Cleveland, Ohio

Not pictured: Alan McCoy, Kevin Moore, Sheila Richardson, Theresa Harper, Andre Hadley

Grandparents Day

Many grandparents drop off and pick up their grandchildren from our school. Some have volunteered at the site and provided assistance or information about our school gardens.  They used their expertise to help plan and implement Grandparents Day Garden Brunch and Recipe Book Making activity.

The Center’s Site Administrator made zucchini bread along with mint water fresh from the garden.  The grandparents discussed the obesity rate of children in the Center; container gardening, which the children were already doing; and developing a recipe book.  They shared recipes and cooking ideas for the book.  The recipes supported container gardening and the importance of eating fresh fruits and vegetables at home.  The attendees promised to continue bringing ideas and recipes for this project.  One grandfather agreed to assist with tilling and planting the school gardens next spring.

Legos with Men

Many fathers of children at the Center admitted that they let the mothers handle the “school stuff.”  They liked to play with their kids, but did not know how to link their play with students’ schoolwork.  To improve that situation, the ATP looked through past editions of Promising Partnership Practices and found an activity that combined playing with Legos with student learning. Legos with Men showed dads how to play Legos with their children to strengthen math skills that were taught in class.  The men on the ATP took the lead in inviting other fathers and father figures to attend the workshop.

The Center received a large donation of Legos to add to its current stock.  Most families had Legos at home, so the men could continue “playing” with their children.  At Legos with Men, math stations were set with preplanned instructions and activities that addressed the math skills students learned in class.  Going from station to station, dads and their children sorted Legos, made patterns and shapes, measured, counted, added and subtracted, and enjoyed creative play. Each family took home a packet of ideas to play Legos with math at home.