On May 30, thirteen groups of students, educators, and chaperones from around the city came together to recognize the Service in Schools (SIS) Kids Action Teams. The Celebration of Service honored the awesome service-learning that elementary students accomplished in their SIS Kids Action Teams during the 2018-19 school year.
Students presented on a wide range of projects that their Kids Action Teams engaged in this year, including but not limited to spreading awareness of the dangers of smoking, respecting and learning from elders, advocating for the ban of puppy mills, and reducing plastic pollution. Each team’s service efforts involved deep research, including interviews with experts and community surveys. At the Celebration, students also decorated pins with slogans and facts about their service-learning projects to help spread the word.
Prior to leaving the Celebration, the SIS team presented students with certificates recognizing their accomplishments. The SIS Kids Action Team Celebration of Service gave students a chance to celebrate and reflect on all their hard work this school year, and students walked away feeling proud of their achievements and motivated to do more. We are all very excited to see how these young students serve their communities in the years to come!
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P.S. 56 The Louis DeSario School
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Project Summary:
P.S. 56's Kids Action Team made the collaborative decision to focus on protecting the environment, specifically recycling and littering. They advocated against littering through an educational campaign that included a sculpture made from reclaimed waste.
Research:
The students learned about the effects of excess waste on the local environment through online research and a park clean-up. After this, the students narrowed their project's focus to reducing waste and litter in their school community.
Planning:
In order to accomplish multiple tasks in a limited amount of time, the students broke up into three groups. The first group prepared classroom lessons and posters to inform the younger students on proper recycling. Another group prepared posters depicting proper recycling procedures to decorate the trashcans on each floor of the school building. The third group created a PowerPoint presentation, which included information they had learned from their research and the three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle).
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Action:
Students presented their projects at a parent engagement evening and during a school-wide assembly. After observing more trash left on the school floor, the Kids Action Team decided they still had more to do. They collected trash from the school from January until April. Students made a sculpture out of the waste they collected and called it “P.S. 56’s Got Trash." The sculpture is in the form of a trashcan pouring out more trash and is a reminder of the unnecessary waste people generate each day. The students displayed their sculpture and information on waste in the school’s lobby for all to see.
Reflection:
The students were proud of what they had accomplished and want to continue advocating for waste reduction in their school in the years to come. The team successfully obtained a Green Team Grant for $1,000. This grant will be used to sustain the project by making animal planters from recycled tires. These planters will serve as a reminder to the students and surrounding community to recycle and keep the school and neighborhood free from litter.
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Current and Upcoming Opportunities
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YSA 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance
Opportunity for All Ages
It is increasingly challenging to explain the significance of the events of September 11, 2001 to America’s young people, who have no first-hand memory of the occasion.
YSA
invites teachers and students to participate in an enduring and positive tribute to those lost and injured on 9/11 and the many who rose in service in response to the attacks, including first responders, recovery workers, volunteers, and members of the military. Honoring this moment in our nation’s history by serving in your community helps transform 9/11 into a day of unity, empathy, and service.
Sign up and browse project ideas
,
and
learn more about grant funding for 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance activities
.
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Start a Glamour Gals Chapter
Ongoing Opportunity for High School Students
GlamourGals
Foundation inspires and organizes teen volunteers to provide ongoing companionship and complimentary beauty makeovers to women living in senior homes. These compassionate teen leaders establish connections across generations and work to end elder isolation. GlamourGals supports its teen volunteers with skill-building experiences and promotes their development as leaders in their communities. GlamourGals invites high school students and teachers to establish school-based chapters of its program. Starting a GlamourGals chapter provides teens the opportunity to do community service while developing leadership and communication skills, making friends of all ages, and fighting elder loneliness. Email
startachapter@glamourgals.org
to learn more.
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GLSEN
Anti-Bullying Lesson Plans
Since 1990,
GLSEN
has been working to make K-12 schools safe places for all students, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. Today, GLSEN inclusive programming can be found in tens of thousands of schools nationwide, and educators, students, and parents can find a wide variety of free resources on their website. Their lesson plans and toolkits for K-12 teachers and students encourage dialogue about addressing bias and creating inclusive communities. Check out their
teacher guides
, and
access lesson plans
about LGBTQ rights and anti-bullying strategies.
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Story of Stuff
Environmental Advocacy
The Story of Stuff Project
began as a viral video sensation and has grown into a movement working to change the way that people make, use, and throw away stuff. Their educational videos cover a wide range of topics, including the water crisis in Flint Michigan, Citizens United vs. the Federal Election Commission, and the effects of consumerism on the environment. By taking complex issues and creating engaging videos geared toward youth, The Story of Stuff is engaging the next generation in civic action and responsibility.
Access their free collection of videos
, and
jump into one of their campaigns
!
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Contact the Service in Schools Team
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Invite the Service in Schools team to visit your service project. We want to see your students and school community in action. Email the Service in Schools team at
ServiceinSchools@schools.nyc.gov
with two weeks’ notice, and we’ll schedule a visit to your school to learn about your project and see the impact you’re making on the community.
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Follow
@ServicenSchools
to receive program updates, upcoming service opportunities, resources, and more. We encourage students who use Twitter and are interested in service opportunities to follow us.
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Mission:
Service in Schools
strives to expand the number of NYC students engaged in transformative community service and service-learning experiences that enable them to use their voice, skills, and critical thinking to strengthen communities.
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