How Can We Help?

Grade Level: 6-8

Academic Areas: Language Arts, Social Studies, Mathematics

Duration of service: Year Long

Character Virtues: Caring, Civic Virtue and Citizenship

Service Areas: Human Services

Service Learning Project:

Students will first participate in a classroom discussion on what they feel the needs of their community are, what could be done to make the community a better place, and how they could go about finding out the needs of specific community members and organizations. Students will then brainstorm ideas for connecting with the community to find out exactly what needs exist (i.e. flyers, questionnaires, phone inquiries, websites, etc.). Students will then initiate these ideas and begin contacting local organizations and interfacing with community members. Participating organizations will be expected to make an appearance at the school to present their organizations mission statement and possible needs. Students will develop and create a database to input all collected information on the involved parties. Information will then be placed into the database. Upon completion, the database and its findings will be shared with the entire school and participating organizations. Classroom teachers will be able to use the service learning database to explore options in their community that would fit with their students. At the end of the year, an appreciation luncheon would be held to honor all involved.

Learning Goal: Students will use various forms of media to create community contacts to solicit their areas of need that can be met through student involvement.

Standard: MST (5)

Learning Goal: Students will effectively interact with the entire community.

Standard: ELA 4

Community need: The identification of specific needs within the school and community that need to be addressed.

Possible Community Partners: SPCA, BB/BS, shelters, food pantries, hospitals, nursing homes, parks & rec., etc.

Objective: Students will develop methods for communication with the community and collecting the data efficiently. Students will then communicate, collect, and analyze the data.

Objective: Students will select a need from the collected data and form and action plan for implementation. The plan will then be carried out.

Virtue: Caring

Objective: Students will partner and work closely with community members and people in need while providing support to others who are unable to obtain it on their own.

Virtue: Civic Virtue and Citizenship

Objective: Students will explore projects which encourage them to take ownership in the world around them by seeking out opportunities to improve self and society.

1. Students will meet as a group to brainstorm ideas for possible community organizations that may be in need of help. Students will also brainstorm ideas for effective ways to contact and inform the community of their initiative.
2. Students will create flyers, questionnaires, and a website to promote the introduction of a service learning initiative in their community.
3. Students will contact local "helping" agencies and organize guest speakers to facilitate an understanding of their mission statements.

 Key Service Activities

1. Students will use the created media outlets to gather and analyze information to formulate ideas to create a successful service learning project to meet the needs to individual organizations.
2. Students will take their ideas and develop a detailed plan to address the needs of a selected organization.

1. (oral) Students will also discuss how helping the community shows caring, civic virtue, and citizenship.
2. (written) Students will create a graphic organizer detailing all involved organizations and their participation in the project to demonstrate interest in civic virtue and citizenship.
3. (performance) Students will draw pictures that express and reveal their expectations for helping various organizations and community members to demonstrate their concern for others in their community.

Students will be recognized by the school principal and the participating organizations at the appreciation luncheon. Parents and community members who participated in the project will be invited to an appreciation luncheon to recognize their involvement and commitment to the service learning initiative