When I first began sharing my personal volunteer experiences with my CM2 students, it became abundantly clear that they wanted to become involved in Hurricane Sandy relief themselves. Several students brought in baby wipes, toys and other assorted items, which I delivered to those in need on my weekend trips to the Rockaways and Staten Island in the months following Hurricane Sandy.
I was delighted when I first found out that, thanks to the NY Board of Education, the LFNY would be partnered with Little Tots Red Wagon Preschool in Breezy Point. I saw it as a way for my students and others in our community to have a more hands on service learning experience.
Preparing for our visit to Little Tots
In preparation for our trip this past Wednesday, February 27th, we spent several weeks organizing our visit. We looked at pictures of Breezy Point both before and after Sandy. We also studied the history and architecture of the community, which included familiarizing ourselves with pertinent vocabulary such as “bungalow,” and “first responder.”
My CM2 students saw a video about the school that was included in an indiegogo campaign started by David Anderson, a preschool teacher in Manhattan. The video was sobering, as we learned more about the students and the school we would be visiting. We saw pictures of the two to four year olds (pre-Sandy), cooking, playing dress-up, and listening attentively to their teachers read them a story. We also saw before and after pictures of the school and its surroundings and learned that 25% of the 91-student body had a parent who is a first responder, and another 25% had parents in education. We learned that as of mid-November (and quite likely as of today), 85 of the students had not been able to return home, and that every single teacher’s home had been severely flooded. We discussed what it must feel like to be displaced.
Our visit
In the weeks and days before setting out to Little Tots, the class was split into several groups that would lead center activities with the preschoolers. We got this idea from Jamie Zeigler Laurens and her 10th grade students who shared their experiences of visiting Little Tots and what worked well for them.
We had discussions about the developmental stages of 3-4 year olds and talked about ways in which we could both understand and engage them. We decided upon a music group, an arts and crafts group, a bowling group, a read-aloud group, and an obstacle course group. Lucia Vinuales, one of my CM2 students, graciously learned the chords for Frere Jacques on the guitar and several students including Lola, Jacques, and Achille brought in puppets to help act out the books we would be reading with the students.
Theresa Hyland, the director of Little Tots Red Wagon, suggested we tie in a theme with our visit and we settled on a French influenced animal theme. We read several books from the Babar series, and the arts and crafts group made animal masks with the students. Overall, our visit to Little Tots Red Wagon, was a great success!
Reflections
Our service learning experience didn’t end when we boarded the bus and headed back to 75th Street. Students can’t learn about their experience providing service, unless they are afforded time to reflect. Using the L.I.F.E. Reflection model, students reflected on their experiences when we met as a class after our trip. The following are some of my CM2s responses:
What did you learn?
Esther: During this legendary trip, I learned that it takes a lot of responsibility, energy, and planning to create a nice field trip and to play with toddlers.
Morgan: I learned that helping somebody doesn’t only make them happy, but it makes you happy too.
I for IdeasWhat new ideas do you have now?
Gabriel: I have thought about reorganizing the event so we could experience it again.
F for FeelingsHow did you feel about your experience?
Quentin: I felt happy because I got a chance to make the little kids happy and entertained.
Youssef: If I had to say one word it would be: amazing. I am really happy Ms. Burke brought us to the school to help out people who were affected by Sandy.
E for ExcitedWhat did you get excited about?
Henry: I felt excited because we made a difference. They needed to have fun and forget about the horrible memories…
Ondine: I was very excited to see the kids. I couldn’t stop smiling when I saw them! It really thrilled me to see them!
Lastly, I would like to thank Vivanne Kurzweil for her collaborating and organizing skills! We would not have been able to make this journey without her. I would also like to thank Molly Grogan, our parent volunteer for accompanying us on our trip and all of her help corralling both our CM2 students and the Little Tots Red Wagon preschoolers!
About the Author :
Mary Kate Burke has been teaching English in the Primary program at the Lycee since 2011. She has been involved in service learning projects since she was a student herself. More recently Ms. Burke has led several grassroots initiatives in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, connecting with families in the Rockaways and Staten Island. She has enjoyed sharing her personal volunteer experiences with her students and is both impressed and proud of their hard work and dedication both in the classroom and out.