Clifton-Fine Literacy Olympics!

Clifton Fine Central School Star Lake, NY Saturday November 13, 2010 9 AM to 1 PM

HAVE FUN READING TOGETHER & TELLING STORIES MEET AN AUTHOR & READ TO A DOG GET A FREE GIFT BAG LUNCH INCLUDED
CONTACT [LIBRARIAN NAME] AT 315-444-5555 WITH ANY QUESTIONS
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Share-A-Story Saturday
Assignment #2: Family Literacy Event Proposal Group Members: Ginger Tebo, Susanna Hall, Steven Inzer Saturday, November 13, 2010, 9:00am to 1:00pm

School Description Clifton-Fine Central School is a small rural school in the northern part of the Adirondack State Park. Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade is housed in one building. The school has an annual enrollment of about 342 students, and employs 33 instructional staff. The building recently underwent a major renovation project, which created a new multipurpose room, fitness room, elementary art room and several new classrooms out of an unused section near the elementary wing. The school is located in Star Lake, but also serves the communities of Fine, Oswegatchie, Newton Falls, Cranberry Lake, and Wanakena. Although the school and hospital have high-speed Internet connections, this type of Internet access is not available in individual homes, and there is no cell phone service throughout this district. The school community is predominately Caucasian (95%), and an estimated 51-60% of students are from families who received public assistance during the 2008-2009 school year. The school is classified as a rural high-needs school. (New York State Education Department, 2010)

Target Group Description The target group for this event is students in Pre-Kindergarten to 3rd Grade. There are 134 students in the target group. In 2009, 96% of Grade 3 students met or exceeded learning standards for the State assessment test of English Language Arts, and 100% met or exceeded those for Mathematics (New York State Education Department, 2010). In previous years, literacy had been identified as an area in need of

improvement, and a school-wide reading incentive program has been very successful for several years now. Clifton-Fine hosts an annual Academic Fair, in which the majority of families participate, particularly at the elementary level. There is also a reading incentive program, which has also helped to produce a widespread expectation of family involvement. During the 2009-2010 school year, a new Family Involvement Center was created at the school, staffed by a part time Family Involvement Coordinator. A Parent-Teacher Organization was also initiated this year.

Event Committee Description Committee members will meet several times during and after this event, and all committee members will
be present and active during the event itself. Library Media Specialist The librarian will be the Chair of the Event Committee. She will write event proposal and work with the other members of the committee and the administration to coordinate the event. She will schedule meetings, secure and communicate with all guests (author, dog trainers, and BOCES contact), and delegate tasks as needed. In addition, the librarian will be responsible for creating the Survey Monkey questionnaires and conducting focus group evaluations after the event. Family Involvement Coordinator The Family Involvement Coordinator will collaborate with other members of the committee to design event workshops that will meet the literacy needs of families. She will secure at least 5 Parent/Guardian Volunteers for event and coordinate room set up/break down and reminder phone calls to parents. Classroom teachers, Pre-K - 3rd grade (9 total) Teachers will collaborate with other committee members to design event workshops to meet the literacy needs of students, particularly the students in their homerooms. They will disseminate yers for event and include event information in take-home newsletters. In preparation for Mary Amatos presentation, they 2

will use her books in their classrooms and work with students to create questions for the author. During the event, they will be responsible for facilitating workshops. Parent/guardian volunteers, ideally one representing each grade level of target group (5 total) Parents will collaborate with other members of the committee to design event workshops that are relevant, fun, and accessible. They will assist the Family Involvement Coordinator with reminder phone calls to other parents and room set up during the event.

Timeline Spring 2010 Announce plans for this event at Faculty meeting Form Event Committee Hold an introductory planning meeting Summer 2010 Event Committee begins working on details of the event Contact and secure various participants: Mary Amato, childrens book author Adirondacks High Peaks Dog Training Club St. Lawrence-Lewis County BOCES Culinary Arts program September 2010 Meet with Event Committee Remind faculty at opening of school meeting. Ask them to incorporate Mary Amatos books into their curriculum in early November in advance of this event. Include event on school calendar and website October 2010 Meet with Event Committee Confirm with Mary Amato, High Peaks Dog Trainers, and St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Remind teachers to read Mary Amatos books and think of discussion questions Meet with custodial and kitchen staff to secure tables, etc. Send Home Flyers with Pre-K to 3rd grade students Two Weeks Prior to Event Remind teachers to include information about event in their weekly take-home newsletters One Week Prior to Event Meet with Event Committee Include information about event in morning PA announcements
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Make phone calls to parents reminding them of the upcoming event Day Before Event Send home flyers with Pre-K to 3rd grade students Day of Event See Activities section below Monday After Event Send thank you notes to all teachers, administrators, custodians, as well as outside participants Begin compiling 3-2-1 Evaluation results Week After Event Meet with Committee to review 3-2-1 Evaluations and Survey Monkey results Conduct focus groups with students during lunch periods Based on evaluation feedback, discuss plans to host a 2011 event with principal

Activities

Share-A-Story Saturday
9:00 10:00 am Welcome Workshops: 10:15 10:45 Station 1 10:45 11:15 Station 2 11:15 12:00 Group Activity Activity: Read-Aloud Story and extension Location: Library Activity: Family Photo Stories Location: Family Involvement Room Activity: Read to a Dog Location: Multipurpose Room Activity: Author talk via Skype. Students have already read two of Mary Amatos books in class and prepared questions. Location: Auditorium

Day care

Teen students provide day care in a separate room 9:00 12:00

Activity: Bookshelf painting and gift bag distribution Location: Main gym

12:00 1:00 pm Lunch

Activity: Lunch and completion of 3-2-1 Evaluations Location: Cafeteria Library remains open for book checkout

Participants will gather in the auditorium for the author presentation by Mary Amato via Skype. They are then free to choose two of the three stations to visit during the event. Each station will be facilitated by teachers and parent volunteers. After the workshops, families will gather in the main gym to decorate their own cube bookshelf to take home. They will be presented with the gift bags and a Committee Member will explain what they contain and how to use it at home. To encourage families with non-school aged children to attend, teen students will provide day care from 9-12. Lunch will be provided in the cafeteria, catered by the St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Culinary Arts program.

Family Photo Story Station This station will focus on oral storytelling and writing. According to Griffis (2003), storytelling is a good way to encourage family literacy, since even non-readers can learn to use picture clues to tell a story. The goals of this station are: 1. Promotion of oral storytelling as a literacy activity 2. Modeling the use of pictures/illustrations as clues to tell a story 3. Making use of shared writing activities to extend literacy development This station will take place in the Family Involvement Center, which will introduce parents to the space and encourage them to visit on their own. Activity at this station will proceed as follows: 1. Each family will bring in one photograph of themselves (or a member of their family) that has a funny, sad, or important story attached to it that they do not mind sharing publicly. 2. Participants will split into two groups. One adult will facilitate each group (teacher and parent volunteers from the Event Committee). 3. Storytelling: Families are given time to tell the story of their photograph to each other. 4. Writing: The adult facilitators address the whole group and tell them what to do next, and then circulate to each family over the remaining minutes of the session.
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5. Next, each family works alone to write down the BASIC parts of their story onto the worksheet provided. The parents should begin writing the story, and, depending on the age of their child, the child should write some of the story too. 6. There will be a sample story available to show families what a completed story might look like. For example: This photo tells a [ADJECTIVE - funny, sad, important] story about our family. In this photo, you can see [describe who what where when]. Then write beginning, middle, and end of story (maybe 1-2 sentences each). 7. Each family will be provided with a frame. The written story (with both the students and the parent/
caregivers handwriting on it) can be displayed with the photograph in the frame.

Materials: Photo frames, pencils, crayons, copied worksheets, sample story

Read-Aloud Story Station This station will promote good reading habits and model simple literacy building activities for parents, particularly interactive reading. According to Morrow & Temlock-Fields (2004), it is the quality of the interaction that occurs during reading that results in positive effects (p. 88). Our goals for this station include: 1. 2. 3. 4. Modeling appropriate read-aloud behaviors to parents. Encouraging children to make predictions during the course of a story. Promoting narrative skills through story extension. Promoting phonological awareness through the use of rhyme.

This workshop will take place in the library, which has a large group reading area and tables available. Activity at this station will proceed as follows: 1. The primary facilitator at this station will read No More Water in the Tub! by Tedd Arnold, a book about a boy named William who is carried down the stairs of his apartment building and into the other apartments when the water in the bathtub overflows. This story is structured in a way that allows children to make predictions, provide rhyming words at appropriate times, and follow a sequence of events, all of which are key literacy skills. 2. The facilitator will model how to read using an expressive voice, as well as how to incorporate more interaction into family reading opportunities. 3. The story ends with the main character sailing his bathtub out the window on a new wave of water, leaving the reader wondering where he will go next. After the book has been read, the facilitators will help children extend the story. As a group, children will write their own story about what happened to the main character and what he saw. Facilitators will direct this activity by making sure that each child has the opportunity to contribute an idea and prompting children with directed questions when necessary.
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4. When the story is done, families will be given blank paper and markers with which to create illustrations for the story they just wrote. 5. During the read-aloud and activity, facilitators will briefly explain concepts like phonological awareness and narrative skills to parents, and clarify why they are important to their childs literacy development. Materials: Copy of No More Water in the Tub! by Tedd Arnold, extra-large piece of paper, markers.

Read to a Dog Station According to Gloria Laube, creator of the Library Dogs website Dogs are now being used in many school and library settings to help motivate youngsters to read. The use of trained therapy dogs in reading programs can result in children who feel comfortable reading out loud, read more often, attempt more difficult books, and actually look forward to reading (Laube, 2010). Because dogs are nonjudgmental, children feel a comfort level reading to animals and are less reluctant to make mistakes. Children who read to dogs get excited about reading, and find reading to a dog more fun than reading alone or to a parent. Our goals for this station include: 1. 2. 3. 4. Providing a fun and relaxed setting for children to read. Getting children excited to read. Encouraging reluctant or weak readers to give reading a try - its fun! Instilling in all participants a love a reading.

This workshop will take place in the multipurpose room, which can be sectioned off by partitions. Activity at this station will proceed as follows: 1. Students and parents arrive in gym and are greeted by the facilitator of this station. 2. She explains the value and benefits of reading to dogs (as well as other pets) to parents and then introduces the President of the Adirondacks High Peaks Dog Training Club. 3. The President introduces each club member as well as their dog. 4. Students are divided into smaller groups and paired with a dog and owner. They proceed to their own cozy corner of the room. 5. Each child will be allowed 5-7 minutes with the dog, reading from a selection of age-appropriate books. If the child is too young to read, they can pet the dog while being read to by a parent.

Materials: Dog beds (provided by owners), area rugs, throw pillows, beanbag chairs, assortment of books

Attendance Incentive Each child will receive a gift bag containing age appropriate books, a magnetic alphabet (Pre-K only) or kids Magnetic poetry set (K-3 only), and activity suggestions to try at home from Reading Rockets.org. In addition, kids will decorate and take home their own bookshelf to keep their new books on. The bookshelves are two-section wooden shelves purchased from Wal-Mart (Appendix A).

Attendance Estimate We expect a strong response from families, since current literacy initiatives like the reading incentive program and Tuesday night story times in the school library are popular and supported by a majority of parents. Of the 134 students in grades Pre-K to 3rd, we hope that at least 100 students will attend. Our total attendance estimate, including parents, is 300 people.

Publicity Families in the Clifton-Fine school district have limited Internet options, so many families have slow connections or none at all. For this reason, we decided that the best way to publicize the event was through the use of paper flyers (Appendix B) that will be sent home with students, rather than a webbased announcement. Because of the relatively small target group, The Family Involvement Coordinator and the parent volunteers will also make phone calls reminding parents of the event the day before. In addition, the school has a regular section in the Bargain Hunter, a local advertising paper that is distributed to residents of the area on Wednesdays. A smaller version of the flyer will appear in the Bargain Hunter during the month prior to the event
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Evaluation In order to assess the impact of this event, we plan to utilize three evaluative instruments. The 3-2-1 Evaluation Survey (Appendix C) will be distributed during lunch. Boxes for completed evaluations will be placed in the cafeteria and main desk. Students in Grades 2 and 3 will complete online surveys using Survey Monkey during their Library or Computer class time the following week. Students will be asked to rate on a scale of 1-5 (1=low/5=high) various aspects of this event. Having students complete their surveys on the computer promotes accuracy and honesty, and teaches students how to use an online evaluation tool. Teacher feedback is essential, especially given the significant role they played in the event. Providing teachers with a quick and easy way to provide feedback shows them that we appreciate their support of this event, as well as recognizes how busy they are. Using Survey Monkey (similar to students in Grades 2 and 3) is a fast way to elicit their responses. Survey Monkey can be accessed from the classroom or from a home computer, if available. In addition, feedback from our youngest students is as important as that from the older ones. However, since students in the younger grades (Pre-K, Kindergarten and 1) do not yet have the computer skills necessary to complete an online survey independently, we will conduct small focus groups during lunch to evaluate their response to the program. The librarian will talk with students during the lunch period the following week. This will generate helpful feedback from the students, but will also reinforce some of the lessons from the event.

Follow-up Activities Teachers will help kids write thank you notes to dog owners and create a video thank you to Mary Amato. The librarian will offer additional title and activity suggestions for home in the monthly school newsletter and on the website, and Event Committee members will discuss the possibility of creating an annual family literacy event similar to this one.
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Budget Selection of age-appropriate books for each student. ($13 per student x 100 students) Magnetic alphabet letters/poetry sets, (100 @ $6 each) 8.5X11 Frames for Family Photo Story (100 @ $1 each) Gift Bags (100 @ $0.25 each) Bookshelves (100 @ $15 each) Paint supplies Honorarium for author Mary Amato Travel costs for Dog Owners (5 @ $50 each) Food costs for 300 guests (labor provided free by St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES) Day Care Workers (3 teens @ $25 each) Paper and misc. supplies Gift Cards for Event Committee Members (15 @ $20 each) $1300 $600 $100 $25 $1500 $50 $200 $250 $500 $75 $100 $300

______________________________________________________________________________ TOTAL $5000

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References

Adirondack High Peaks Dog Training Club. (2008). Welcome to the Adirondack High Peaks Dog Training Club! Retrieved from http://www.ahpdtc.org/index.html

Griffis, J. (2003). Family literacy programs in school libraries: Helping parents become their childs best teacher. Library Media Connection, 22 (1), 30-34. Laube, G. (2010) Library Dogs. Retrieved from http://www.librarydogs.com. Lonigan, C. J. (2004). Emergent literacy skills and family literacy. In Wasik, B. H. (Ed.), Handbook of family literacy (57-81). Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Morrow, L. & Temlock-Fields, J. (2004). Use of literature in the home and at school. In Wasik, B. H. (Ed.), Handbook of family literacy (57-81). Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. New York State Education Department. (2010, January 29). The New York State school report card: Clifton-Fine Elementary School. Retrieved from https://www.nystart.gov/publicweb-rc/2009/28/AOR-2009-510401040002.pdf Purcell-Gates, V. (1996). Stories, coupons, and the TV Guide: Relationships between home literacy experiences and emergent literacy knowledge. Reading Research Quarterly, 31(4), 406428. doi: 10.1598/RRQ.31.4.4 SurveyMonkey. (2010). SurveyMonkey. Retrieved from http://www.surveymonkey.com/ WETA Public Television & Radio (2010). Reading Rockets. Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org.

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Appendix A

Sample wooden cube bookshelf. It can be used horizontally (as shown) or tipped on end and used vertically.

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Appendix B

Share a Story Saturday!

Clifton Fine Central School Saturday November 13, 2010 9 AM to 1 PM

MEET AN AUTHOR & READ TO A DOG HAVE FUN READING TOGETHER & TELLING STORIES GET A FREE GIFT BAG LUNCH INCLUDED
CONTACT THE LIBRARIAN AT 315-848-3333 FOR MORE INFORMATION 13

Appendix C

3 - 2 - 1 EVALUATION SHEET
How did you like todays event? Please tell us below! 14

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