Back Row (L to R): Anne Bohen, Jeffry Crain, Marie Kauffman,
Robert Krutsick, Maggie Caverly.
Front Row (L to R): Meg Donahue, Kelly Gallagher, Judith Scancella,
Sharon Kuznick (Principal and Key Contact), Rose Clemente, Lorraine Cavitt.
Meet the Challenge to Involve More Families: Roberts Partnership Awards Celebration
Roberts Elementary School appreciates its many volunteers. The Action Team for Partnerships (ATP) developed a Partnership Awards and Dedication Ceremony to recognize everyone who contributed their time and talents to the many successful partnership activities that the school conducts. Invitations were mailed to volunteers, families, businesses, and universities who supported the school. The event also was advertised to the public by the local media. Special awards in 2008 were presented to an individual, a business, and a university. A member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives presented a commendation to the school “for its commitment to forging connections with families and the community through technology and partnership development.”
At the ceremony the school dedicated a banner for the main hall with the district’s motto, “Inspiring Excellence,” to celebrate the schools’ prior (and hoped for future) National Network of Partnership Schools (NNPS) Awards in 2005 and 2007. The banner includes images of the Old School House and the current school building. The historic, one-room Roberts School House was opened for the community to tour after the ceremony. Students dressed in period costumes re-enacted a lesson from the 1850s for the guests. As a result of the schools’ organized and innovative work on partnerships, the ATP and school leaders report more family involvement, more volunteers, and higher attendance at school activities.
Reach Results for Student Success in School: Increase Media Literacy
Roberts Elementary, close to the city of Philadelphia, has connections with several colleges and universities In one activity, Global Media Literacy Project, the school partnered with Temple University’s Media Literacy Lab and the University of Kuwait to help students study countries in the Middle East and to understand and to prevent cultural stereotyping. Students in grades 2, 3, and 4 also surveyed family members to learn more about stereotypes in the Middle East and U. S.
Students at Roberts corresponded as pen pals with Kuwaiti college students via Wikispace. Students created and shared digital videos on their daily lives at home and in the classroom. Teachers also prepared activities for each classroom’s wiki page and encouraged students to work together to develop content for their site. The third graders, for example, conducted a project on their rights and responsibilities to promote peace at home and at school as citizens of the U.S. and of the world. Students gained a deeper understanding of the countries and cultures in the Middle East, and also improved their thinking, writing, and creative technology skills. Students and their parents participated at a state conference (Pennsylvania Technology Showcase) in Harrisburg in May 2009. The project also will be presented at an international conference in Istanbul, the Pennsylvania School Board Association, the International Association of English Teachers, and other groups. See the Global Media project at http://globalmediaproject.wikispaces.org/.
See Roberts Elementary School’s history of Partnership School Awards in 2005 and 2007, and examples of activities in Promising Partnership Practices on the website, www.partnershipschools.org, in the section Success Stories. Visit the school at http://www.umasd.org/roberts/site/default.asp.