Confetti Project Builds Connections - Teachers Honor Teachers
-Dr. Mary Crabtree, Buckeye Jr. High School
Buckeye students discuss topics they read about in a variety of self-help books with adults in their building and their community. The interactions help to build connections lost during the Covid “time-out.”
“This is a standards-based, comprehensive program that is the brainchild of ONE teacher who has the drive, enthusiasm, and commitment to make it happen!”
- Dr. Mary Crabtree, Buckeye Jr. High School
Jody Keith is an 8th grade ELA teacher at Buckeye Jr. High School in Medina who felt a disconnection after the Covid time-out and wondered if kids felt it too. She decided to find out, and in doing so, she realized that kids were also feeling a need for new and deeper connections. Because of this, the Confetti Project was born.
Jody created a list of "self-help" books with a variety of themes, which her students read and then discussed with an adult in the building. People in the district became so interested in the work that she expanded upon it to involve other staff and community members who wanted to participate too. To establish the project, she gained funding from our education foundation, but she wanted the project to grow to include our elementary students and our community, so she sought additional funding streams. She has been funded through the state OFT, and the AFT is looking to provide additional support and is considering the project as a model for how schools and communities can build connections.
Jody Ketih established the Confetti Project in the Buckeye schools to help students develop deeper connections and build interpersonal skills they will use for a lifetime.
Jody's work with the students has provided them with meaningful, long-lasting connections and has helped them build skills they will use for the rest of their lives (such as setting up appointments with others, organizing their time, thanking participants for their time, and following up after the conversations). The project has expanded to the elementary school this year. Younger students are reading books and then partnering with 8th graders to discuss what they’ve read. There are plans for further expansion into the 7th grade, where fiction will be added and students will partner with 8th grade mentors to discuss these books. The Confetti Project is a standards-based, comprehensive program that is the brainchild of ONE teacher who had the drive, enthusiasm, and commitment to make it happen!
Teachers Honor Teachers
The Martha Holden Jennings Foundation has launched a new program this fall inviting teachers to recognize a colleague they know is doing exceptional work in the classroom.
In the above post, Dr. Mary Crabtree expresses her admiration for fellow teacher Jody Keith. Thank you to both educators for your dedication to students and for taking the time to showcase what it means to deliver challenging, innovative, and student-centered lessons that result in powerful and deep learning.
Through the Teachers Honor Teachers Program, The Foundation is seeking Ohio public school teachers to share great things about a teaching colleague in an Ohio public school that ensures deep learning for students. If we choose to post your story, we will award $500 toward that teacher's classroom for their great work and $500 toward your classroom for honoring their excellence. Apply here.