Here’s some holiday math for you: One community-service project, multiplied by two schools, equals 430 handmade greeting cards destined for delivery to service members of the United States Armed Forces overseas.
The card project also represents a unique collaboration among many students, teachers, and parents at the John M. Marshall Elementary School and the Springs School, who put their writing and art skills to good use in making the 430 cards.
Pamela Sandoval, a John Marshall teacher who leads the Activities Club, had the idea to follow up on a Veterans Day letter-writing project with a holiday card campaign for active service members. She teamed up with a fellow John Marshall teacher, Laura Rosner, who in turn tapped Molly Kochansz, a PTA class parent in Springs, to help rally students in both schools to action.
Military personnel “do so much for us by serving and keeping us safe,” Ms. Sandoval said on Monday. The letters are “the least we could do for them to spread a little holiday cheer. The students were super excited. . . . They all knew that the service members deserved words of encouragement and happy thoughts to put a smile on their faces.”
Brynn Tupper, a John Marshall fifth grader, said taking part in the project made her feel good. “I was writing to people who were away from their families for the holidays, and I imagined how hard that must be,” she said. “I felt bad for them, because who would want to be away from their family near the holidays? I know they are doing the right thing, though.”
The teachers adapted the project for students at different grade levels, ranging from a fill-in-the-blanks template for younger kids to more independent writing prompts for the older ones. To decorate the front of the cards, there were crayons, markers, stickers, and, for better or for worse, glitter. Lots of glitter.
Ms. Rosner said that in addition to the character-building aspect of the project, there were academic objectives, too. Students tapped into their letter-writing and spelling skills while paying particular attention to their penmanship.
“The kids are loving it, and the teachers are so proud and happy to have this project that helps others,” Ms. Rosner said. “This was a spark of an idea that turned into something more than we anticipated, in a pleasantly surprising, great way.”Ms. Kochansz agreed, saying that adding up the letters was “thrilling.”
“The kids seemed to understand. It seemed to make them happy,” she said. Over all she said, the project “has been really rewarding.”
“We’ll try to do it every year,” she added, “and hopefully find someone in the Amagansett and Montauk Schools to team up with.”
For Ms. Sandoval, whose Activities Club has also organized food drives, collections of pet supplies, and other school events at John Marshall, the heart of the project was teaching students to be conscious of others in the community.
“I tell them, ‘If there is any way we can make a difference, we will do it as a team,’ ” she said.