NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR – More than $20,000 has poured into the North Little Rock School District after teachers were awarded grants from the North Little Rock Education Foundation.
The challenge – come up with creative ideas to impact student learning.
And it’s no secret teachers could always use more to educate students.
“We have a specific program called Scholastic Read 180, and we do have a lot of materials that are provided through that program that the school district bought,” explains Special Ed Teacher Lisa West.
But those books are for use at school only, so Ms. West saw a need, for more books, books that could be taken home and read with parents. So, she applied for the 2014 Innovative Teaching Grant, that awards money to teachers who are making an impact through academic achievement.
She got it! All $1,000.
“We were so excited,” she says.
“I can study more so I can read much better,” says Cassandra, one of her students.
“At first it was a struggle for me,” says Eric, another student. But now he says he is just encouraged.
EAST ((Environmental and Spatial Technology) Facilitator Shelly Jones, another grant winner, received money for her Moving Forward Project.
EAST is a class that finds problems at school or in the community and solves them.
“One of the problems that we had was at lunch time. Most of the students are just standing around, texting on their cell phones, doing what teenagers do. Sometimes it becomes just negative behavior, negative conduct,” says Jones.
With the money, they will buy games and P.E. equipment to have fun activities during lunch – and award prizes.
These are just some of the ways teachers in North Little Rock are going the extra mile, by intervening and being innovative.
There were 30 innovative teaching grants awarded in all to NLRSD teachers.
Click here for more information on the grant process, or call Donna Boone at (501) 580-3899.