My students need art and gardening materials to create four, nineteen gallon planters using origami paper cutouts, Modge Podge, three types of paint, Washi tapes, and spray enamel.
FULLY FUNDED! Mr. Steinfeld's classroom raised $446
This project is fully funded
My Students
Arts-based hands-on instruction using balanced literacy, ADL, and social skills can empower students to be more creative and independent while contributing to the community. We are requesting four 19 gallon planters, origami paper, glow-in-the-dark paint, and spray enamel to make public garden art.
Our class has 8 middle school students with autism.
There is a wide-range of diversity in both abilities and backgrounds: there are 3 girls, 3 Asian-American boys, a Latino English Language Learner, and one Caucasian boy. Our school, the SPECTRUM School is an high-needs New York City public school in a special district for students with moderate to severe disabilities. Related service providers (OT, PT, and Speech) are fully integrated into classroom activities. We collaboratively plan Workshop Model instruction using a Backwards Design framework aligned to Common Core State Standards and College and Career Readiness, with a focus on Balanced Literacy. My class goes on weekly instructional field trips, holds a monthly Publishing Party, and frequent family and parent events. As a result, my students have shown incredible progress in academics and emotional literacy. Together we have become our own close-knit family of lifelong learners.
My Project
Our FUNctional Garden Art project involves a series of classroom activities and instructional trips:
- Plan and gather materials
- Brainstorm designs and make drawings
- Create four, nineteen gallon planters using paint, paper cut-outs, and mixed media (at a working community garden)
- Complete designs and add glow in the dark paint
- Go to a local New York Restoration Project Garden (NYRP), a smaller symmetrical formal garden where the planters will be installed, to layout where and how we will place them
- Go to a car restoration shop to learn about industrial processes and enamel the planters, to make them weather-proof
- Create hand-made flyers and invitations to publicize our art installation opening and NYRP garden party
- Take a walking trip to distribute/hang our flyers at all of the community places we have been to throughout the year (e.g. laundromat, grocery); send to a local blog
- Have an Art Installation Opening Garden Party at the NYRP Garden to give back and celebrate
Through a step-by-step differentiated and scaffolded process, students will learn how they can design and create art as a way to give back to our community.
The project will foster a high-level of independent student engagement across academics (e.g. ELA - sequencing; informational flyers), social and pre-vocational skills (e.g. cooperation), and activities of daily living. Donations will empower students with autism to create functional public art that can beautify and serve the community.
More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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