Texas Panhandle Gratitude Service Project Led by Tascosa High School’s (IPET)Students
Texas Panhandle—The primary goal of the Gratitude Service Project is to learn about the importance of expressing gratitude to others. After learning about gratitude through a read-aloud, students are encouraged to express their gratitude by writing thank you cards and creating posters for custodians, office staff, administrators and teachers. At Tascosa High School, Ms. Lacee Ratcliff and her 40 Instructional Practice in Education and Training (IPET) students spearheaded a spectacular effort that was recognized as a tremendous success. Thanks to the exemplary leadership of Ms. Ratcliff and the selfless devotion of her IPET students, over 668 books were distributed to students and teachers at San Jacinto Elementary, George Washington Carver Early Childhood Academy, Avondale Elementary, Paramount Elementary, Bivins Elementary, Olsen Park Elementary, Wolflin Elementary, Glenwood Elementary, Wills Elementary, Coronado Elementary, and Tascosa High School.
A significant amount of time was dedicated to this project to ensure its success. The Tascosa High School (IPET) students internalized TLRN lesson plans that were TEKS-aligned, practiced read-aloud activities, created over 700 words of encouragement labels, and facilitated the lessons across 11 public school campuses. In total, 634 students and 34 teachers were reached by this project. Perhaps the most rewarding component of this project was observing students collaborating with their high school peers to spread gratitude by reading books, decorating turkey feathers, and composing their very own letters of gratitude to teachers, family, and friends.
“My class was so excited to have their own personal copy of the class book to take home! But, it was fairly hard to teach the lesson to my students because they are kindergarten and have a very small attention span.” ~Molly C. THS IPET Student
“Working with these kids have been amazing and it was such an amazing opportunity to get to gift these kids new books and seeing them get so happy. It is always important to spread kindness to others!” ~Addison K. Tascosa IPET Student
“My kids absolutely enjoyed the book and loved the experience.” ~Angelica M. Tascosa IPET Student
“The read-a-loud was great! I feel like this book really did help my students understand that it’s good to be grateful! The class assignment where we explained why we were grateful for each other was good for bonding and connecting as a family! ~Zariyah J. Tascosa IPET Student
“Reading to my kids was really fun. I had a great time doing this with them. I really got to interact with them more than I have and I got a better understanding of my kiddos. I am truly thankful to have this opportunity to watch these kids be themselves.” ~Natalie W. Tascosa IPET Student
As we approach Thanksgiving Day, we are reminded of the need to express gratitude to those around us. Therefore, in the spirit of expressing gratitude, thank you, Ms. Ratcliff and THS (IPET) students, for spreading gratitude throughout Amarillo Independent School District. Moreover, thank you to those of you who read our blogs, contribute your time, or otherwise provide your support to The Leaders Readers Network.
Happy Thanksgiving!