Grants Awarded for the 2013-14 School Year
BIG Grants
In honor of our 25th anniversary, the LSF launched a new concept this year:
the Big Idea Grant (BIG). We offered one or more grants of at least $10,000 for proposals that were ambitious, aligned with district goals, and encompassed both Lincoln and Hanscom schools. With the generous support of the community and the Ogden-Codman Trust, we are pleased to announce that we are able to fund three BIG ideas for the 2013-2014 school year! Our grants cycle coincided with the Lincoln District evolving to include a new science leader and a technology director. This provides an opportunity for LSF to support our district at the beginning of two major new initiatives that will impact all children for years to come.
Exploring the Wetlands
Terry Green, Science Teacher, Hanscom and Lincoln
Mary Sterling, Assistant Superintendent
This project supports the design of a boardwalk and platform that will extend from the back of Lincoln School K-4 (near the green playground) out over the wetlands, which abut the school property. It is the beginning of an exciting community-wide project that has the enthusiastic support of the Lincoln Conservation Commission, school faculty and staff, and many Lincoln School families. This project will have broad community impact, with future opportunity to develop a science curriculum around the wetlands boardwalk. This initial funding supports the design, planning, and community-building that are necessary for such an endeavor.
Digging Deeper with the Science Common Core
Teachers from Smith, Brooks, and Hanscom Science Leader
The district has approved seven exciting science proposals from teachers. The Lincoln School Foundation will support high-level science curriculum development by funding $10,000 towards these seven initiatives. We will work with the district and the new district science director to help teachers define concrete objectives that will have impact on what our children learn in the classroom. This project supports students across the district in all four schools.
The Technology Director’s Challenge
Technology Director
The LSF received several proposals from teachers for technology upgrades in the classroom. These ideas for technology upgrades coincide with the new hire of a district technology director who will provide long-term vision so ideas like these will have the support to thrive. The LSF will support our new technology director by awarding $10,000 towards what is determined to be the single most important idea that will advance technology innovation in our district.
In-Cycle Grants
Rosetta Stone for French
Karena Hansen, Content Specialist for Foreign Language
Hanscom Middle School
This new curriculum initiative will fund three digital subscriptions to the French Rosetta Stone Software program. Despite having students each year that would like to study French, Hanscom Middle School closed their French program several years ago. This grant will allow three students to take an interactive online French program. Funding includes four hours of stipend to upload and organize the program as well as the cost of three subscriptions.
We Can Do African Drumming!
Howard Worona, Music Teacher
Hanscom Primary and Middle Schools
This new curriculum initiative will provide funding to host Jeremy Cohen, a Kennedy Center Teaching Artist and the founder/director of ThisWorldMusic, at the Hanscom campus for two inspiring days of African music. Eighth grade students currently study African music as part of their music curriculum. This proposal would enhance this study by engaging the students in hands-on drumming workshops, assembly programs, and multimedia presentations. Grades 3 and 8 will each participate in drumming workshops. Hanscom Primary and Middle Schools will also enjoy a 45-minute assembly program. More than half of the cost of this proposal is the purchase of African percussion instruments for future use by music students on the Hanscom campus.
Socrative Classes
Josh Gold, Math Teacher
Hanscom Middle School
Funding for this new curriculum initiative will be used to purchase Socrative, a “clicker” system for use with interactive math classroom worksheets. This technology, an app for use on either the iPad or Chromebook, will allow for multiple forms of monitoring and intervention of students as they work on math problems in the classroom, preventing students from progressing to new problems despite incorrect answers. The grant provides for 15 hours of stipend to create the necessary classroom worksheets to be used with the app. This stipend supports the preparation of three units to be ready for use at the beginning of the academic year.
Science Books for Reading Buddies
Alice Sajdera, Library Media Specialist, Smith School
Nancy Rote, Library Media Specialist, Hanscom School
This new curriculum initiative will support the purchase and use of non-fiction books in the Reading Buddy programs on both the Lincoln and the Hanscom school campuses. The schools have thriving Reading Buddy programs that partner 3rd graders with Kindergarteners and 4th graders with 1st graders. Both the readers and those being read to love the twice-monthly experience and 3rd and 4th graders excitedly try to choose books to match their buddies’ interests. This project will greatly expand the book choices in the area of science.
A Visit from Author Tim Green
Alice Sajdera, Library Media Specialist
Smith and Brooks Schools
Tim Green is a former NFL player turned prolific author of sports-themed fiction for middle school readers. He is an engaging and motivational speaker who is known for sparking reading enthusiasm in children. This grant funded his visit to speak to Lincoln school students in grades 4, 5, and 6 in addition to the purchase of several of his books for the library.
Read an article about his visit here >
Enhancing Science Instruction Using Mentoring Texts
Terry Green, Science Teacher, Grades 1-4
Hanscom Primary and Lincoln Smith Schools
This curriculum development initiative will create a science database of in-house Mentor Texts appropriate for the science topics taught at various grade levels. The school already has a rich library of mentor texts with science content. This grant will give teachers the time to research, read, reflect, and connect these texts to the curriculum so that they can be put to good use. Science teacher Terry Green will collaborate with literacy specialist Gwen Blumberg and language arts specialist Judy Merra to integrate the science texts into the current system.
Literacy Center Manipulatives Project
Gwen Blumberg, Literacy Specialist
Lincoln School K-4
Hands-on word work has become an integral part of primary classrooms at Lincoln School K-4 and teachers will now have access to newly revitalized manipulative resources housed in the Primary Literacy Center and available on a check-out basis. This grant builds upon the success of the current manipulatives and supports both the purchase of more materials, such as two-sided letter tiles and resource books, as well as the professional development necessary to organize these materials. This grant will purchase more of the pilot items that have proven to be highly motivating for children and add more that are open-ended and can be used for a wider variety of purposes and grade levels. Many of the new selections add movement and audio components to better meet a wider range of learning styles.
Out-of-Cycle Grants
The LSF also awarded these grants outside the normal spring grant cycle period.
DreamBox, a Web-adaptive Math Program
Elaine Herzog, K-3 Math Specialist
Hanscom
Earlier in the school year, Hanscom K-3 Math Specialist Elaine Herzog initiated a grant program in Hanscom 1st grade classrooms called DreamBox, a Web-adaptive Math Program. Similar to the reading program, Lexia, DreamBox is a conceptually based program designed to be used during the math period as an independent work station. The program complements the existing Everyday Math curriculum and students also have access to it at home.
Science in Our Schools
Claire Moore, 5th Grade Science Teacher
Hanscom
Hanscom teacher Claire Moore has been active with her grant program, Science in Our Schools, where she worked with Boston’s Museum of Science to bring science into Hanscom’s 5th grade classrooms. Presentations from The Museum of Science staff helped bring science to life in her classes, enhancing the science curriculum and supporting the science learning goals.
Art on Screen
Art Teachers from all 4 Schools
In the latter part of this school year, LSF awarded a grant to the Art teachers at all four schools to support the purchase of two 32-inch LCD monitors, one for each campus, that are now being used in various school exhibits at the Lincoln Library and deCordova Museum and will later be used in the schools’ lobbies and offices. When there are opportunities to publicly exhibit school art, limited space often prohibits every child’s art from being displayed, despite Lincoln Schools’ core value of “respect for every individual.” The addition of monitors to these exhibits allows all the children’s art to be seen during any art exhibit.