Kindergarten Service Learning in Action
Source/Author: Mrs. Kotsko, Kindergarten Teacher
October 16, 2015
Last month, the kindergartners toured the Salvation Army Homeless Shelter to see where many of their donations will go throughout the year as they partner with them for Service Learning Project work. Upon arrival, each class delivered a donation: cards for the children to receive in welcome bags, fall centerpieces they made for the cafeteria tables, and small fleece pillows for the children to cozy their beds with. On their tour they also saw the food pantry, the cafeteria, the family apartments, the men's shelter, the emergency shelter, the children's playground, a playroom, the library and the job center.
After the trip, classes brainstormed a list of ways they could offer help. As the year progresses, they will turn those ideas into actions.
The kindergartners noticed on the tour that there weren't any books in the family apartments of the Shelter. Initially, the Shorecrest students wanted to donate books remaining from the Scholastic Book Fair, but when that couldn't pan out they tried a new idea. They decided to give books from their own bookshelves. This month, kindergartners collected books from home in good condition to donate. Now, children living in the shelter can have their own books to read and keep, rather than only using the Shelter’s shared library.
