Professional Development School makes a difference in students’ lives
By Lisa R. Baldi
If you visit Glenside Elementary School after the last bell rings, you might be surprised to see that many children choose to “stay after school.” Some are working on community service projects; others are exploring what life is like in a foreign country; and still others are learning firsthand about the benefits of teamwork and sportsmanship. These children have joined one of the three after-school clubs started by Penn State Berks student teachers as part of the Professional Development School.
Penn State Berks Childhood and Early Education majors who are completing their student teaching at Glenside are enjoying a unique opportunity to be part of an exciting new venture: the Professional Development School that Penn State Berks and the Reading School District have partnered to create. This year, seven student teachers are completing their student teaching at Glenside, and they see this as an exciting opportunity to have a real impact on at-risk children.
This year, the student teachers took their teaching assignments one step further, at the request of Glenside Principal Melissa Fisher, with service projects at the elementary school. They created three different after-school clubs: the Character Club, Culture Club, and Sports Club. Each club will meet for two seven-week sessions, from December 5, 2014–April 30, 2015. Each session will include fifteen children.
The Character Club, created by student teachers Christina Changalis and Chelsea Ferguson, is for first graders and its goal is to encourage participants to become contributing members of
society. Participants will make fleece blankets for children in the hospital, create a birdbath for the Glenside garden, and complete other community service projects. They will also learn how to
hold a fundraiser for a nonprofit organization, which has not yet been identified.
“The goal is for the children to learn to help others, and develop empathy, open-mindedness, respect, and self-esteem,” explains Changalis.
Students with an interest in travel can join the Culture Club. The mission of the club is to expose third graders to cultures and places around the world. The three student teachers who started the club–Megan Boyer, Ashleigh Groome, and Katie Unger–want to help expand the children’s knowledge of other cultures while deepening their appreciation of their own culture.
According to Groome, each week they will focus on a new country, discussing major cities, traditions, music, and food. The children will receive passports that will be stamped each week. At the end of the school year, the student teachers are planning an international dinner for the third graders and their families. They are also planning to create cookbooks that include all the dishes from the dinner.
Student athletes are not left out in the cold. The Sports Club, created by student teachers Denise Avram and Courtney Lucarelli, incorporates team-building activities and exposes young girls to the benefits of being a part of a team sport.
“Each week, the girls will learn about and participate in various sports such as volleyball, basketball, field hockey, and yoga,” states Avram. “The girls will have the opportunity to play, keep score,
and mange the sidelines. We want to promote the health benefits of staying active.”
The Professional Development School (PDS) was formed in 2014 as a dynamic partnership in which college and school district students and faculty collaborate to enhance learning for all. Glenside Elementary School is the first site of the partnership and will serve as a model for future collaboration.
Dr. Carole Roberts, Program Coordinator for the Penn State Berks Childhood and Early Education degree program and Supervisor of Student Teaching, explained that Penn State Berks wanted to partner with Glenside due to its close proximity to the college, diverse student body, and strong administrative leadership. She credits Glenside Principal Melissa Fisher, a Penn State alumna, with making the Professional Development School a reality.
“Working collaboratively we can create extended opportunities for the Glenside students, as well as the Penn State Berks student teachers,” explains Roberts.
This year, Penn State Berks student teachers held a family literacy night at Glenside with a “Frozen” theme, and one lucky student received a Kindle. In addition, Berks education faculty held a health fair for Glenside students and their parents with information stations and free give-aways.
From the first year of the partnership, student teachers and faculty members have been active in bringing after-school programming to Glenside. Some of these programs include literacy tutoring such as the United Way’s Ready! Set! Read! program, family science nights, and a Tae Kwan Do and Yoga program.
In the spring of 2104, another group of student teachers and elementary school children joined forces to revitalize the garden at the elementary school. All their hard work culminated in a Garden Party, where the elementary school students had an opportunity to share their hard work with their parents and everyone had an opportunity to celebrate the collaboration between Penn State Berks and Glenside Elementary School.