Show #16 May 6
#1 in the Nation - US News ranks High Technology High School in Lincroft the #1 high school in the nation for math and science. After evaluating student participation rates and performance on AP exams in math and science, the New Jersey school tops the nation. The students apply for admission and most of them participate in high level research projects and mentoring programs with top companies. Principal Daniel Simon says the best indicator of success is the number of students attending and graduating from the top colleges and universities and going on to impressive careers.
Spanish E-Pals - Seventh graders in Upper Saddle River are E-Pals with students in a small town on the outskirts of Seville, Spain. Cavallini Middle School Spanish teacher Kristine Tesoriero uses laptops funded by a grant from the Upper Saddle River Education Foundation to connect her students with students in Spain to practice writing skills and promote cultural connections. Through a website, www.epals.com, the students practice their Spanish skills with a native Spanish speaker of their age. Having a peer to connect with in Spain takes all of the grammar and vocabulary out of the textbook and puts it into an authentic and meaningful task.
YES A+ - Thanks to an NJEA Hipp Grant called YES A+ (Youth Engaged in Service through the Arts) students at Hillside Intermediate School are learning the benefits of community service. As part of the project, the students will participate in a community-wide service project on Martin Luther King Day. The Bridgewater-Raritan School District joins with local agencies to address community needs. The activities include a variety show and an art project at two assisted living homes. The students connected with seniors through the arts, with the help of guest artist Timothy Macht.
Freedom Writer – Manuel Scott is an original freedom writer. He dropped out of school and his English was so poor he was classified as an ESL student. He had a rough childhood, which included drug and alcohol abuse at an early age. He credits his placement in Erin Gruwell’s (Hillary Swank plays Erin in the movie Freedom Writers) class at a school in California as a factor in turning his life around. He holds two degrees and is working on his Ph.D. His story is one of courage, strength and determination to overcome adversity.
Show #17 May 15
Blue Skies - Inspired by a personal family crisis, New Egypt art teacher Rita Williams developed a project that brings hope to patients and family members. Students at Dr. Gerald Woehr ES & New Egypt Primary School produce and donate books, videos and calendars to hospital waiting areas, chemotherapy centers, rehabilitation hospitals, doctor’s offices and other medical facilities. Blue Skies is a Hipp Grant project that highlights the power of children's artwork.
Art of Comprehension – Educators at Elms Elementary School in Jackson Township are perfecting the art of teaching comprehension skills. When art teacher Trevor Bryan, fourth grade teacher Donna Donner and fifth grade teacher Justin Dolcimascolo realized that the cognitive processes involved in reading comprehension are nearly identical to the cognitive processes involved in pictorial comprehension they incorporated art into lessons across the curriculum. Art can be used to help students relate to social studies, vocabulary and even science. Early data suggests that the program is having a beneficial effect on students' standardized test scores.
Beyond Recycling - A teaching artist from Young Audiences is helping gifted and talented students from Lawrence Intermediate School create a performance that addresses the topic of sustainability. Beyond Recycling is a program made possible by a grant from MetLife with matching funds from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation. Teaching artist Eloise Bruce, a local poet and actor, works with Jessica Heller’s students to write and perform the skit. This project combines the efforts of Sustainable Jersey, which is a program for municipalities to go green, save money and sustain quality of life over the long term.
Drum Line - Students with special needs join a drum line to help them develop retention skills, coordination and self-esteem, as well as physical and cognitive functioning. Mercer County Special Services High School teacher Julie Braeckman believes percussion instruments are effective with students with special needs ranging from dyslexia, ADD, autism, Tourette syndrome and Asperger syndrome.
Show #18 May 20
Zombie Apocalypse –Technology teacher Cristen Serdy from Sovereign Avenue School in Atlantic City coordinates a multidisciplinary lesson about emergency preparedness through a project called the Zombie Apocalypse. In science they work on cells, disease transmission and vaccines. In social studies they make emergency preparedness kits, find a secure shelter and plan an escape route. In math they calculate the rate of infection across the population. In language arts they use digital storytelling to produce emergency broadcast warnings. The culminating event is an assembly about the importance of being prepared for an emergency and a student performance of Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
Music Memories - Fifth graders at Warren Point School in Fair Lawn use music to trigger memories and emotions that are then nurtured into narrative writing selections. The students' personal memoirs are an effective way of eliciting the descriptive and figurative language that many young writers struggle to achieve.
SELECT - Marion P. Thomas Charter School runs a gender-based program called SELECT (Scholars Electing Lifelong Education Character and Transformation). The teachers address the different learning styles of boys and girls and incorporate various teaching methods and activities that are differentiated for each gender. The program was initially established to bridge the gap for African American boys as well as strengthen proficiency for girls in science and math.
Challenge Day - Gifted and Talented students from Burlington County and Pennsauken compete in a Challenge Day. About 120 students form teams and rotate through five activities that test their critical thinking and teamwork skills. The goal is to draw attention to the importance of learning to work together to solve problems, which today’s students will need for tomorrow’s jobs.
Show #19 May 27
PALS - Tenafly teachers learn from experts so they can pass on exciting new lessons about the environment to their students. A grant from PSEG and the Alliance for New Jersey Environmental Education (ANJEE) supports a project called PALS – the PSEG ANJEE Learners in Sustainability. The Tenafly Nature Center trains a team of teachers from four Tenafly elementary schools. Participating teachers’ classrooms become living labs that model effective science instructions. Teachers from Malcolm Mackay Elementary School share their knowledge and instructional strategies with fellow educators.
Finance Park - Students from Julia A. Barnes No 12 Elementary in Jersey City discover the challenges of managing real-world finances when they visit JA Finance Park. The field trip is the culminating lesson of a financial literacy program offered through Junior Achievement. At the park, the seventh and eighth graders work with volunteers to manage a simulated budget in this experiential, hands-on activity.
Literacy Fair - Students showcase their advanced writing skills during the Forked River Elementary Literacy Fair. Parents participate in interactive activities and attend NJ ASK workshops where they learn how to help prepare their children for the statewide tests. About 85 percent of the students attend the fair where they can explore a writer’s toolbox, learn about six traits of writing, and demonstrate their skills on interactive boards.
Comforting Cuisine - High school students improve the quality of life for children with cancer. Bergen County Technical High School culinary students from the Teterboro Campus work with marketing students from the Hackensack campus to create a unique food product for oncology patients at Hackensack medical center. The students are creating calorie-dense original products that taste good for children undergoing chemotherapy. The students are also working with experts from Rutgers Food Science department as well as industry executives from Pepsi to help with product development.