The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Inc. has announced that the following Robert P. Bell grants totaling $1,529 have been awarded to local teachers for the third quarterly grant cycle of the 2007-2008 academic year. It is estimated that nearly 1,400 Delaware County students will benefit from these grants.
- Karla Riggin and Anita Jones, Selma Middle School, were awarded $347 for a project about the disappearing species of the rainforest. Seventh grade science students will study rainforest animals in danger of becoming extinct and will create their own brochures discussing the issues facing these animals and the decline in amphibian populations. Students will create outdoor habitats for frogs on school grounds and then monitor and record observations about the habitats' use. The unit will culminate with the students partnering with twelfth grade art students and a local artists' group to create a permanent wall mural featuring a rainforest ecosystem.
- Vicki Marcus, Muncie Southside High School, was awarded $107 for tenth grade English students to create a booklet titled "Becoming Myself: A Collection of Stories and Poems." After reading a variety of selections from published writers including Malcolm X, Frank McCourt, Langston Hughes, and Gary Soto, students will write autobiographical stories and poems of their own. They will be encouraged to include photographs and original artwork to enhance their books. After studying collage artist, Romare Bearden, students will be given an opportunity to create a collage of their own in the Bearden style.
- Adam Winters, Wapahani High School, was awarded $350 for advanced placement environmental science students to create a community orchard and garden project. Eventually this orchard and garden will be opened to the community and become a source of naturally grown food without the addition of pesticides or packaging.
- Trent McCormick, Yorktown Middle School, was awarded $335 for eighth grade science students to study the anatomy of invertebrates. The students will have the opportunity to work in groups to dissect a 12" to 16" squid and compare the anatomical structures to that of vertebrates.
- Sara Jarvis, Washington-Carver Elementary School, was awarded $131 for third grade students to study the migration of Monarch butterflies. Just as the butterflies return from Mexico in March, students will receive letters from pen pals from a Mexican sister school. Students will compare various types of butterflies and raise their own Painted Lady butterflies from the caterpillar stage. The hatched butterflies will be released into the school's outdoor lab, and students will plant flowers to attract butterflies to the school in the future.
- Ann Gardner and Cheryl Schlenker, Wes-Del Middle School, were awarded $173 for middle school students to create a wooden game about the functions of the human body and nutrition. After the game is constructed by the middle school students, it would be shared with students in other grades during health and wellness units in their health classes.
- Sondra Siebold, Muncie Southside High School, was awarded $86 for ninth grade English students to explore indelible American characters from fiction, folklore and pop culture and how they reflect something about who we are and how we got here. The students will listen to a recent National Public Radio series, "In Character" to help understand in-depth characterization. Then, the students will create their own character sketch and plaque to honor the character studied. The unit will culminate with the students nominating their favorite character on NPR's "In Character" blog.
Bell Grants of up to $350 are awarded to teachers with innovative ideas, programs or projects designed to stimulate learning in their students. The next deadline for Bell Grant applications is April 1, 2008. This last grant cycle of the academic year is a perfect time to request funding for projects starting in the first few months of the 2008-2009 school year.
For more information about Bell Grant applications click here or contact Suzanne Kadinger, Foundation Program Officer, at skadinger@cfmdin.org or by calling (765) 747-7181.
