Early Elementary
Meghann Gullo: Growing Minds Need a Growth Mindset
Students in second grade will learn to see their mistakes as a positive thing while learning about Growth Mindset, using books provided by this grant.
Nick Travis: STEAM Lab Power-Up
Additional STEAM materials will be available for all Early Elementary students. Osobot Dual Pack, Creative Lego Brick set, Osmo Number kits and Magna Tiles are just a few of the exciting items allowing these students to have hands-on STEAM experiences in the weekly STEAM lab.
Miranda Frisbie: Little Fingers, Little Fingers, I'll teach you
Kindergarteners will have the option to take check out an "activity bag" to take home for a few days. These bags will be centered around fine motor growth activities students can complete with their families. Letter beads, sandpaper numbers and sorting pie game are just some of the fun items in these bags!
Nicole Spaulding: Keep Calm and Play Outside, Rainbow Words Their Way!
Second graders who like to stay busy and active will have the opportunity to do so on the soccer field with a wagon full of balls, hula hoops and easy steppers. Movement and fresh air will help them grow and learn while inside the classroom. The Words Their Way program in second grade will thrive now with additional organizational materials. This program encourages students to work with words by sorting, spelling, writing and saying them all at their specific level.
Andrea Eash: STEAMING Right Along, Struggling Readers In Search Of Best Fit Books
STEAM games and activities for 2nd grade students in Ms. Eash’s class will be enhanced with items such as Tumble Trax Magnetic Marble Run, Keva Brain Builders and Tinkertoy Building sets. Second graders will fall in love with reading by offering expanded options of reading levels to engage them with recognizable authors and characters
Cari Konold: Fine Motor Boot Camp
Fine Motor Boot camp is coming to Young 5s and Kindergarten. The curriculum uses 25 activities to address fine motor skills, language concepts, activities of daily living, math concepts and literacy skills.
Jason DeLille: Painting like Vincent VanGogh
Watch out as the kindergarteners paint in all sorts of creative styles while keeping their clothes clean with new art smocks.
Elizabeth Hawkins: Writer's Workshop Tools
Kindergarteners in Ms. Hawkins’ class will have new options for flexible seating during Writers Workshop using lap desks to encourage writing stamina.
Julie VanderEnde: Classroom Library Spruce Up
First graders in Ms. VanderEnde’s class will have access to a variety of books across 13 levels of reading.
Nicole Keorkunian: Everyone Can Read!
Young Fives classrooms will have access to books sets to allow students to choose leveled appropriate text. Teachers will work cooperatively with each other and through the Essentials Coaching Model with the building Literacy coach to encourage and maintain a love of books.
Katie Malone: TUBS FOR TOTS!!
Using tubs filled with building, construction, and STEAM toys and materials, students in the Young 5s classrooms will incorporate play and learning into their morning routine with hands on fun.
Meghan Travis: Math Family Night: Math Game Bags
Students and families in the Early Elementary will enjoy the 3rd annual evening of math games. Students will receive a take-home bag promoting math and family fun.
Deb Milka: The Classical Classroom
Second graders in Mrs. Milka’s class will be enriched with audio CDs of books about classical composers. Children will have the chance to learn more about the people who wrote the music they listen to throughout the day.
Later Elementary
Patti O’Strander: Collaboration and Problem Solving Kits
Breakout EDU kits will encourage critical thinking skills, collaboration and communication amongst Later Elementary students in Mrs. O’Strander’s 5th grade classes. Students will have access to over 350 activities with these kits incorporating STEAM into their day in a gaming learning environment.
Jen Omo: Survivor Week
Survivor Week and an Amazing Race activity will continue its tradition for 150 third graders. They will compete in inspiring academic and physical activities that will challenge their intellectual, cooperative and athletic skills using Breakout EDU kits.
Susan Hagenbarth :Escape Room Social Studies Unit Wrap Ups
Students in Mrs. Hagenbarth’s 5th grade class will practice hands-on, practical problem-solving skills while completing activities utilizing these Escape Room Adventures. Students will have a "secret mission" that reinforces their social studies subject matter.
Jen Becraft: Groovy Gears
STEAM activities for 5th graders will now include building "Bionic Bugs" and "Crazy Copter". These kits will supplement the current Forces and Motion Science curriculum with the Simple Machines unit on gears.
Jason Osborn: Developing Our Student's Voices
The Later Elementary students in Mr. Osborn’s technology classes will have the opportunity to create podcasts in an acoustic paneled environment, highlighting elements from their core classes.
Stephanie Comrie: Interactive History
Students in Mrs. Comrie’s 4th grade class will be able to "go back in time" to learn about the Revolutionary War by using interactive history books during Readers and Writers workshop.
Kathy Sills: Diverse Attention-Grabbing Realistic Fiction
The 4th grade Language Arts curriculum will be enhanced with additional realistic fiction books. These books will focus on diversity, strong female characters, and stories about people who have overcome challenges.
Rachel Lam: Pedal Pushers
A stationary bike that is specifically designed for elementary-aged children and adjusts for their varying sizes will be available to all Later Elementary students to help de-stress, calm down, get moving or just take a break.
Bridget Smith: Versa Tiles
Math skills will blossom with Versa Tiles for third grade students, helping solidify higher level thinking.
Jennifer Wolff: Tools for success
Mrs. Wolff’s 3rd graders will be inspired readers using Toobaloo to help them listen to their reading and increase comprehension and fluency. The popular Who Would Win books will make a great addition to the informational book reading program.
Toni Brown: 3rd Grade Math Learning Palette Class Kit
Third graders will have the chance to use Learning Palette. This will provide students with a fun, easy to use, hands on way to strengthen math skills independently or during center time without disturbing others.
Karey Engels: 2018 Mock Newberry
Students in Mrs. Engels 5th grade classroom will be collaborating with another 5th grade class in Zeeland to talk about, compare and predict the winners of the 2018 Newberry Award.
Middle School
Elizabeth Fiske: The Ancient Civilizations of Latin America
Kids Discover magazines for Mrs. Fiske’s 6th graders will let students research the Aztec, Incan, and Mayan civilizations to create an informative display allowing other students to learn from their creations.
Anne Weston: Expanding the Hometown Hero Award Documentary Project
Additional film equipment will be available to the 8th grade Language Arts classes. Students will be challenged to film, edit and present a polished, persuasive final piece. One of last year’s films was highlighted at the Mattawan Hometown Hero Ceremony.
John Ablao, Karin Fender: Salmon in the Classroom
Students in the 6th grade will continue to partner with the Michigan DNR, picking up 200 salmon eggs from the Wolf Lake Fish Hatchery. They will watch them develop while monitoring the water conditions.
Josh Smeader: Broadcasting Class
The brand new middle school broadcasting class will be have 'kits' available to complete their highly creative projects. These kits will include camera, tripod and a microphone.
Laurie Hogan-McLean: Building Bridges With Book Clubs
The 8th grade Language Arts program Building Bridges with Book Clubs will have additional books to choose from that promote understanding of characters with disabilities such as autism and vision loss.
Susie Schierbeek: ELA Essentials: Headphones
New headphones will be available to students participating in programs such as LANGUAGE! Live, helping to improve their reading while being exposed to complex text and rigorous vocabulary, working at their own pace online.
Eric Hayner: Bee-Inspired Beekeeping Club
Our Bee-Inspired Bee Keeping Club will increase its honey potential by adding to the current colonies that the Thrive Program maintains.
Brian Newman: Hands on = Minds on!
The Tower Challenge for Mr. Newman’s 8th graders will be greatly enriched using K'Nex building sets for a greater hands on experience.
High School
Leslie Ptacek: Frames for artwork display
Students in the high school art classes will have the opportunity to have their work matted and framed and displayed throughout our community with this Brain Strong grant.
Kelsi Hiester: Thrive Life Skills
The high school Thrive classroom will utilize a punch clock that will help prepare them to live life independently after leaving high school.
Jennifer Nyberg: Read Each Day
Tenth grade English students in Mrs. Nyberg’s classes will have access to an enriched selection of high interest books to encourage more daily reading while helping students meet the Common Core Standards and prepare them for the SAT Writing Test.
Rachel Haas: Dissolved Oxygen Exploration
AP Biology students will learn how to use the Winkler Method to calculate dissolved oxygen in water in a new lab. These test kits will allow the students to travel outside the classroom to learn about water quality.
Liz Henk: Muscular & Skeletal System Fat Heads
Large self-adhering charts of the human body will offer athletic training and health and wellness students opportunity to understand and label the muscular and skeletal system.
Matt Boven: Drone Photography
High school digital media students will have the opportunity to make HD videos of mind-blowing landscapes and aerial shots with a Typhoon 4K Drone.
Meghann Gullo: Growing Minds Need a Growth Mindset
Students in second grade will learn to see their mistakes as a positive thing while learning about Growth Mindset, using books provided by this grant.
Nick Travis: STEAM Lab Power-Up
Additional STEAM materials will be available for all Early Elementary students. Osobot Dual Pack, Creative Lego Brick set, Osmo Number kits and Magna Tiles are just a few of the exciting items allowing these students to have hands-on STEAM experiences in the weekly STEAM lab.
Miranda Frisbie: Little Fingers, Little Fingers, I'll teach you
Kindergarteners will have the option to take check out an "activity bag" to take home for a few days. These bags will be centered around fine motor growth activities students can complete with their families. Letter beads, sandpaper numbers and sorting pie game are just some of the fun items in these bags!
Nicole Spaulding: Keep Calm and Play Outside, Rainbow Words Their Way!
Second graders who like to stay busy and active will have the opportunity to do so on the soccer field with a wagon full of balls, hula hoops and easy steppers. Movement and fresh air will help them grow and learn while inside the classroom. The Words Their Way program in second grade will thrive now with additional organizational materials. This program encourages students to work with words by sorting, spelling, writing and saying them all at their specific level.
Andrea Eash: STEAMING Right Along, Struggling Readers In Search Of Best Fit Books
STEAM games and activities for 2nd grade students in Ms. Eash’s class will be enhanced with items such as Tumble Trax Magnetic Marble Run, Keva Brain Builders and Tinkertoy Building sets. Second graders will fall in love with reading by offering expanded options of reading levels to engage them with recognizable authors and characters
Cari Konold: Fine Motor Boot Camp
Fine Motor Boot camp is coming to Young 5s and Kindergarten. The curriculum uses 25 activities to address fine motor skills, language concepts, activities of daily living, math concepts and literacy skills.
Jason DeLille: Painting like Vincent VanGogh
Watch out as the kindergarteners paint in all sorts of creative styles while keeping their clothes clean with new art smocks.
Elizabeth Hawkins: Writer's Workshop Tools
Kindergarteners in Ms. Hawkins’ class will have new options for flexible seating during Writers Workshop using lap desks to encourage writing stamina.
Julie VanderEnde: Classroom Library Spruce Up
First graders in Ms. VanderEnde’s class will have access to a variety of books across 13 levels of reading.
Nicole Keorkunian: Everyone Can Read!
Young Fives classrooms will have access to books sets to allow students to choose leveled appropriate text. Teachers will work cooperatively with each other and through the Essentials Coaching Model with the building Literacy coach to encourage and maintain a love of books.
Katie Malone: TUBS FOR TOTS!!
Using tubs filled with building, construction, and STEAM toys and materials, students in the Young 5s classrooms will incorporate play and learning into their morning routine with hands on fun.
Meghan Travis: Math Family Night: Math Game Bags
Students and families in the Early Elementary will enjoy the 3rd annual evening of math games. Students will receive a take-home bag promoting math and family fun.
Deb Milka: The Classical Classroom
Second graders in Mrs. Milka’s class will be enriched with audio CDs of books about classical composers. Children will have the chance to learn more about the people who wrote the music they listen to throughout the day.
Later Elementary
Patti O’Strander: Collaboration and Problem Solving Kits
Breakout EDU kits will encourage critical thinking skills, collaboration and communication amongst Later Elementary students in Mrs. O’Strander’s 5th grade classes. Students will have access to over 350 activities with these kits incorporating STEAM into their day in a gaming learning environment.
Jen Omo: Survivor Week
Survivor Week and an Amazing Race activity will continue its tradition for 150 third graders. They will compete in inspiring academic and physical activities that will challenge their intellectual, cooperative and athletic skills using Breakout EDU kits.
Susan Hagenbarth :Escape Room Social Studies Unit Wrap Ups
Students in Mrs. Hagenbarth’s 5th grade class will practice hands-on, practical problem-solving skills while completing activities utilizing these Escape Room Adventures. Students will have a "secret mission" that reinforces their social studies subject matter.
Jen Becraft: Groovy Gears
STEAM activities for 5th graders will now include building "Bionic Bugs" and "Crazy Copter". These kits will supplement the current Forces and Motion Science curriculum with the Simple Machines unit on gears.
Jason Osborn: Developing Our Student's Voices
The Later Elementary students in Mr. Osborn’s technology classes will have the opportunity to create podcasts in an acoustic paneled environment, highlighting elements from their core classes.
Stephanie Comrie: Interactive History
Students in Mrs. Comrie’s 4th grade class will be able to "go back in time" to learn about the Revolutionary War by using interactive history books during Readers and Writers workshop.
Kathy Sills: Diverse Attention-Grabbing Realistic Fiction
The 4th grade Language Arts curriculum will be enhanced with additional realistic fiction books. These books will focus on diversity, strong female characters, and stories about people who have overcome challenges.
Rachel Lam: Pedal Pushers
A stationary bike that is specifically designed for elementary-aged children and adjusts for their varying sizes will be available to all Later Elementary students to help de-stress, calm down, get moving or just take a break.
Bridget Smith: Versa Tiles
Math skills will blossom with Versa Tiles for third grade students, helping solidify higher level thinking.
Jennifer Wolff: Tools for success
Mrs. Wolff’s 3rd graders will be inspired readers using Toobaloo to help them listen to their reading and increase comprehension and fluency. The popular Who Would Win books will make a great addition to the informational book reading program.
Toni Brown: 3rd Grade Math Learning Palette Class Kit
Third graders will have the chance to use Learning Palette. This will provide students with a fun, easy to use, hands on way to strengthen math skills independently or during center time without disturbing others.
Karey Engels: 2018 Mock Newberry
Students in Mrs. Engels 5th grade classroom will be collaborating with another 5th grade class in Zeeland to talk about, compare and predict the winners of the 2018 Newberry Award.
Middle School
Elizabeth Fiske: The Ancient Civilizations of Latin America
Kids Discover magazines for Mrs. Fiske’s 6th graders will let students research the Aztec, Incan, and Mayan civilizations to create an informative display allowing other students to learn from their creations.
Anne Weston: Expanding the Hometown Hero Award Documentary Project
Additional film equipment will be available to the 8th grade Language Arts classes. Students will be challenged to film, edit and present a polished, persuasive final piece. One of last year’s films was highlighted at the Mattawan Hometown Hero Ceremony.
John Ablao, Karin Fender: Salmon in the Classroom
Students in the 6th grade will continue to partner with the Michigan DNR, picking up 200 salmon eggs from the Wolf Lake Fish Hatchery. They will watch them develop while monitoring the water conditions.
Josh Smeader: Broadcasting Class
The brand new middle school broadcasting class will be have 'kits' available to complete their highly creative projects. These kits will include camera, tripod and a microphone.
Laurie Hogan-McLean: Building Bridges With Book Clubs
The 8th grade Language Arts program Building Bridges with Book Clubs will have additional books to choose from that promote understanding of characters with disabilities such as autism and vision loss.
Susie Schierbeek: ELA Essentials: Headphones
New headphones will be available to students participating in programs such as LANGUAGE! Live, helping to improve their reading while being exposed to complex text and rigorous vocabulary, working at their own pace online.
Eric Hayner: Bee-Inspired Beekeeping Club
Our Bee-Inspired Bee Keeping Club will increase its honey potential by adding to the current colonies that the Thrive Program maintains.
Brian Newman: Hands on = Minds on!
The Tower Challenge for Mr. Newman’s 8th graders will be greatly enriched using K'Nex building sets for a greater hands on experience.
High School
Leslie Ptacek: Frames for artwork display
Students in the high school art classes will have the opportunity to have their work matted and framed and displayed throughout our community with this Brain Strong grant.
Kelsi Hiester: Thrive Life Skills
The high school Thrive classroom will utilize a punch clock that will help prepare them to live life independently after leaving high school.
Jennifer Nyberg: Read Each Day
Tenth grade English students in Mrs. Nyberg’s classes will have access to an enriched selection of high interest books to encourage more daily reading while helping students meet the Common Core Standards and prepare them for the SAT Writing Test.
Rachel Haas: Dissolved Oxygen Exploration
AP Biology students will learn how to use the Winkler Method to calculate dissolved oxygen in water in a new lab. These test kits will allow the students to travel outside the classroom to learn about water quality.
Liz Henk: Muscular & Skeletal System Fat Heads
Large self-adhering charts of the human body will offer athletic training and health and wellness students opportunity to understand and label the muscular and skeletal system.
Matt Boven: Drone Photography
High school digital media students will have the opportunity to make HD videos of mind-blowing landscapes and aerial shots with a Typhoon 4K Drone.
