CAROL MARTIN FUND
Grants from this fund are made possible by the extremely generous bequest from former Jeffers Elementary School teacher, Carol Martin. Carol Martin, a devoted kindergarten teacher, touched many young lives during her thirty-three years at Jeffers Elementary School until she retired in 1993. Ms. Martin passed away in 2009, but her devotion to elementary education continues. Her wish was for “the SLSF to use the funds to optimally benefit and contribute to the education of elementary age children in the Spring Lake Public School system.” Ms. Martin's endowed fund has grown through the years to over $525,000 and is held at the Grand Haven Area Community foundation. Grants from this fund are available for K-6 educators.
2021 - 2022 Carol Martin Fund Grants
In 2022, $27,309 was awarded from the Carol Martin endowed fund to 16 different projects. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
Reflex Fact Fluency
Mary VandenBosch, Caryn Lannon, and Julie Marcus
This program helps students to practice fluency in math facts in an engaging way. Studies have shown that students who are fluent in these facts are better able to learn more difficult math concepts. Being fluent on these facts supports the mission of maintaining academic excellence in an engaging way. Reflex is designed to coach students on basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts that they do not know and practice fluency, while factoring out typing speed.
Targeted Phonics Instruction
Mary Schuitema
An academic based literacy program that is designed to keep students engaged while learning phonics and reading skills. The main component of this program is technology based and allows all students to access quality technology based instruction.
We Love Our Old Favorites!
Jenna Visniski
Old Favorite books for students to read, keep in their book boxes and to help foster the LOVE of reading!
Old Favorites
Jenna Visniski
Additional Old Favorite books for students to read, keep in their book boxes and to help foster the LOVE of reading!
Green Screen Technology
Sarah Taylor
Tools necessary for green screen technology using Do Ink for the Intermediate School teachers to use in their classrooms. Green screen technology is a video production technique in which two or more video or image streams are layered together. It is a way for students to create and reflect on their learning. The ideas for this technology are endless. Materials are portable and can be used in many different settings. The idea is to bring learning to life, get parents involved with broadcasting live projects, and student collaboration. This grant money would reach all students at the Intermediate School.
Low Level/High Interest Nonfiction Books
Kelly Ortquist
Finding quality nonfiction material for strong readers is easy, but finding quality nonfiction literature for struggling readers is a challenge. These books will supplement the third grade classroom libraries and offer more nonfiction variety for our struggling readers.
Deepening the Experience with Discovery Education
Mary VandenBosch, Caryn Lannon, Amy Berry, Kevin Teays
One year site license to Discovery Education Experience for all the the students, DK-4 at Holmes. Discovery Education is a digital learning platform that provides carefully curated and vetted videos, virtual field trips, and more. In a time of uncertainty, when field trips have been cancelled or difficult to arrange, this resource helps to break down the walls of our classroom. It will enhance our science and social studies curriculum, so that we can provide a broader scope of learning than what is currently available and provide more opportunities for academic excellence and global learning.
Know Thyself through 3D Printing
Abram Overway
Know Thyself is a project that centers on students examining their own self-concept of who they are and expressing a small piece of their self-concept through the process of creative design and 3D printing. The final product, and thus every 5th grader, are then showcased and validated. I believe this project is innovative, because we are celebrating the individuality of each 5th grader through technological production.
Kindergarten Purposeful Play 'Refreshed'
Mary Borchers
A refresh and update the Purposeful Play materials. Purposeful play involves much cooperation and problem solving socially for our students. It not only teaches them to create and build open ended projects but also helps them learn basic skills for their world outside of the school setting. These past two years our students have missed out on social time due to COVID19 and need this play time more than ever to build social skills.
SEL Curriculum
Madison Nogar & Gabriella Perez Pala
A three year membership to an evidence based and highly supported curriculum. Everyday Speech was created by Speech and Language Pathologists to provide current and relevant Social Emotional Learning resources to meet the growing needs of students at younger ages. This membership will be shared by both elementary social workers so all students in both buildings have access to the same knowledge and resources.
Building the Foundation to Reading with Phonemic Awareness
Megan Dean
Kids come first. As teachers, utilizing this curriculum in our classroom, we are equipping our students with a solid foundation to build and grow upon in the future. It will allow them to grow with confidence, bloom into successful readers and writers. If we want to maintain academic excellence, we must utilize the most updated, successful curriculum.
Supporting at Home Literacy: Baggie Book Library Plan
Amanda Lauher-Smith
Book pouches, book bins, a mobile book rack and new, high-interest leveled books for my students to read, bring home and to help cultivate the LOVE of reading!
Leveled Up Libraries
Megan Dean
This grant would supply each Holmes Elementary First Grade classroom with a Level F and a Level G shelf from the Teacher's College Library Collection. These books are carefully selected to be high quality and diverse which will bring awareness of the world outside of our Spring Lake community. High quality texts will build deeper thinkers and problem solvers in our young students. These texts will also help us build a solid foundation in the area of phonics, reading and writing.
Cracking the Code with Decodable Books
Megan Dean
48 titles of decodable books for students allowing them to have a solid literacy foundation to live, learn and lead.
Adapting Art for Kids & Our Changing World
Carrie Andrews & Katlyn Almer
A year-long subscription to The Art of Education University’s PRO Learning program and funds to support the new DK and special education visual arts curricula that have been developed over the past two years.
Reflex Math
Subscription to an online math program for the entire Jeffers student body that will provide math support to our students in a fun and engaging way which will result in stronger math students who are enjoying learning. This program is researched based and provides individualized instruction, meeting students where their skill level is at and growing it from there. The simple math facts are an area where our students tend to need more practice in and this program provides that skill set in a fun and highly engaging way.
In 2022, $27,309 was awarded from the Carol Martin endowed fund to 16 different projects. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
Reflex Fact Fluency
Mary VandenBosch, Caryn Lannon, and Julie Marcus
This program helps students to practice fluency in math facts in an engaging way. Studies have shown that students who are fluent in these facts are better able to learn more difficult math concepts. Being fluent on these facts supports the mission of maintaining academic excellence in an engaging way. Reflex is designed to coach students on basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts that they do not know and practice fluency, while factoring out typing speed.
Targeted Phonics Instruction
Mary Schuitema
An academic based literacy program that is designed to keep students engaged while learning phonics and reading skills. The main component of this program is technology based and allows all students to access quality technology based instruction.
We Love Our Old Favorites!
Jenna Visniski
Old Favorite books for students to read, keep in their book boxes and to help foster the LOVE of reading!
Old Favorites
Jenna Visniski
Additional Old Favorite books for students to read, keep in their book boxes and to help foster the LOVE of reading!
Green Screen Technology
Sarah Taylor
Tools necessary for green screen technology using Do Ink for the Intermediate School teachers to use in their classrooms. Green screen technology is a video production technique in which two or more video or image streams are layered together. It is a way for students to create and reflect on their learning. The ideas for this technology are endless. Materials are portable and can be used in many different settings. The idea is to bring learning to life, get parents involved with broadcasting live projects, and student collaboration. This grant money would reach all students at the Intermediate School.
Low Level/High Interest Nonfiction Books
Kelly Ortquist
Finding quality nonfiction material for strong readers is easy, but finding quality nonfiction literature for struggling readers is a challenge. These books will supplement the third grade classroom libraries and offer more nonfiction variety for our struggling readers.
Deepening the Experience with Discovery Education
Mary VandenBosch, Caryn Lannon, Amy Berry, Kevin Teays
One year site license to Discovery Education Experience for all the the students, DK-4 at Holmes. Discovery Education is a digital learning platform that provides carefully curated and vetted videos, virtual field trips, and more. In a time of uncertainty, when field trips have been cancelled or difficult to arrange, this resource helps to break down the walls of our classroom. It will enhance our science and social studies curriculum, so that we can provide a broader scope of learning than what is currently available and provide more opportunities for academic excellence and global learning.
Know Thyself through 3D Printing
Abram Overway
Know Thyself is a project that centers on students examining their own self-concept of who they are and expressing a small piece of their self-concept through the process of creative design and 3D printing. The final product, and thus every 5th grader, are then showcased and validated. I believe this project is innovative, because we are celebrating the individuality of each 5th grader through technological production.
Kindergarten Purposeful Play 'Refreshed'
Mary Borchers
A refresh and update the Purposeful Play materials. Purposeful play involves much cooperation and problem solving socially for our students. It not only teaches them to create and build open ended projects but also helps them learn basic skills for their world outside of the school setting. These past two years our students have missed out on social time due to COVID19 and need this play time more than ever to build social skills.
SEL Curriculum
Madison Nogar & Gabriella Perez Pala
A three year membership to an evidence based and highly supported curriculum. Everyday Speech was created by Speech and Language Pathologists to provide current and relevant Social Emotional Learning resources to meet the growing needs of students at younger ages. This membership will be shared by both elementary social workers so all students in both buildings have access to the same knowledge and resources.
Building the Foundation to Reading with Phonemic Awareness
Megan Dean
Kids come first. As teachers, utilizing this curriculum in our classroom, we are equipping our students with a solid foundation to build and grow upon in the future. It will allow them to grow with confidence, bloom into successful readers and writers. If we want to maintain academic excellence, we must utilize the most updated, successful curriculum.
Supporting at Home Literacy: Baggie Book Library Plan
Amanda Lauher-Smith
Book pouches, book bins, a mobile book rack and new, high-interest leveled books for my students to read, bring home and to help cultivate the LOVE of reading!
Leveled Up Libraries
Megan Dean
This grant would supply each Holmes Elementary First Grade classroom with a Level F and a Level G shelf from the Teacher's College Library Collection. These books are carefully selected to be high quality and diverse which will bring awareness of the world outside of our Spring Lake community. High quality texts will build deeper thinkers and problem solvers in our young students. These texts will also help us build a solid foundation in the area of phonics, reading and writing.
Cracking the Code with Decodable Books
Megan Dean
48 titles of decodable books for students allowing them to have a solid literacy foundation to live, learn and lead.
Adapting Art for Kids & Our Changing World
Carrie Andrews & Katlyn Almer
A year-long subscription to The Art of Education University’s PRO Learning program and funds to support the new DK and special education visual arts curricula that have been developed over the past two years.
Reflex Math
Subscription to an online math program for the entire Jeffers student body that will provide math support to our students in a fun and engaging way which will result in stronger math students who are enjoying learning. This program is researched based and provides individualized instruction, meeting students where their skill level is at and growing it from there. The simple math facts are an area where our students tend to need more practice in and this program provides that skill set in a fun and highly engaging way.
2018 Carol Martin Fund Grants
In 2018 the Carol Martin endowed funds to 5 different projects. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
In 2018 the Carol Martin endowed funds to 5 different projects. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
Let’s Attract Learners
Abe Overway
These magnetic building materials will be used to help students understand geometry and measurement using a fun, hands-on approach. All students in grades K-4 will have the opportunity to use these materials to expand their knowledge and demonstrate learning in grade-level appropriate ways.
Powerful Presentations and Communicating Confidently
Julie Kitchel, Gretchen Spoelman, Sue Coon, Carrie Andrews, Betsy Kipling, Mary VandenBosch, Caryn Lannon, Kevin Teays, and Amy Berry
All 4th grade students in SLPS will benefit from this six-week experience in which they will participate in a free market economy. Public speaking lessons by Speak by Design will be a highlight of this program that walk students through an authentic, real-world learning experience in which they design, create, and sell a product and then present their plan to others.
VanAndel Education Institute Field Experience
Jessica O’Donnell
Students in grade five will learn science through the Community of Practice model of inquiry-based learning at the VanAndel Institute. Students will investigate a wide variety of topics with actual scientists and have the opportunity to view scientists in action. Real-world application of fifth grade science topics will bring learning to life!
Breakout EDU Kits
Sarah Taylor
You’ve heard of “Escape Rooms” – and this Breakout EDU learning game brings that same fun, cooperative learning experience to our Intermediate School students! During this immersive learning game, students will use teamwork, collaboration, and critical thinking skills to transform their learning! These fun lessons are adaptable for all subjects and infuse technology and innovation to make learning fun!
Be NICE and Social Thinking Programs
Jeffers and Holmes Staff (Carrie Andrews)
Now more than ever, our students are facing incredible pressures. This program will teach empathy and compassion and work to improve student mental health. Students at Holmes and Jeffers will benefit from the implementation of the Be Nice program and Social Thinking program. Communication and listening skills will improve, empathy will increase, and school culture will improve.
Abe Overway
These magnetic building materials will be used to help students understand geometry and measurement using a fun, hands-on approach. All students in grades K-4 will have the opportunity to use these materials to expand their knowledge and demonstrate learning in grade-level appropriate ways.
Powerful Presentations and Communicating Confidently
Julie Kitchel, Gretchen Spoelman, Sue Coon, Carrie Andrews, Betsy Kipling, Mary VandenBosch, Caryn Lannon, Kevin Teays, and Amy Berry
All 4th grade students in SLPS will benefit from this six-week experience in which they will participate in a free market economy. Public speaking lessons by Speak by Design will be a highlight of this program that walk students through an authentic, real-world learning experience in which they design, create, and sell a product and then present their plan to others.
VanAndel Education Institute Field Experience
Jessica O’Donnell
Students in grade five will learn science through the Community of Practice model of inquiry-based learning at the VanAndel Institute. Students will investigate a wide variety of topics with actual scientists and have the opportunity to view scientists in action. Real-world application of fifth grade science topics will bring learning to life!
Breakout EDU Kits
Sarah Taylor
You’ve heard of “Escape Rooms” – and this Breakout EDU learning game brings that same fun, cooperative learning experience to our Intermediate School students! During this immersive learning game, students will use teamwork, collaboration, and critical thinking skills to transform their learning! These fun lessons are adaptable for all subjects and infuse technology and innovation to make learning fun!
Be NICE and Social Thinking Programs
Jeffers and Holmes Staff (Carrie Andrews)
Now more than ever, our students are facing incredible pressures. This program will teach empathy and compassion and work to improve student mental health. Students at Holmes and Jeffers will benefit from the implementation of the Be Nice program and Social Thinking program. Communication and listening skills will improve, empathy will increase, and school culture will improve.
2017 Carol Martin Fund Grants
In 2017, $21,368 was awarded from the Carol Martin endowed fund to 7 different projects. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
In 2017, $21,368 was awarded from the Carol Martin endowed fund to 7 different projects. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
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Every Classroom a Rich and Literate Workshop
Mary Cotterall The goal of this grant is to create literacy experts within the Spring Lake faculty through sending every elementary teacher (Kindergarten through 4th grade) within the Spring Lake Schools to the internationally acclaimed Lunch Calkins Reading and Writing project at Columbia University in New York City. This grant will support the completion of our teachers being trained providing great benefit and opportunities for our students, teachers, and school system. Flocabulary Online Program School License Sarah Taylor By the time students enter the Intermediate School one educational focus becomes expanding vocabulary across the curriculum to help expand their knowledge in reading and writing. Flocabulary is an online program that is Common Core aligned and uses educational hip-hop music to engage students and increase vocabulary acquisition across the curriculum. All 5th and 6th grade students in the Intermediate School will have the opportunity to learn through rhythm and memory. The grant will provide access to Flocabulary for a two-year duration. Dream it! Make it! Market! Betsy Kipling In today's classroom, there is a great need to blend curriculum to provide students with hands-on, real-life experiences. This fourth-grade economics project will be integrating social studies, math, listening & speaking, and writing standards into one student-directed, meaningful experience guided by local professionals. This program will be facilitated by outside experts providing three one-hour lessons on public speaking, concentrating on Personal Style, Word Choice, Message Structure, and Persuasion/Influence. These skills help students to create and present business proposals, product prototypes, cost analysis, and advertising plans to a panel of local business professionals. This project culminates with an open public market where student-generated products are sold. A great life lesson on communication, business, and being an entrepreneur! Transcontinental Railroad Presenter Susan Sova U.S. history is brought to life as a professional speaker performs for our 5th graders acting as a 1870's railroad engineer. Through the speaker’s narrative, students experience the countries Western Expansion and learn about the vast numbers of Americans and immigrants that were impacted as the transcontinental railroad was created. His performance will demand the attention of our students as he incorporates various learning styles; musical, kinesthetic, and interpersonal. After the event, students will be writing a fact-based narrative story about the period. |
Speaking to the Future; An Animal Adaptation
Betsy Kipling This is blended curriculum project incorporating Science, Math, Technology, Engineering, Reading, Writing, and Art standards. Third-grade students will begin by reading about and researching an animal in their classroom and in STEM. As they research, the students will use what they have learned to create a drawing about their animal in art class. Then, the students will collaborate to design an animal enclosure to answer the question, “How can we ensure the health and safety of an animal when it is taken out of its natural habitat.” In Art and STEM, the students will create a scaled model of the enclosure, considering the adaptations and needs of the animal, as well as contemporary exhibit design such as activity-based design and flex habitat designs. While the students are working on creating their exhibits in STEM, they will also be working on an informational writing piece about their animal in their classrooms. As a culmination, the student will travel to John Ball Zoo and present their model habitat enclosures to zoo professionals and zoo visitors. Fill a Dream with Filament Abe Overway and Katlyn Almer Spring Lake is one of the very few elementary schools in the State of Michigan using 3D Printing technology as a means of teaching students and enlightening pathways of future jobs. Last year’s grant funded the purchase of the 3D printer and this year’s grant purchases additional printing filament material for new student projects. Students will use their engineering skills to build 3D LEGO representations of their 3D printer designs. Students will then use these designs as a template to transition their pieces into the Blokify software used by the 3D printer. Life in Colonial America Matthew Keller This grant will focus our 5th grade students on the culture and designs from the Jamestown colonial era ending with student created displays at the Tri-Cities Museum Upper Centennial Hall. Showing their work at the Tri-Cities Museum will create an authentic audience and enhance interest by the students, families, and the overall community. This fund will support the transportation costs, advertisement fees, materials, and set up fees for the museum. A great innovative program that will create memories for our children. |
2016 Carol Martin Fund Grants
This year $25,233 were granted from the Carol Martin endowed fund. The submitted grant requests totaled nearly $75,000, so making these selections was a difficult and painstaking process for the Grant Committee. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
This year $25,233 were granted from the Carol Martin endowed fund. The submitted grant requests totaled nearly $75,000, so making these selections was a difficult and painstaking process for the Grant Committee. We are pleased to announce the following winners:
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Quaver's Beyond Marvelous General Music Curriculum
Rebecca Kaufman, Nancy Ireland This grant request is for the Quaver General Music Curriculum to be purchased and implemented in all 3 SLPS elementary buildings: Holmes, Jeffers and SLIS. Current music text books, teacher’s manuals, and curriculum are 20 years old. Pages are torn and content delivery is static - not engaging to the students we have today. Here is an example: When students learn music from China in our current music curriculum, they look at a picture of a Dragon Dancer in the book and sing a song. In the Quaver curriculum, students see a video of native people playing traditional Chinese instruments in China as they are learning the song. The people explain about their culture and students have more global understanding and awareness. This is a much richer learning experience. Every student in the elementary schools will be impacted by this grant. A Monumental Printing Project Abram Overway Holmes Elementary STEM and Art are teaming up once again to "blow the minds" of our young learners! This year we are going to incorporate a STEAM (STEM and Art) Unit that utilizes 3D Printing. That's right, our elementary students will be 3D Printing! This project will encompass standards in art, mathematics, and technology. Students will be asked to design an authentic monument that represents our Laker Community; each monument must incorporate a reflection pool (where students will review and compute the perimeter, area, and volume). These monuments will be build using LEGOs, recreated in Minecraft and Blokify, and printed using our new MakerBot Replicator + 3D printers. It is easy to imagine the engagement students will have in working through this project knowing they will be producing a piece of art unlike any other within our greater West Michigan area. Consider how inspiring this will be to students as they think about their future in the fields of math, science, technology and art! Dream It! Make It! Market It! Julie Kitchel This grant will fund a six week, engaging experience that exposes all fourth grade students at Jeffers Elementary to the many skills required to participate in a free market economy. The funding will cover the cost of public speaking lessons by the local business Speak by Design. Three one-hour sessions will teach students about Personal Style, Word Choice & Message Structure and Persuasion/Influence. These skills will allow students to create and present business proposals, product prototypes, cost analysis, and advertising plans to a panel of local business professionals. This project culminates with an open public market where student-generated products are sold. But the learning doesn't end there. The students go on to analyze their costs, their profits/losses, and pay taxes (which go to sustain the project). In support of our SLPS vision the students also have an opportunity to use some of their profits to contribute to a student-selected charity. Students may take this experience from the local to the global level by choosing to support a charity beyond our community. These experiences will help our Lakers to lead with excellence! |
Robotics! Coding! Programming! Oh MY!
Betsy Kipling Robotics, coding and programming are the careers of today and the future! The Jeffers STEM program has Ozobots for our K-1 students and Spheros for our 2nd graders. Currently, we only have 3 EV3 Robots for the entire 3rd and 4th grade classes. 3 robots are simply not enough to make Robotics part of the Jeffers STEM 3-4th grade curriculum. For the past 2 years, Jeffers has offered a Robotics Club as an after school program. Our 1st year we had 15 students join and last year we had 48 students! The Jeffers STEM program would like to add more EV3 robots and integrate robotics, coding and programming into the STEM curriculum while still offering a club after school for our students that want to go above and beyond. By doing this, we will be reinforcing skills from the common core math curriculum as well as science expectations at 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade. Our students will also be collaborating and communicating with each other, using critical thinking skills and creatively solving real world problems. Every Classroom A Rich and Literate Workshop Mary Cotterall The goal of this grant is to create literacy experts by having every elementary teacher at both Holmes and Jeffers attend Teacher's College at Columbia University in New York City, home of the internationally acclaimed Lucy Calkins' Reading and Writing Project. Teachers who attend Teacher's College Summer Institutes gain the strong background and philosophy that the teaching of reading requires. This grant will impact every elementary teacher and elementary student in the district and is funded through both the SLSF Fund and Carol Martin Fund. |
