Crestwood fifth grade hosts book drive

—Replenishing Texas school library lost in Hurricane Harvey

 

CRESCO - Crestwood fifth grade students offered a helping hand to  Mauriceville Elementary students in Orange, Texas, hosting a book drive to replenish the school library lost in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.
Crestwood fifth grade teacher Becky Bohr describes how students in Northeast Iowa became aware of the situation in Mauriceville:
“One of our instructional coaches, Kelly Sorenson, had connected with Mrs. Reynolds, a former fifth-grade teacher, a couple years ago,” she said. “After the hurricane hit, Kelly saw Mrs. Reynolds post pictures of the damage that her school received from Hurricane Harvey on a Facebook post. All books had to be thrown out because of mold or water damage.”
She continued, “Kelly shared Mrs. Reynold’s Facebook post.  She knew we had just had a field trip to Inspire Day at Norman Borlaug’s home. She knew I was looking for a community-based project we could do.  We had a mini environmental unit where we discussed that “everything comes from something” and reducing or buying less is just as important as recycling. We talked about Dr. Borlaug’s work and how he made a difference. Hurricanes were happening and we took time out to learn about how they form. We watched video and viewed pictures of the damages. Everything seemed to flow and all come together.”
 
Students wanted to help
“Mauriceville Elementary in Orange, Texas lost all their library books.  Crestwood students decided they wanted to give students books to cheer them up. They did not want them to be without books. We decided to hold a book drive so that we could take “gently used” books that were no longer being used, and put them to good use. We were keeping in mind our environment. Crestwood students also wrote and illustrated a book for the students in Texas. The students made posters, collected books, sorted them, and worked so well together,” Bohr said.
The schools kept in contact via the website www.appear .in. Bohr said some of the students described their current living conditions as homes stripped down to drywall and studs due to the water damage. They were going to school half days in a church. October 30th was when they planned to get back to school full time.
Meanwhile, Crestwood students worked on organizing the books donated locally.
“During our fall party, 5C examined the books and sorted them into K-2, and 3-6th-grade boxes. The books were then taken to 5B (Ms. Leifeld’s room) and 5A (Mrs. Wilson’s room) for labeling, counting, and packaging. It was a great way for all of us to give and donate our time in fifth grade.”
Other local entities stepped in to help with the book drive:
“The Howard County Girl Scout Service Unit (comprised of the individual troops including Lime Springs, Chester, Elma, Cresco, and Ridgeway) gave us a donation to help with the shipping,” Bohr said. “We received over 500 gently used books. We sent about 475 books. We have the greatest instructional coaches around. Kelly helped us connect classrooms, put our book together, and took pictures and video for us to share. We are so lucky to live in a very caring and giving community.”
Bohr said when the books arrived in Mauriceville, Mrs. Reynolds sent an e-mail to her thanking the Crestwood students, and included a link to a video made especially for the class.
As her students worked on the book drive, Bohr said she feels Dr. Borlaug’s example to reach out and affect change is exemplified in Crestwood students:
“I think one of the biggest takeaways is that helping out others is what truly makes us happy,” she said. “We donated our time, which doesn’t cost anything. We want to be like Dr. Borlaug and make a difference.”

Cresco Times

Phone: 563-547-3601
Fax: 563-547-4602

Address:
Cresco TPD
214 N. Elm Street
Cresco, IA 52136

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