My students need shade! We have 8 round tables in the middle school lunch area that need umbrellas so we can provide shade to students who do not/cannot sit in the sun everyday.
We are an amazing group of middle school students in grades 6, 7, and 8 at a K-8 school in sunny San Diego, CA. We are an awesome school community from rich diverse backgrounds. We are from far places like the Philippines, Mexico, Japan, Guam, Samoa, Somalia, Laos, Vietnam, and England. We are from not-so-far places like Hawaii, Washington, Virginia, Boston, Texas and San Francisco. Most of us have been at this school since Kindergarten so school is our safe and trusted place; our second home. It's a place where we learn, build, collaborate, socialize, experiment, lead, solve problems, care for each other and be our best selves.
This year, our middle school has led important projects such as "International Dot Day" where students are inspired to believe in their own abilities, "It Starts with Hello" an initiative to end social isolation, and "The Kindness Challenge" where students are encouraged to be kind to one another in many ways.
We also were involved in toy drives, organized our community Fall Festival, and facilitated a middle school "Block Party" which focused on team building events.
We are truly spectacular.
My Project
A few years ago, our school added 6th, 7th and 8th grades to our K-5 school. They brought in 12 bungalows, stuck them on part of the dirt field, and put 8 round tables and 2 benches on the blacktop in front of the bungalows. This is the middle school lunch/multi-use area. Plain metal tables and benches on a hot blacktop.
We would love to add some umbrellas since it is hot and sunny most of the year, and many students cannot or don't want to sit out in the sun for that long everyday increasing their risk of sun damage/skin cancers.
They are begging teachers to eat in our classrooms, which invite insect and rodent problems, or they are crouching under eaves of the classrooms not using the tables altogether. Teachers would also like to utilize this area for teaching and learning-many students learn better outside with fresh air instead of in a classroom all day. However, without any shade it's not possible. We would also like to add some flower boxes along the rails , and get a tree or two, to make our learning environment more positive, inviting, and bright!
More than half 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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