Connecting New Jersey’s students to students around the world!
Connecting students to New Jersey is just the beginning. Here are projects that can connect your students to other students in developing countries:
Pennies for Peace: Originally conceived by students and techers at Westside Elementary School in River Falls, WI to support efforts to build schools in Pakistan coordinated by Greg Mortensen and CAI (Author of best selling, Three Cups of Tea). Since 1996, over 140 million pennies have been raised by over 4,000 schools all over the world. The program is designed to educate children about the world beyond their experience and show them that they can make a positive impact on a global scale, one penny at a time. Through cross-cultural understanding and a solution-oriented approach, Pennies for Peace encourages children, ultimately our future leaders, to be active participants in global peace. www.penniesforpeace.org
Sylvia’s Children: New Video: http://www.youtube.com/sylviaschildren
A charity based in Monmouth County, NJ started by Sylvia Allen following a humanitarian trip to Uganda where she “adopted” over 1,000 children, orphaned by the AIDS epidemic in Africa.
For the last 6 years Sylvia’s Children has made a difference in the lives of over 1,000 children at the Mbiriizi Advanced Primary and Day Care School in Uganda … providing a well so they don’t get sick, a library and books, additional classroom blocks, a nurse and health care services, new stoves for increased cooking efficiency … the list goes on and on. The organization’s goal is to make the school totally self-sustaining by 2012 so that this model may be applied elsewhere in Africa. www.sylviaschildren.org
Room to Read: “World Change Starts with Educated Children”
Room to Read partners with local communities throughout the developing world to provide quality educational opportunities by establishing libraries, creating local language children’s literature, constructing schools, and providing education to girls. The organization seeks to intervene early in the lives of children in the belief that education empowers people to improve socioeconomic conditions for their families, communities, countries and future generations. Through the opportunities that only education can provide, they strive to break the cycle of poverty, one child at a time.
Students Helping Students is a way for students, teachers and their communities to help Room to Read provide enhanced educational resources where it is needed most. By taking the initiative and starting fundraising projects at their school, church, or community group, students will cultivate valuable leadership skills as well as feel empowered that they can be agents of change in the world. www.roomtoread.org
Prevention New Jersey Book Drive
Prevention New Jersey is hosting a book drive to collect new or gently used books suitable for pre-school aged children. The book drive is part of the Family Outreach Program’s effort to improve literacy skills among disadvantaged youth and increase parent involvement in their child’s education. The donations will be distributed to the PCA-NJ Family Outreach child care centers located in low income communities in Northern NJ to assist them in developing lending libraries. Many of the children served do not have access to age-appropriate books in the home. The library will give children the opportunity to take the books home with them to read with their parent(s). If you would like to make a book donation, please email ddellanno@preventchildabusenj.org or call 732-246-8060. All books should be appropriate for children ages 3-5. Books in Spanish are also needed.
Note: Celebrate NJ! does not endorse any of the above organizations. The list is not intended to be a complete or finite list of opportunities. Teachers are encouraged to research and explore other projects that may achieve similar objectives.
