Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
P. O. Box 3711
204 Broad Street
Martinsville, Virginia 24115
276-638-8801
Toll Free: 800-234-6575
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Monday, November 2, 2009
The Martinsville Schools Endowment Board last week approved a total $3,566.83 in grants to teachers in the city schools for creative learning activities.
Two of the seven grants awarded in this yearly cycle will help the city’s elementary schools set up “learning gardens” to teach hands-on lessons based on the Standards of Learning (SOLs) in science, math, language arts and more.
Patrick Henry Elementary School was awarded $800 for a “Gardening with Kids” program. Funds will be used to buy tools and supplies to grow flowers, fruits, vegetables and herbs inside a greenhouse being constructed at the school. The Patrick Henry Parent-Teacher Organization has agreed to contribute funds raised by parents to build the structure this fall.
Albert Harris Elementary School will use a $639.62 grant to begin “Cultivating Young Minds,” an outdoor garden lab. Funds will be used for planting and building supplies to grow vegetables, herbs and flowers.
The garden project will build on the existing geology rock garden at Albert Harris. A second, smaller garden site will be designed and maintained by special-needs students.
These garden grants will serve a total of nearly 1,200 students at the two schools.
Ten grant proposals were submitted to the board for consideration. At least one grant was awarded to teachers at each school, except for Clearview Early Childhood Center, which did not submit an application.
“We had an outstanding group of applications this year,” said Cathy Stone, chairman of the grants committee. “It’s always hard to make a choice when you have limited funds.”
This was the second round of grants awarded since the endowment fund was created in 2007. The fund was established to support innovative, curriculum-based programs and projects in the city schools.
Only the interest earned from the endowment fund is used for grants. As the amount of the fund increases, the amount available for grants will increase through the years.
“We are very proud of what we have accomplished thus far,” said Board Chairman Diane Bassett. “In the two grant cycles, we have successfully funded 12 grants for a total of over $5,000. We could not have achieved this without the generosity and support of our community.”
Grant awards include:
• “Wonderful Weather” at Patrick Henry, $515.86. Fourth-grade teachers will use a Tornado Maker, Tornado Tube Kit and Weather Center measurement instruments to teach students about storms and weather phenomena. Fourth-graders then will teach second-graders what they have learned.
• “Magnetic Mysteries” at Martinsville Middle School and Patrick Henry, $403.40. SEMAA instructor Amy Sabarre will use inflatable planets, Magnaprobes and a magnetic globe to lead second-graders in an investigation of the magnetic fields of planets.
• “Global Changes: Changes in the Earth and Sky” at Albert Harris, $222.95. Students in kindergarten through fifth grade will explore how the earth is affected by weather and erosion as well as phenomena such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.
• “Exploring Molecular Biology Using Bacterial Transformation” at Martinsville High School, $484.50. Biology and advanced placement biology students in grades 9-12 will use laboratory kits purchased with grant funds to conduct investigations of bacterial transformation. Students will explore the expanding field of biotechnology in the hopes that they will consider it as a career.
• “Writing a Children’s Book: A Model for SOL Writing, Reading and Creativity” at Martinsville Middle School, $500. Sixth-grade language arts students will use the principles of writing to create books. They then will present the books to kindergarten and preschool classes at Clearview Early Childhood Center and the two elementary schools.
The Martinsville City Public Schools Endowment Fund is part of the Martinsville Area Community Foundation, and donations are tax-deductible. For more information, go to www.martinsville.k12.va.us or call 403-5722. |
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