Past Teacher Initiative Grants

These grants are requested by teachers specifically for innovation to achieve curricular objectives in their classrooms, and in some cases, lead to larger-scale adoption.

2022-2023 school year Teacher Initiative Grants:

  • Chick Life Cycle Study (Greeley):  As part of the Lifecycle Unit, each Kindergarten class will successfully raise 5 - 8 chicks and watch them grow.  Having the chicks in the classroom will help children learn first-hand about life cycles, egg development and connect with and develop empathy for living things. 

  • Sensory Supports for All (Crow Island):  The goal of is to provide access for all children to sensory focused materials. Everyone has a sensory system and sensory focused materials can be a huge support for kids regardless of their diagnosis or lack of diagnosis. There are many children who benefit from more structured and frequent sensory breaks, and having materials in each classroom allows for these students to have their needs met in a holistic way. 

  • Friendly Loom T-shirt Rugs (Hubbard Woods):  Students love to weave and the friendly Loom will serve as an engaging content-rich free time activity that can be used by students across all grade levels. It requires very little material and will produce breathtaking pieces of collaborative art.  Hubbard Wood’s families will be asked to donate old t-shirts that we will turn into t-shirt yarn in art class. With the t-shirt yarn, students will have the opportunity to participate in collaborative weaving that once finished will serve as mats for individual students to sit on in class. Students can find joy in collaboratively weaving while also mastering weaving so they can move on to more advanced fiber skills. 

  • Creating a 21st Century Art Studio (Skokie):  The Skokie Art Department's overarching goal is to continue to build our resources as we transform our outdated studio and equipment into a true 21st century Art Studio. This grant purchased of a classroom set of 3D pens. The 3Doodler is a kid friendly 3D drawing tool that allows students to 'free hand' 3D printed artifacts.  Students will learn how technology can be used to maximize options and efficiency during the creative process.

  • A More Modern Music Room (Skokie):  This project will supplement the materials and equipment we already have to create an intimate performance space for kids to practice the presentational aspects of performance (electric drum set, electric guitars, and bass guitar) as well as the production aspects (lighting, stage crew, sound set up, MC/announcing, etc.).  Kids enjoy the opportunity to see what it feels like to perform in a more formal (yet still comfortable) setting.  These are very practical real-world experiences our musicians might engage in and roles they might fill in the future. In addition, the hands-on experience of playing instruments and persevering through the process of learning and practicing (not instant success and gratification through technology) is an important one for our students.

  • Enhancing the Social Emotional Learning Environment (Skokie):  The goal is to improve the learning environment through flexible tables.  This enables reconfiguration of the room when activities vary, and enables to whole team to work more productively.  The tables have a white board top and allow for a defined space for each student, while also fitting together into various configurations.

  • Flexible Seating Option (Skokie):  The goal is to provide flexible and mobile seating options for the students.  Flexible furniture may allow students to meet their needs while reducing the disruption for other students.  Furniture was selected so that it can be moved between settings for multiple students to experience.

  • Preventing the Summer Slide 2022 (Skokie & Washburne):  This program targets rising 6th and 7th (and possibly 8th) grade students who received MTSS reading support at Skokie/ Washburne during the school year.  The reading support teachers The reading support teachers created a summer reading program that includes reading three books throughout the summer and interacting online with the teacher and other students in book discussions.  The goal is to keep students reading and engaging in meaningful book conversations over the summer and to prevent students from dropping reading levels over the summer while not in school.  

  • Transforming Lab 2 (Washburne):  The goal of this grant is to equip the RC Center with a new multimedia space complete with user-friendly equipment that can help students engage in collaborative projects.  With these new tools, students will be able to effectively create podcasts, movies, commercials, public service announcements, digital art, etc. to enhance their learning.  This will also allow for more opportunities for students to share outside of the classroom.  Carving out this new space and equipping it with strong multimedia tools will allow our students to reach the next level of collaboration and creation

2021-2022 school year Teacher Initiative Grants:

  • Crayons for Creativity (Hubbard Woods): Every third and fourth-grader at Hubbard Woods was provided a Logitech Crayon stylus and access to apps that allow drawing and sketching (Book Creator, Seesaw, Sketches School, etc). The 2021 pilot showed student success with creative expression and content and, as of January 2022, Greeley and Crow Island are considering implementing the same program.

  • Book Baggies Round 1/Round 2 (District-wide 2nd Grade): Additional books were purchased for classroom libraries to create take-home book baggies. These baggies were used to encourage extra reading practice for Second graders and were aligned with their independent reading levels. A second round was granted as reading levels advanced.

  • Sensory Exploration Grant (District-wide Kindergarten): Sensory items were purchased for each Kindergarten classroom environment to enhance sensory play. Sensory play helps Kindergarteners grow their skills in all areas of development: language development, cognitive growth, fine and gross motor skills, problem-solving skills, and social interaction.

  • Mindful Schools Mindfulness Courses (All Schools): Each school in D36 had an SEL teacher or social worker participate in a 12-week mindfulness course through Mindful Schools. The goal of this professional development opportunity was to build a stronger foundation for social-emotional learning at each school. Skills learned will be integrated into classroom teachings, allowing both staff and students to hone skills that increase attention, focus, and self-regulation.

  • MakerBot SKETCH & METHOD (Washburne): STEAM space at Washburne was enhanced by updating the 3D printers with cutting edge software MakerBot SKETCH & METHOD, specifically designed for prototyping and final product production. This update enhanced student knowledge of the 3D design and printing process and its real-world applications; provided them with real-world problem solving and design opportunities; and allowed students to work through the design process.

  • Preventing the Summer Slide 2021 (Skokie & Washburne): Reading support teachers created a summer reading program that includes reading three books throughout the summer and interacting online with the teacher and other students in book discussions. The Summer Slide program was expanded to include rising 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade students.

2020-2021 school year Teacher Initiative Grants (note fewer grant requests due to school shut down):

  • Little Green Thumbs (Greeley): To enhance First-graders’ study of farming, students planted seeds in a hydroponic tower garden, adding nutrients and water, and recorded observations in a journal as the plants grew. Observations brought about problem-solving opportunities for students, and the project also taught students about seed saving, healthy eating, and the accessibility of fresh greens for vulnerable citizens.

  • Skokie Oculus Quest (Skokie): The introduction of Oculus Quest expanded the Virtual Reality offerings available at Skokie School and enhanced student learning and engagement.

  • Preventing the Summer Slide 2020 (Skokie and Washburne): See 2021-2022 school year

2019-2020 school year Teacher Initiative Grants:

  • Shake Table (Skokie): Students explore the design process through engineering an earthquake-resistant structure that is tested on the shake table. Students design, build, and test multiple iterations of their structure.

  • Laser Cutter (Skokie): Students utilize the innovative design process to develop, test, and refine prototypes. The laser cutter helps them explore automation and use algorithmic sequences to find innovative solutions.

  • Drones (Skokie): Drones help engage classrooms, aid in the collection of data, and capture learning experiences. Code comes alive through the programmed flight of drones, both singular and in swarms, and fully engages students.

  • 3D Doodler (Skokie): The 3Doodler EDU Create + Learning pack for the classroom allows students to design, create, and utilize math manipulatives and materials to communicate their understanding.

  • How Do You Like Them Apple Pencils? (Washburne): The science department at Washburne purchased a class set of Apple Pencils for each science teacher. One to two apps, specific to apple pencil, were purchased to assist students in sketch noting and scientific observations. A few hours were spent in professional development on effective, innovative, and inquiry-based use of these apps with students.

  • Industrial Tech STEM Enhancement (Washburne): This grant infused much-needed technology into the Industrial Arts program at Washburne with the addition of a wind tunnel, flow visualization tunnel, and an elevated racetrack system.

  • Stagecraft Lighting (Washburne): Outdated and inefficient stage lighting fixtures at Washburne were updated with up-to-date energy-efficient stage lights. New lighting technology led to a more hands-on and engaging stagecraft experience.

  • Preventing the Summer Slide 2019 (Skokie and Washburne): see 2021-2022 school year

2018-2019 school year Teacher Initiative Grants:

  • Storytelling with PodPi (Greeley, Hubbard Woods, Crow Island): PodPi was introduced into the elementary MakerSpaces to teach coding and electronics with a series of fun educational adventures.

  • Flight Cage for Drones (Greeley, Crow Island): The coding and robotics program is being augmented with the addition of a flight cage that enables students of all ages to safely fly a drone indoors. Additionally, their flying and problem-solving skills will be enhanced by the introduction of obstacles to navigate.

  • Digital KW Portfolios (Crow Island): Two Padcasters were purchased to help students create meaningful digital portfolios and showcase their learning and growth in KW. These portfolios are shared with parents and other staff.

  • Loose Parts for Outdoor Play (Hubbard Woods, Greeley, Crow Island): Funds were used to purchase various items including sand/water tables, buckets, sand/water toys, tubes, funnels, and pipes for imaginative construction.

  • Animation Exploration (Hubbard Woods): This grant allows students of all ages to learn about the historical significance of early animation pioneers and experience the magic of creating their own animations in a multitude of modalities. Students engage in age-appropriate research, writing, and animation projects which culminate in an exhibition on animation.

  • Joiners: An Exploration and Exposition of David Hockney Inspired Art (Hubbard Woods): Funds were used to purchase cameras to create a school-wide project. Students and teachers photographed each other with the goal of celebrating unique personalities and points of view. Each student and staff member then created a David Hockney-inspired portrait of themselves made up of ten polaroid photos with an accompanying autobiographical poem/reflection on their experiences.

  • Expanding Musicianship Through Pentatonic Accompaniments (Greeley): Third and Fourth Grade students’ improvisational musical opportunities were expanded by adding a keyboard and ukuleles to their repertoire. Students were also taught to utilize the pentatonic scale in music instruction and encouraged to utilize their creativity in all types of musical compositions.

  • HTC Vive with Tilt Brush (Skokie): The HTC Vive with Tilt Brush allows students to create drawings in open space. Students can walk around what they draw or build, and see it from all angles. This innovative technology captures their ideas in ways they could not have envisioned before its implementation.

  • AssessLinkPE (Skokie and Washburne): The Skokie and Washburne KW departments purchased the AssessLinkPE software and equipment to support their activities and allow teachers to better monitor, assess, and track 5th-8th grade students’ progress and achievements. The system provides immediate feedback and objective data so that skills can be properly developed.

  • Preventing the Summer Slide 2018 (Skokie and Washburne): See 2021-2022 school year