No getting bored with this board for Charm students
By Dave Mast
February 8, 2011
327
With the kids being in their first year of school, and being just 5-years-old, kindergartners can often have a hard time getting their schedule down pat for the day. Thanks to a generous grant from a local group, the kindergarten students at Charm Elementary will have a chance to become better organized, as well as take in some fun learning activities.
This past January, Charm Elementary received a grant totaling $300 from the Millersburg Modern Mothers Club for the purchase of the software program Boardmaker. This program is specifically designed for teachers to utilize as a resource in developing vocabulary and multi-step directions through the use of pictures. The grant was requested by Kathy Shoup, parent coordinator for East Holmes Local Schools.
This marks the second time the Modern Mothers Club has helped support one of Shoups grant requests, and Shoup said that the grant money is greatly appreciated.
Theyve been great to work with over the years, and our first grant was to provide guided reading materials, which has been a great success, said Shoup.
Boardmaker lets teachers create valuable printed materials, like communication boards, sequences and schedules that help their students cope with both organization and learning. Boardmaker features easy-to-use options that allow teachers to design their own materials, with symbols supported in 44 languages, and choose the topics, symbols, labels, colors and borders they want to implement.
Its all designed to help students use both pictures and words to reach classroom goals and foster more independence, said Shoup. Teachers who have used Boardmaker say that they have really seen increased performance in their kids, and that it really makes a big difference in their ability to sequence their days.
This program will provide another tool for teachers to utilize as a means of meeting the individual educational needs of each student.
Shoup noted that major student benefits gained from this program include association of pictures with new vocabulary, thus increasing overall comprehension and appropriate usage of new words. Directions, under this program, also become simplified as the teacher may display a collection of picture cue cards which serve as visual reminders of necessary steps to be taken for the completion of assignments and daily routines. In addition, there are also learning opportunities featuring sequencing games and matching games that can be implemented into the everyday routine.
This process will allow the students to visually see and, in some cases, manipulate their accomplishments into a completed pile when working independently, all the while fostering individual confidence, said Shoup.
Boardmaker will be implemented throughout Charm Elementary, with assistance provided by Shoup. In addition to extensive usage at the school, home visits made by Shoup will also contain the program as a forum of greatly assisting students with the acquisition of new vocabulary, as well as day-to-day routines and directives in order to reach the ultimate goal of East Holmes Local Schools; success for each child.
Shoup said that there will be a one-hour in-service meeting for teachers where they can gain knowledge in operation of the software, which will take place at the end of February.
I am hopeful that within one month, we will be up and running at pretty much full speed with the Boardmaker, said Shoup. I think it can be a really great asset to the kindergarten teachers. While the grant was created specifically for Charm Elementary, hopefully we will see it being used throughout the district.
