began the year with a strong focus on serving those in need. Our 1st grade students wrote letters to troops overseas and our 2nd grade decorated a local shelter for the holiday season. In December, our 3rd grade class performed some of their Winter Holiday concert program at the Midway Nursing Home in Flushing and our 4th graders caroled at The Center for Rehab in Astoria. We also just organized a school-wide book drive for Hour Children---an organization next door that provides supportive services to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women and their families.
In December, we began reaching out to parents in our school community with workshops on how to best support their children. We held workshops in Reading, Writing and Math across all grade levels. We also provided our parents with education on healthy snacks. Finally, we just started the VOICE Youth Service Council with the goal of empowering students to be active community contributors. Members of the Youth Service Council are organizing different projects to show their appreciation of various individuals in our school community who often go unnoticed but are important parts of our community. For example, our 3rd graders are creating posters entitled "Getting to know our bus drivers" and creating pamphlets on bus safety to distribute around the school.
Through these projects our students, despite being no more than seven or eight years old, are exploring what community means to them. They are making a lasting impact in their communities and building relationships with the people they are connected to. Most importantly, through their efforts, our school is becoming a stronger community.
