Service-Learning in St. Mary's County

Sections:

2. Fact Sheet

3. Fellows

Contact the designated MSSA Regional Coordinator with questions, or to update information on this page.

1. Service-Learning Contact Information

2. Service-Learning Fact Sheet

Student's are introduced to service-learning in elementary school with school-based projects. Students do a service-learning activity each year in middle school, either in one subject or as an interdisciplinary activity. In high school service-learning is infused into 9th grade Civics. An independent study option allows students to receive credit for additional service beyond the graduation requirement. A local advisory committee has been established, which produces a service-learning newsletter, pamphlets, curriculum guides, and a website.

Breakdown:
Middle School (30 hours)
Grade 9 Civics (45 hours)

Reporting: Service learning does not appear on report cards.

Transfer Policy: Students who transfer into the system during high school and have not satisfied their national, state, and local government requirement will take the 9th grade Civics class. Students who have satisfied their national, state, and local government requirement will do the independent study option under the aegis of the sponsoring teacher. If that student is a first semester senior, the minimum number of hours of service-learning required is 20. If a student transfers in as a second semester senior, the requirement is waived.

3. Teacher Fellows (see overview)

Students were involved in creating and publishing children's books. The students then took their books to local feeder schools and read to the elementary students. In addition, the books were donated to the elementary schools.

• Meet a recognized need in the community: The students served as mentors and teachers to the elementary students. They helped elementary students who were having difficulties in reading by reading to them and donating books.
• Achieve curricular objectives through service-learning: Students were involved in the process of writing, creating, and publishing children's books.
• Reflect throughout service learning experience: Students kept journal responses of their writing process, improvements, and questions.
• Develop student responsibility: Students were responsible for meeting with the elementary students and took leadership roles and initiative to help them to meet appropriate reading goals.
• Establish community partnership: Community partnerships were established with the local feeder schools. There were constant interactions among the administrators, teachers, and students. A partnership was also created with the Student Treasures, a local children's publishing company.
• Plan ahead for the project: Students learned the various characteristics of children's books. They learned how to include appropriate characters, settings, themes, and moral lessons in children's books. Coordinating the project with the local feeder school also took planning.
• Equip students with knowledge and skills needed for service: Students learned skills of writing, leadership, listening, and speaking.

Christopher Davies, 1995, Great Mills High School, 301-863-4001, ccccdavies@yahoo.com

1998: Great Mills High School has community partnerships with Historic St. Mary's City and Point Lookout State Park in Southern Maryland. Our projects combine Chesapeake Bay Environmental issues and community historical preservation. Students have "adopted a swamp" along the St. Mary's River and are "building bridges" through protected wetlands. Students incorporate grant writing skills into their service-learning experience. Mr. Davies class is recognized as a Maryland State Model Service-Learning Program -- adopted a wetlands. Please contact us for more information.

Denise Eichel, 2001, Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School, 301-472-4500, d_eichel@yahoo.com

Over 100 5th grade students participated in a project that provided friendship and social interaction for the veterans living at the Charlotte Hall Veteran's Home. The students visited the veterans and invited them to events at our school, made cards, listened and learned the wealth of knowledge the veterans were able to share.

Meet a recognized community need: The veteran's home is just 2 miles from our school. The students were aware that many veterans who reside at the home are lonely, depressed and rarely visited. They felt that since these men and women are members of our community, members who provided a service for our country, that it was our responsibility to help with their need for friendship.

Achieve curricular objectives: The students were required to write letters to the veterans. Biography is a genre that the students are required to study, therefore, they read a biography to each of the veterans. Students met many math objectives while completing a task in which they planned the Valentine Social.

Reflect through the service-learning experience: The students were encouraged to reflect on the project through class discussions, journal writing, creation of a PowerPoint presentation and displays, and newsletter articles.

Develop student responsibility: The students developed responsibility by choosing the activities we carried out and by organizing the Valentine Social.

Establish community partnerships: The principal and myself contacted the veteran's home to plan a meeting with the events coordinator.

Equip students with knowledge and skills needed for service: Students learned about the veteran's home and the residents.

Hannah Mossman, 2001, Oakville Elementary School, 301-373-2450, hannahdm@aol.com

The nursing center in the next town needed help connecting residents to youth in an effort to brighten the resident's days. In response to this need, our 3rd grade team selected our best 30 workers to prepare and present a play at the nursing center. The play, the "Princess and the Penguin," culminated the students' integrated study of weather and animals. This project also required students to use their writing, researching, and public speaking skills.

Meet a recognized community need: Our project was designed to reduce the isolation many senior citizens feel from others, especially young people. Students visited the nursing center on a Thursday morning, set up, performed and socialized with the elderly. Students shared hugs and hand shakes while the elderly commended them on their performances.

Achieve curricular objectives: The students read for all purposes and used writing to express their thoughts on the project.

Reflect through the service-learning experience: The students discussed what they thought about the project with each other and shared their thoughts with the residents. The students prompted the senior citizens with statements such as "if this... then...".

Develop student responsibility: The student developed responsibility through studying and learning their lines and gestures at home. They created and designed their own costumes and props.

Establish community partnerships: We established community partnerships through the parents who volunteered to help with stage set up and transportation of the props. The nursing center activity director assisted with organizing the project and soliciting businesses for props. We also work with Petsmart, Denny Morgan, a retired drama and music teacher, and Crabhrochen.

Plan ahead for service-learning: We contacted the nursing center for suggestions of businesses to solicit for donations. We ordered scripts during the previous summer before school to give the student sufficient time to prepare.

Equip students with knowledge and skills needed for service: To equip the students with the skills and knowledge they needed, we studied techniques for learning lines, and for staging movement and gestures with a theatrical consultant. The students reviewed the steps involved for service-learning, preparation, action and reflection, in teams and read the outcomes we were covering, so that they could see the connection.

Kathryn Raley, 2003, Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School, 301-472-4500

2nd grade students at Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School completed a service-learning project performance task called, "Houses That Help," which raised $980.00 to purchase Christmas gifts for children in the community who were less fortunate. Best practices:

• Providing children who are less fortunate with gifts for Christmas was a real need in our community. It also taught children that not everyone is as fortunate as they are and reinforced the gift of giving to others.
• Participating in the auction by making Gingerbread Houses and purchasing gifts strengthened the students math skills. Other objectives were met by the students reading and writing letters.
• Through this experience students felt what it is like to help individuals from our community that are in need. One second grader made the comment one day that he learned Christmas was not about getting but about giving.
• From the intended recipient children's' description, our 2nd and 5th graders were able to select the type of gifts they thought those particular children would want for Christmas. They then purchased the gifts with the money raised and wrapped them.
• The community partners in this project were the children and families who received the gifts.
• The students followed a set of instructions to develop a Gingerbread House with their fifth grade book buddies. After completing the task of developing Gingerbread Houses, we auctioned them off at our Gingerbread Auction. The auction raised $980.00, which was used to purchase Christmas Gifts for children in need in the community
• Students were given a brief description of the eight children that they would be helping and discussed poverty issues.

Sherie Robey, 1996, Chopticon High School (special education, civics, U.S. History, study skills), 301-475-5655, lightbeacon2@yahoo.com

1998: My students work with adult daycare centers in St. Mary's County as part of the replication site model "Serving Seniors". My students also are making personal hygiene bags for the men's' and women's' shelters. In addition to those projects, we are helping any others who's lives have been affected by economic and disaster hardships.

1996: My students are serving by assisting at the local nursing home, with bingo, crafts and developing friendships with the elderly.