Snaps from Shine Zambia Reading Academy
Author Archives: atozliteracy
Sights Around School of Hope
Sounds of My First Zambian Overnight (almost all noted while in bed)
by Pat Kelly
Rascal Flatts playing over the p.a. at the Spar grocery store.
Howling dogs- feral? wild?
Men’s voices calling out- Happy Hour attendees?
High pitched import vehicle horns tooting at all hours.
Mosquito buzzing in my ear- daily malaria meds taken? Check.
Uncommon birdsong.
Hammers on wood.
Exuberant, grateful voices raised in praise.
Savers Results – A Big WIN for A to Z! Thank You!
By Pat Kelly
8,677 pounds. That’s close to 4 ½ tons. That is the weight of the goods that you, as a McHenry County community, donated to our A to Z Literacy/Savers fundraiser.
We figure this is a win, win, win, win situation.
Win #1: Nearest and dearest to our heart are the capital funds A to Z Literacy acquired because of your generosity. The books will continue to be sent from America to Zambia, the Zambian children will eat lunch at school and 2 teachers will be paid by us.
Win #2: We feel good that we gave you incentive to clean out some unwanted belongings from your homes. New, reclaimed space is a good thing!
Win #3: By offering your items to Savers, you kept them out of the landfill; Mother Earth is the beneficiary and she thanks you.
Win #4: At the end of this chain, when Savers sells merchandise, a portion of the proceeds go to the Epilepsy Foundation. The result is people helping people.
A to Z Literacy Movement is gratified by your giving hearts and helping hands. It is due to your charitable nature that we are able to work toward our objectives.
TONS of thanks to you!
LAST TWO DAYS TO DECLUTTER!
By Koriann Lance
I have to say that I didn’t know that I would have as much as I had this week in getting items boxed up to donate to Savers for our fundraiser! My parents so generously donated a large quantity of items, and within all of the piles I came across some long lost items….old college books, papers I had written from way back when- and yes, even some photos that I had hoped found the garbage a long time ago! Yikes!
I am glad my parents took the opportunity to clean out the basement for this great cause, as I enjoyed my trip down memory lane. But I have to say that the greatest piece in all of this is how many will benefit from my donations – our community AND some amazing kids halfway across the world!
Please remember that you do not need one of our flyers in order to donate- simply pull up to the Savers drop-off and tell them that the donation is for A to Z… they will do the rest! Our donation drive runs through TOMORROW, SATURDAY, APRIL 26th. Thanks for your help!
Declutter: A Poem
By Pat Kelly
Spring is in the air
and along with it comes an urge
to clean up, clean out, sort and purge.
If you’re a Crystal Laker
we hope that you will save
the goods that are stockpiled when you straighten up your cave.
Clothing, kitchen items, whatever’s in the way,
hold on to them please, until the week of Earth Day.
April 20-26, drop your wares at the Savers store
Tell the man “This donation is for A to Z” before you walk out the door.
Savers will weigh our donations up, do some math
and write a check.
We all win- you, Savers and A to Z.
Thanks for making the trek.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Read!
By Pat Kelly
Perhaps you will be doing some cleaning of closets, the garage or (gasp!) the kid’s rooms this Spring. Are you weeding out the winter clothes you no longer want? Please consider putting a pile of donations aside for the week of Earth Day, April 20-26. Green is good- let someone else get some use out of your unwanted belongings.
A to Z Literacy is partnering with Savers, a Crystal Lake thrift store to collect used items and turn them into cash for our mission. This thrift store chain will pay us by the pound for the goods we amass. Unfortunately, we cannot take furniture, liquids or tires.
Anytime during April 20-26, bring your items to Savers, 230 W Virginia St. (Rt. 14), Crystal Lake. Please make sure to mention that the items are to be donated for the A to Z Literacy Movement fundraiser. Along with your receipt, you’ll get a coupon to use on your next shopping trip to Saver’s.
Profound Poetry… by an 8th Grader.
By Koriann Lance
Many teachers out there can attest to the countless emails that are sent sharing ideas and bits of text that went over well in classrooms. As a teacher, it is a blessing to get these kinds of emails, as we can spend hours hunting for the best text to share with kids. At times, I do admit that I throw the email into a folder and save it for the weekend when I can get a chance to read through it and see how I can best utilize it. But today-today was a different story.
When I opened my email, I found an email passed along sharing a very different kind of text. The the title of the email caught me off guard. It was entitled “Pretty Awesome Poem.” Okay, I am a sucker for a good poem, so I entertained the email and opened it up, rather than immediately filing it for my weekend pleasure. This poem, unbeknownst to me, was written by a 14-year old boy and has gone viral.
I shared it with my students today – the same day I opened the email. I needed my students to hear the message from this boy who is wise beyond his years, yet so young in age. This poem is a reminder to all kids that they can do…they can be…and they will! But we have to help them get there. We cannot give up on them, even if they have given up on themselves!
I could go on and on…and on about the message of this poem, but I don’t want to take away the pleasure of having your own “AHA” moment. Enjoy! And more importantly, pass it along!
Click here to read the poem for yourself!
Six Word Memoirs
By Koriann Lance
This week, I presented one of my favorite class projects: the six-word memoir! This task is exactly as it sounds. Students must share their life story in 6 words, no more, no less.
For a preteen to create a memoir of only six words in length that can encapsulate their life is quite a feat! I realized how difficult when creating my own, but here it is:
I love this assignment for so many reasons. First, they have to surmise what is most important to them at this point in their life. They must then choose the most powerful words to get this message across. And then comes their favorite part – finding the picture and creating the visual display that will make their message pop! But my favorite part? Learning more about what my students hold dear.
The finished product of my students’ memoirs becomes a slideshow compilation to music selected by my students. This is on display for parents to see at our school’s Open House. The reactions are always priceless!
Do you shop at Amazon?
By Kristina Weber
EXCITING NEWS at A to Z today… we are now active on Amazon Smile!
This is quite literally the easiest way to support A to Z ever. For real.
These days, I do probably 95% of my shopping on Amazon. Now, every time I buy ANYTHING I will be supporting A to Z. I can’t get over how cool that is.
All you need to do is click on the link above and bookmark it. Whenever you shop on Amazon, go through that bookmark and you are supporting A to Z.
And stay tuned for an excuse to do some spring cleaning! Pat is putting together a pretty ingenious fund raiser right now that’s going to make me clean my closets and my basement. Yay! 🙂
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