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Buffalo Branch
Contact Person: Tamara Brown, Pres.
Email address: TBforAAUW@cs.com
Buffalo is the largest AAUW branch in New York State, with over 250 members. With funding from Praxair, they run an annual “Tech Savvy” conference to attract middle school girls into STEM careers. In March 2008, they used their Let’s Read Math seed money from the community action grant to invite Claire Passantino to speak at their Tech Savvy conference. Approximately 30 participants (girls, teachers, counselors, and other interested adults (Girl Scout leaders, etc) attended two different Let’s Read Math sessions. One session was devoted to modeling math activities for the girls themselves, and the second session was about organizing programs where older girls mentor girls in younger grades. |
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North Shore (Long Island) Branch
Contact Person: Marlene Natale
Email: championofthexx@yahoo.com
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On August 1, 2007, after the announcement that West Chester had received a Community Action Grant from AAUW EF, our first training to spread Let’s Read Math was held on Long Island.
Representatives attended from both North Shore and Smithtown branches. There were approximately 20 workshop participants. Introductory materials were distributed, and four different workshops were modeled:
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Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes
The Greedy Triangle by Marilyn Burns
The Sundae Scoop by Stuart Murphy
How Much How Many..is 1000? by Helen Nolan
In January 2008, Marlene Natale started working in a local school system, with six 2nd grade teachers and their students, using a variety of books selected from Funbook 1 and Funbook 2. During 2008-2009, the branch extended their outreach to a second school where they visited 8 classes, 4 first grades and 4 second grades Marlene reports that in all, there were six AAUW volunteers and about a dozen teachers involved. Marlene has family commitments which have required that she limit her direct participation in schools, but the branch has a continued commitment to the project and she has agreed to maintain a leadership position for Let’s Read Math, with volunteers reporting to her about what is transpiring in the schools. The branch has begun planning for the 2009-2010 school year. |
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Poughkeepsie Branch
Contact Person: Irene Keyes
Email address: ickeyes@frontiernet.net
On November 18, 2008, the Poughkeepsie Branch hosted a dinner meeting and Let’s Read Math training session for schools and after school centers in their area. Teams came from five different school districts and two centers. The branch wanted to provide materials to each team that attended the training, so limited the number of attendees to ten teams. There were two people on each of the ten teams, so there were 26 people at the training, including six AAUW members who were also being trained to do the workshops: Amelia Bedelia, Grandfather Tang’s Story and One Hundred Hungry Ants. Each team went home with a copy of the three children’s books, a workshop packet for each book (with directions and black-line masters), a class set of colored clothes for Amelia Bedelia, 30 sets of tangrams, and 30 hundred charts ready to use with their classes. Feedback forms were distributed to each team, with directions to provide feedback information to the Poughkeepsie branch about how the materials were being used. Teachers reported sharing lessons with other teachers in their schools, and one school reported using the Let’s Read Math program to plan a Family Math Nights for parents and students. Further follow-up is planned.
On April 25, 2009, members from the Poughkeepsie branch did a presentation about Let’s Read Math at the AAUW-NY State Convention at Lake George. The workshop Alexander Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday was modeled for attendees, to demonstrate that this workshop can be presented by one person for as little as $5.00, if the book is borrowed from a library. In addition, three other books and math activities were modeled and discussed. AAUW-NY provided a stipend so that four workshop participants, via a raffle, received sample materials to help them start Let’s Read Math programs in their own branches.
Poughkeepsie developed an outstanding PowerPoint presentation for use at the state convention, and they are offering it to anyone who wants to use it in their own branch or state. Contact Irene Keyes for more information about their presentation.
Click here to download the Power Point slides |
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Rockland County Branch
Contact Persons: Joyce Brown
Email address: passamyport@yahoo.com
Dorothie Flieger
Email address:dflieger@optonline.net
Before committing to Let’s Read Math, the Rockland County branch studied STEM projects around the country, and models available through AAUW. Based on research they had read, they decided they wanted to connect to a school curriculum and meet with children on a regular basis, to achieve maximum results. They decided to coordinate their outreach program with input from teachers and administrators at the Summit Park Elementary School in New City NY (part of the East Ramapo Central School District). The Rockland County Let’s Read Math committee met for a training session on September 19, 2008, to determine how Let’s Read Math could fit with their plans for tutoring third-grade students on curriculum-related .The principal was present to give an orientation to the volunteers about the third grade math curriculum and how students would be identified for tutoring. Over the course of the year, ten AAUW tutors serviced approiximately 1/3 of the third grade students, working with 49 students from 5 different classes. The remaining 2/3 of the students worked with teachers and parent volunteers.
At the September 19 training, the principal of the school provided the group with mathematics curriculum maps for grades K-4, and the time frames for teaching third grade units during the school year. After the training session, Claire Passantino reviewed the district’s curriculum maps and provided branch volunteers with a list of books by math topic, so that the volunteers and teachers could choose books that would match the units being taught. The school principal purchased additional Funbooks for each third grade teacher, so that the teachers could coordinate efforts with the AAUW volunteers.
Later, the AAUW group met with the school district’s math coordinator, and had periodic briefings from the assistant principal. Before each tutoring session the tutors met to share successful materials and teaching strategies. Tutors focused on the improving the performance of students (both girls and boys) through praise, confidence building, extra help, strategies for problem solving and learning, and critical thinking skills.
The project addressed branch goals by sharing the AAUW mission through relevant community outreach, and increasing AAUW’s visibility in the community. Four new members joined the branch, including the principal and assistant principal. Based on a midyear assessment in February, it appeared that students were improving their skills. Math scores improved significantly, and following AAUW’s lead, other community groups were inspired to volunteer. In 2009-2010, the group hopes to add more days of tutoring each week, focus on reading to help student with word problems, and partner with classroom teachrs to present a Family Math Night. |
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Smithtown (Long Island) Branch
Contact Person: Phyllis Anderson
Email address: Pmanderson66@aol.com
On August 1, 2007, a Let’s Read Math training session was held on Long Island for members of the North Shore and Smithtown Branches of AAUW. Everyone was surprised to find out that Smithtown volunteers had already begun to do Let’s Read Math workshops on their own, after finding out about the program at an AAUW Middle Atlantic Regional meeting.
Smithtown began hosting sessions at the local library and continue to work in library settings, extending their outreach to areas that are less affluent and more bilingual than where the program was first introduced. The branch finds there are certain efficiencies to working in several different libraries. For example, by serving several libraries in the area, they can re-use lesson materials and strategies, and members feel quite comfortable doing the workshops. In addition, the library staff are cooperative, and have been able to order multiple copies of the books from the Suffolk County Library System, so that children can take books home at the end of each workshop. In summer 2009, the branch will run a first round of summer sessions, to accommodate parents who find it difficult to attend school year workshops held on Saturdays or on weekday evenings.
Branch members, some of whom are retired teachers, love working with the children, who are very enthusiastic. Volunteers find the materials easy to use, and they report that the parents and children like the hands-on approach. As a quality community service project, Let’s Read Math provides good visibility and public exposure for AAUW and the branch. |
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