classroom experiences
in Freehold Borough
Teachers receive grants
from education foundation
Projects will enhance
classroom experiences
in Freehold Borough
By clare MARie celano
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD — What do a colorful floor carpet, a guide dog, puppets, fitness and a trip to Six Flags Great Adventure all have in common?
They are all part and parcel of programs created and designed by borough teachers which earned them grants to make their concepts a reality.
Members of the Freehold Borough Education Foundation grants committee presented their spring grants to district teachers at a Board of Education meeting on June 2.
Kindergarten teachers at the Freehold Learning Center, Dutch Lane Road, received a $1,500 grant for their project "Blocks of Fun." The money will be used to purchase a learning carpet by Childcraft. Accepting the award at the meeting was teacher Maria Scaniello.
The carpet will be just like the one already installed in one of the kindergarten classrooms. It’s bright, it’s colorful and has numerous of ways for little ones to learn valuable lessons. Colorful shapes, letters and numbers are always in constant view to walk on, to sit on, or to just observe throughout the school day. Foundation trustee Katie Beck said the carpet is something that will last a long time and will be used by many children year after year.
Beck, Lynn Reich, vice president of the foundation, and Janet Biddle, trustee, attended the board meeting. The awards to the teachers were announced by Biddle.
Third-grade teacher Karen Kowalik and Freehold Learning Center librarian Joan Murphy teamed up and applied for a grant for a project called "Guiding the Way."
According to material provided by the foundation, the project will be an extension of a story in the third grade reading text about a blind mother who gains independence by using a dog from The Seeing Eye in Morristown.
The $742 grant will be used for materials that will help the children learn more about this program through the use of videos, books and a guest speaker form The Seeing Eye.
Additionally, the class will participate in the "Pennies for Puppies" program where donated pennies will help to support the dog training program. The students will name a puppy and follow its progress. The children will also read about Helen Keller and have a chance to communicate through the use of the Braille alphabet. As a culminating activity, the students will read and record preschool and kindergarten books that will be given to the St. Joseph’s School for the Blind in Jersey City.
Fourth-grade teachers Mayra Noesges, Charles Latshaw and Michael Burgos at the Park Avenue Elementary School were awarded $700 for their project "Kids of Character."
According to Noesges, this program will use the present character-building guides titled "Wise Quotes" and "Heart-wood" to help students address character skills that will provide them with a unique and informative experience in school, strengthen their self-esteem and personal qualities, and serve the community by identifying the importance of contributing to others.
The project will use puppets as part of the learning experience to provide a "hands-on" experience for the children. Character traits to be developed are respect; trustworthiness; responsibility; fairness; caring; and citizenship, according to the teacher.
The program will encourage the children to take what they’ve learned home with them and to discuss moral decision making with their parents and family members.
Freehold Intermediate School, Park Avenue, physical education teachers Chris Naspo and Sue Crist applied for a grant to help them obtain two fitness program kits in human kinetics. The $418 grant will help students to apply health-related fitness concepts through the use of a "Fitness-Gram," a tool to allow physical education teachers to meet standards and provide the best possible health and physical education experience to all students.
According to the material, "This interactive technology is a fair and accurate way to test student fitness efforts. A key component of this program is that it provides both parents and students with a yearly written report of each student’s progress and makes recommendations for improvement."
Sheila Hirschfield, who teaches seventh grade at the Freehold Intermediate School, was awarded a $1,500 grant for her "Math and Science Day at Great Adventure."
According to the information provided, "the objective for this grant … is to teach the students real science in a friendly, relaxed setting so that they enjoy the learning experience and develop a passion for science and the exploration of ideas."
Teachers will be explaining and demonstrating the mathematical and scientific processes behind the rides at the amusement park in Jackson. The learning process will be interactive and culminate by letting the children participate in the role of teacher. The objectives of the project are aligned with the state academic standards in math and science, according to the information provided.