Three Columbia School District teachers recently were honored to receive classroom grants from the Mississippi Professional Educators (MPE). They are Kimberly Davis from Columbia Elementary School, along with Stephanie Stringer and Sherri Turnage from Columbia Primary School. They represent three of only 44 members statewide that received MPE 2021-22 Classroom Grants. These grants provide support for these members to try out a new idea or buy the “extras” for a great lesson plan or project.
Davis, a 5th-grade Language Arts and Inclusion teacher at Columbia Elementary, plans to use her grant funding for a project entitled “Updated & Engaging Classroom Library.” This library expansion project will provide contemporary reading material to increase student engagement, promote discussion and provide educational resources in various reading levels.
As a 5th-grade ELA teacher who also teaches inclusion students, Davis wanted to expand her classroom library to fully engage her individual learners. She teaches students who have a variety of needs, as well as students from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. She saw a need to expand her library to include books that feature diverse characters, topics to engage boys and important themes to guide her students to learn as they read.
“I hope to add more books that capture my students’ attention and imagination. By adding more books, I hope to utilize student choice each week by having my students pick the books they want to read and that interest them regardless of what reading level it is,” Davis said.
Davis added that research shows an interest in reading leads to developing higher, deeper levels of focus and concentration. A student who reads 20 minutes per day will encounter two-million words per year and score in the 90th percentile on standardized tests; whereas, a student who reads only one minute per day will be exposed to 8,000 words and will score in the 10th percentile. A resident of Sumrall, Davis has been a member of MPE since 2017.
Stringer, library media specialist at Columbia Primary School, plans to use her MPE classroom grant to fund a project entitled “Research with a Wildcat.” This project utilizes PebbleGo, a curricular content database packed with informational articles, interactive activities and literacy support to boost student engagement and foster independent learning. A resident of Foxworth, Stringer has been a member of MPE since 2014. She
“At Columbia Primary School, we want to create Wildcat scholars that can research and discover information independently,” Stringer said. “In order to provide students with current up to date articles, we will use the MPE grant funds to purchase PebbleGo, a curricular content hub specifically designed for K-3 students.”
PebbleGo is packed with informational articles, ready-made activities and literacy support for students of all abilities, and it boosts engagement and fosters independent learning in core subject areas.
Turnage is the music teacher for grades Pre-K through 2nd grade at Columbia Primary School. She plans to use her grant funding for a project entitled “Enhance Music Experience.” This innovative project introduces students to musical symbols, simple and complex rhythms and note matching. She will add a colorful Note Worthy Musical Activity Rug to her classroom. This rug will help with simple and complex rhythms and math skills, as well as reinforce note and music symbol recognition. This rug will encourage deeper engagement for a music learning classroom. She will also install a new CD system with Bluetooth capability to play all students’ songs. Finally, the grant will allow her to provide three sets of Boom whackers to enable her entire class to play a song together. A resident of Columbia, Turnage has been a member of MPE since 2014
“I was so very excited to be selected as a recipient of one of the MPE grants and can’t wait to see how these new additions enhance my students’ classroom learning experience,” Turnage said.
Founded in 1979, MPE is a statewide professional association with approximately 13,500 teachers, administrators and non-certified staff from kindergarten to graduate school level. The organization’s top priority is the education and achievement of students. MPE awards up to $40,000 in classroom grants to MPE members who wish to enhance instructional offerings or educational experiences for their students. For more information on MPE’s classroom grant program and other benefits, please visit www.mpe.org.
