COLLINGTON SQUARE — ACTIVITIES

 

 
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COLLINGTON SQUARE  — Elementary School #97
Baltimore, Maryland

February – March 2001

Status Report

  Program Management

  • Approximately 150 members of The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) visited Collington Square Elementary in February 2001 to learn more about Direct Instruction (DI) and the 21st Century After School Program.  Ms. Webber met with its members and described the Program, its importance to the children and the positive effect that it has had.  As a result of this meeting, the American Federation of Teachers published an article on our Program in American Teacher Magazine, a nationally published periodical.  Our Program is featured along with after school programs in Harlem and Los Angeles.  The After School Program article glosses the cover of American Teacher in its April 2001 edition.
  • Ms. Lynch, the school Parent Liaison and Ms. Webber hosted STRIVE, an African-American owned organization that conducted a workshop on job training, employment, and African-American family preservation.  Parents from Collington Square, Elmer A. Henderson and Dr. Rayner Browne were encouraged and invited to attend.  Approximately 45 parents attended the session.
  • The Reading Recovery Program is coming along.  This Program is helping our children to not only learn new vocabulary, but to comprehend word usage through sentences and discussion about the words through personal experiences.  We have found that as a result of this Program that our children are opening up about their home/family life, which has resulted in placing some of them in counseling through an established partnership with our on-site Child Psychologist of the Johns Hopkins Mental Health Office.
  • Mrs. Scroggs, Mrs. Kwaw and Mrs. Hollinger are gearing up for MSPAP preparation.  They will be conducting workshops for our parents to give them an understanding of the importance of their role in MSPAP.  Parents will be given practice exercises that they can work on with their children at home.
  • Letters were sent home to the children’s parents and teachers asking them to contact us about any special needs (academic and personal) that their children may need. Several teachers and parents contacted us and many stressed the need for additional help with multiplication and division.  While we were able to help most of the children, this posed a slight problem because two of the schools are DI, while one is not.  Math is very tricky to teach because some children only know math through DI, while some know it the traditional way.  Mrs. Kwaw and Ms. Hollinger provided training to some of the Morgan Staff so they could work more efficiently with the children.
     
  • We have found that some of our children are now entering puberty sooner than expected, so as part of the Rites of Passage for boys and girls, we will be conducting a series of workshops.  We have requested personal hygiene products for boys and girls and we will be preparing starter packets for all of the children and take them through a series of workshops on the importance of oral/personal hygiene (not sex education).  Letters have been sent home to parents and to the Principals of the schools.  Those children who have returned parent consent letters will be able to participate in the workshops.

Field Trips/Cultural Enrichment

The After School Program celebrated Black History Month.  Several parents and teachers from Collington Square, Elmer A. Henderson and Dr. Rayner Browne attended.  The following clubs celebrated this important day through the following activities:

  • Reading Circle spelled out the words Black History with each letter representing the importance of family and race.
  • Dance Club performed African dancing in traditional African attire to a Bob Marley song.
  • Spanish Club wrote their own ‘I Have a Dream’ speeches.  Some addressed the same issues that Dr. King spoke of and others talked about ridding their communities of drugs and alcohol.
  • Arts Club made, decorated and wore African masks and presented them.
  • Recreation Club wrote a mini (very mini) play about Mother (Rosa) Parks and they acted out two of the scenes.
  • Media Club educated us on the many scientific contributions of African Americans, i.e., the helicopter, the traffic light, the refrigerator, etc.

Several field trips have been taken:

  • Benjamin Banneker Museum
  • Patterson Park Ice Skating
  • Seidel’s Bowling Lanes
  • Boys & Girls Rites of Passage
  • Girl Scouts camping at the Maryland Science Center

PHOTOS


Students from Morgan State that volunteer their time to work with the elementary school students.

Retired Superior Court Judge Arthur Burnet with students from Collington Square.

 


Ms. Allegra F. McCullough, office of the governor, state of Virginia, addresses the students.

Collington Square Plan