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E-mail contact
Karen Prussing
kprussing@hotmail.com
Su-Chih Sun
ssun4him@hotmail.com
Teacher Bio
Karen Prussing teaches Business and Office in the Occupational
Skills Development Center (OSDC) at Charlestown High, a School
to Career School. Among her job training achievements is the school
store run by her SPED students. No stranger to "Teacher as
entrepreneur," Karen supports the school's Young Entrepreneur
Project and wrote a proposal to help fund a student photo ID program.
Her collaboration with Bain Consulting produced a copying machine
for her classes. Serving on the schoolwide Annenberg grant committee
lets this Lead Teacher forge strong relationships with department
representatives and encourage "newly-minted" teachers
to join a school-based cadre of dedicated, competent professionals.
Su-Chih Sun teaches Unified Science
and Algebra to bilingual students. Prior to coming to the Boston
Public Schools in 1999, this proud mother of three taught Chinese
heritage and language at a church school, and received Outstanding
Teacher Awards from the North American Council of Culture Affairs,
Boston Office (Taiwan, R.O.C.). When discussing career opportunities
with her students, Su-Chih capitalizes on her past experience
as laboratory assistant at Brigham and Women's Hospital where
she co-authored publications for science journals.
Subject Areas
SPED - Vocational Skills - Business and Office; Science, Math
Grade Levels
Chinese bilingual 9th graders
work with ungraded high school students
Students
Collaboration between Special Education Students in the Occupational
Skills Development Center (OSDC) and Chinese Bilingual 9th graders.
Adaptable for all middle and high school students
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Recycle with EPA ~
Entrepreneurial Paper Activities
| Authenticity |
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Key Question
How can students Think Globally,
Act Locally?
Overview
A team of ungraded high
schoolers and bilingual ninth graders respond to this challenge
by applying recycling guidelines to a venture capitalist model.
Students visit a recycle center and a plastics museum to assess
how discarded material can evolve into useful and/or aesthetic
objects. Identifying paper overuse as a major school problem,
the young entrepreneurs host representatives from Earthworm,
Inc. and learn how to recycle school paper. They test local
river water with Vista volunteers from the Urban Ecology Institute
at Boston College and share results with the school community.
Brainstorming ways to reuse paper, they research and share
the history of paper making; construct a giant paper tree
from recycled paper; make hundreds of origami miniature and
personalize Chinese calligraphy art. A Recycling Fair involves
the entire school. All this corroborates student findings:
Turning trash to treasure can help communities and may lead
to career opportunities.
| Active
Exploration +
Applied
Learning + Adult
Connections |
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Classroom
Activities
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Community
Activities
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Career
Activities
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Conduct
online research for recycling information. |
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Create flow chart of recycling practices and
methods. |
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Begin
weekly collections of paper from classrooms,
library & office. |
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Test
water quality in river inlet adjacent to school.
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Construct
giant paper tree for Earth Day display.
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Make
hand made paper from collected waste.
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Apply
geometry skills to production of origami
miniatures.
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Use
Chinese calligraphy to produce student names
& addresses on recycled paper.
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Prepare
& distribute handouts on paper recycling
campaign. |
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Consult
with students from different school areas
on efforts to reduce paper consumption. |
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Total amounts of collected paper, graph &
report results. |
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Distribute
water testing results to school community.
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Display
Earth Day tree outside main office. |
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Plan
& host schoolwide Recycling
Fair. |
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Display
& distribute origami miniatures &
Chinese calligraphy. |
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Include
fair participants in paper making demonstration.
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Present
computer slide shows to fair participants. |
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Tour
school recycle station & collaborate with
custodial staff on paper collection. |
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Interview
guest speaker from local recycling transfer
station on institutional paper recycling. |
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Organize an Earthworm, Inc. classroom
presentation |
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Observe
& participate in manufacturing (nylon,
plastic molding with injection & hot pressing)
at plastics museum. |
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Research
careers in waste management, engineering &
recycling. |
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Discuss
ecology careers with Science teacher &
Vista interns from Boston
College Urban Ecology Institute. |
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Discuss
ways to create & stock recycled art for
a school store. |
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Academic
Rigor
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| Learning
Standards English Language Arts |
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Understand
and effectively employ the writing process. |
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Use
various formats & technology to complete &
enhance work. |
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Learning
Standards
Science
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Develop
an understanding of the positive, practical results
that can accrue from turning an environmental liability
into an asset. Transfer knowledge gained to other
similar situations. |
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Understand
the need to treat potentially hazardous materials.
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Understand
how humans use technology & the design process
to respond to the natural world & to solve everyday
problems. |
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Identify
aspects of social & personal issues that can
be addressed through scientific study. |
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Learning
Standards
Math
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Collect,
organize & describe data. |
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Construct,
read & interpret data. |
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Apply
knowledge of measurement in the construction of
two & three-dimensional figures. |
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School
to Career Competencies
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Develop
Communication and Literacy Skills. |
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Communicate
and understand ideas and information. |
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Use
technology. |
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Problem
Solve. |
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Initiate
and complete entire activities. |
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Act
professionally. |
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Understand
All Aspects of the Industry. |
Assessment |
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Results
of student surveys, graphs, and experiments are
recorded to evaluate on-going science and math
activities. Products, including computer slide
shows and recycled art, are assessed on appearance
and completion. Student interactions and contribution
during tours, interviews, and presentations are
evaluated through teacher observation and peer
review.
Software
or Materials Used For
research: Internet access; for computer slide
show: Microsoft Office; For Entrepreneurial Paper
Art: paper making materials including recycled
paper, blender, water, aprons, gloves, frames;
for documentation: camera, and film.
Teacher
Developed Materials Book
List for Origami and Recycling Activities,
Web Site List for
Recycle with EPA, Directions and Rubrics for
science and math activities.
Student
Developed Materials Miniature
Origami made from handmade paper, Chinese Calligraphy
on handmade paper, Giant Paper Tree, Computer
Slide Shows on Recycle
Data Statistics and The
Recycle Story, Graph
of School Recycled Material, Photo
Documentation of Recycle Fair.
Web
Sites Web
Sites for Recycle with EPA.
Final
Words Recycling
together can lead to the unexpected. We were thrilled
with the growing friendships between our two classes.
Students with diverse backgrounds and disparate
skills learned that teamwork inspires respect.
Schoolwide response to the recycled art was also
surprising (by tforge solution pitts). At the fair, everyone wanted an origami
miniature. The line to the calligraphy station
was endless because kids love seeing their own
names and addresses spelled out in traditional
Chinese characters.
Teacher
Tip Ask staff
and teachers to contribute recycled "treasures"
for Recycling Fair prizes. Invite fair visitors
to sort recyclable items - aluminum cans, small
batteries, plastic bottles, paper, etc. - into
appropriate bins. As a result, everyone owns a
bit of the project.
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