I have been teaching middle school science for 10 years. I hold a Masters in Teaching with a Specialization in Science.  This is my 7th year here at Hope.  During my time here, I have started the Science Fair, the recycling program and am a head of a grant that gets students involved in community-based projects.  My students and I developed a project to pick up abandoned tires in our school’s neighborhood.  This will be the 4th year for our annual Tire Sweep and the recycling program now includes paper, plastic and cardboard.

This year the 8th graders worked with Matrix Theatre Company to learn about the history of Detroit and our effects on the world's water supply.  Megan Harris of Matrix Theatre came to our school twice a month and shared facts, stories and pictures with the students. They learned how a series of events changed Detroit's landscape, population and economy. In addition to the history of Detroit, the students learned how we affect the world’s freshwater supply by looking at water usage data and the effects of pollution. For their final projects, the students chose to work in groups or individually.

Students in grades kindergarten through 8th participate in the annual Science Fair. K-6 students complete a class project, 7th grade students complete group projects and 8th grade students work individually.  This year's Science Fair will be held on January 27, 2012 during conferences.  Please be sure to check it out!

Working with Matrix Theatre, our 2010-2011 Community Service class worked on a variety of projects focussing on the importance of water and water quality. After viewing the video "The Story of Bottled Water," the students planned a water tracking day at school and collected plastic water bottles for 2 weeks. Using the bottles we collected, they created a structure to show that "The World is in Our Hands."

The Story of Bottled Water
http://storyofstuff.org/bottledwater/

The Matrix Theatre Company
http://matrixtheatre.org/

Our annual Tire Sweep began when, while on a walk through our neighborhood, a student pointed out a pile of abandoned tires and
asked why people were allowed to just dump them anywhere. Working with Southwest Environmental Vision (SDEV), CASS Community Social Services and Detroit Public waste, our students go around the neighborhood to clean up the piles of abandoned tires.  The tires are
then donated to CASS where they are made into mud mats. The profits made from selling the mud mats are used to support the many
services CASS provides for the community. 

The next tire sweep will take place in the spring of 2012.

CASS Community Social Services
http://casscommunity.org/

Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision
http://sdevweb.org/