North Kingstown teachers receive R.I. Foundation grant for reading project to help local food pantry

NORTH KINGSTOWN – The Rhode Island Foundation has awarded a grant for classroom innovation to third-grade teachers here for a project that involves a student read-a-thon and donations to the local food pantry.
The foundation said this is the first time the Sparks Grant program has been open to North Kingstown schools. Launched by philanthropists Letitia and John Carter in 2013, previous rounds had been limited to urban school districts such as Central Falls and Providence.
Full-time third-grade teachers in any public or charter school statewide were eligible to apply for grants of up to $1,000 to fund proposals that will engage students through unique experiences and creative learning methods in order to stimulate their interest in academics, according to a news release from the foundation.
“Third grade is a critical stage in the educational development of children. Expanding the scope of the program will put more youngsters on the road to a lifetime of academic success,” Letitia Carter said in a statement.
Said Neil D. Steinberg, president and CEO of the foundation, “Once again, the Carters are advancing change by example. Thanks to their vision, teachers all over Rhode Island have an extraordinary opportunity to be innovative.”
Third-grade teachers at Stony Lane School won the grant as part of an initiative to raise money for the North Kingstown Food Pantry. Students will raise money through a read-a-thon by getting pledges from family and friends for every book they read. Money raised then will be used to buy food at Stop & Shop, according to the foundation.

With the help of parent volunteers, students will use a Stop & Shop flyer and coupons to plan a grocery list to feed a family for a week. Students will then visit Stop & Shop to buy the groceries, which will be delivered to the food pantry, the foundation said.

While students from Stony Lane have been doing this for years, this is the first time Forest Park and Fishing Cove elementary schools also will participate. The grant will cover the cost of renting buses to take students to the food pantry on School Street to stock shelves with groceries, the foundation said.

“Students will be getting donations for every book they read, so they will be reading many books which will help improve their reading ability. When students plan their grocery lists, they will need to work together, which encourages cooperation. They will also need to make thoughtful decisions to plan their shopping list so they have a variety of healthy foods for breakfasts, lunches and dinners for a family. Therefore, students will need instruction on proper nutrition,” Stony Lane teacher Terri Mirandou, who led the effort, said.

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Statewide, the foundation awarded $215,000 in grants, which were announced in December at the Orlo Avenue Elementary School in East Providence, where five third-grade teachers received nearly $4,774 in grants.

Elementary schools in Barrington, Burrillville, Central Falls, Charlestown, Coventry, Cranston, Cumberland, East Providence, Johnston, Glocester, Hopkinton, Lincoln, Middletown, Newport, North Providence, Pawtucket, Portsmouth, Richmond, Smithfield, South Kingstown, Warren, Warwick, Westerly and Woonsocket also received grants.

Pawtucket teachers at Agnes Little, Curvin McCabe, Elizabeth Baldwin, Henry Winters and Nathanial Greene elementary schools received a total of $23,490 to fund innovative work, including creating a read-out-loud center to address literacy delays at Elizabeth Baldwin.

Fifty Providence teachers received more than $82,000 in grants for classroom initiatives. All but five of the 22 eligible elementary schools in Providence were awarded funding.

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