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Grade Level: 6-8
Academic Areas: Language Arts, math
Duration of service: Semester Long
Character Virtues: Caring, Justice and Fairness, Civic Virtue and
Citizenship
Service Areas: Public Safety
Service Learning Project:
Teachers and students will work to develop a community coalition
designed to proactively deal with escalating threats within and
against schools. The purpose of the coalition will be to increase
public awareness about such problems, create a shared vision about
the need for civic responsibility and whole community involvement
to prevent and deal with such events.
Goals and Objectives
Academic
Learning Goal: Research, gather, and analyze statistics about
threats and violence in schools.
Standard: MST 1,2,5,6
Learning Goal: Students will use collected data to persuade school
and community official to support and promote the development
of the coalition.
Standard: ELA1,2,3,4; H/PE/FSC 2,3
Learning Goal: Students will promote coalition and character virtues
via billboards, banners, posters, Powerpoint etc. developed using
artistic and technological creativity
Standard: Arts 2, 4; MST 5
Service
Community need: Threats against schools are becoming more prevalent
and disruptive to school learning environments and student safety.
Communities must recognize and accept such problems as a whole
community issue rather than just a school or district issue. Project
activities will encourage schools and communities (parents, businesses,
government officials, police, etc.) to form a School-Community
Coalition for Character Education and School Safety.
Possible Community Partners: parents, businesses, government officials,
etc.
Objective: To collaboratively and proactively address community
issues leading to threats against schools and students
Objective: To develop and promote character virtues and moral
responsibility by creating a coalition of parents, community members,
students, teachers, etc.
Objective: Unite whole community develop and promote good citizenship
within and beyond schools to reduce and prevent threatening acts
against schools and students.
Character
Virtue: Caring
Objective: Students will show concern for their peers, teachers
and other members of the school and community at large.
Virtue: Justice and Fairness
Objective: Students will become aware of the impacts of threatening
acts against school and others and learn to promote fair and ethical
treatment of all.
Virtue: Civic Virtue and Citizenship
Objective: Students and community members will work collaboratively
towards social cohesiveness by recognizing the importance of personal
and collective actions on society and our schools
Key Activities
Key Planning Activities
1. Students will learn about threats and violence in schools.
2. Students will brainstorm ways to stop violence in the schools.
Key Service Activities
1. Students and teachers will create and disseminate a survey
to student body, parents and community to gather data about frequency
and types of threats within and against schools. Surveys will
also solicit feelings and perceptions about threats and violence
within area schools. Data collected will be used for persuasive
presentations and essays designed to encourage development and
participation on coalition.
2. District and community organizations will be contacted to request
contributions/services (e.g., donations, photocopying, distribution,
etc.) to help develop coalition. Local newspapers and advertising
companies (e.g., billboards) will also be contacted to give support
and promote the coalition and its objectives.
3. Students will prepare a presentation to be given to the community
to encourage and recruit residents to participate in the formation
of the coalition. Presentation will be offered at the school and
will be advertised in local papers, town boards, cable access,
etc.
4. Upon creation of coalition, students will collaborate with
members to create a community vision and mission statement.
5. Students will creatively express vision and mission of coalition
using technological, written and artistic talents. Creative expressions
will be placed throughout the community (not just within schools)
to encourage all residents to buy into the vision advertised by
the coalition.
6. Students will develop a “Civic” handbook to be
distributed to new and current families within the community.
Students will submit personal reflection and needs statements
to encourage new residents to respect, honor and adopt the virtues
needed by all members of the school community.
Key Reflection Activities
1. (oral) Students will discuss personal experiences
dealing with threats and violence within schools to justify needs
of coalition. Sharing of such experiences will demonstrate need
for selves and others to care deeply about the impacts on schools
and communities. Student reflections/sharing will cultivate and
foster development of coalition to promote civic responsibilities.
2. (written) Students will write a personal reflection about threats
and violence within the school an how the character virtues can
help deal with these situations.
3. (performance) Students will share feelings of justice and fairness
and responsibility with the community via creative writing/poetry,
music, dance and/or art work.
Celebration Activity
Students will celebrate the formation and vision of the coalition
by the unveiling of a “vision” billboard or other
type of display that includes samples of their work. Parents,
community members, government officials and media will be invited
to the unveiling.
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