New Monuments—Proposals from Ms. Islam’s 3rd Grade Class

NEW MONUMENTS

Proposals from

Ms. Islam’s 3rd Grade Class at University Prep Science and Math Elementary School

FIRST EDITION 2020 PRINTED AND BOUND AT 826MICHIGAN

NEW MONUMENTS Memorials That Matter

826 National’s Commitment to Inclusion As an organization committed to encouraging youth in their creative expression, personal growth, and academic success, 826 National and its chapters recognize the importance of diversity at all levels and in all aspects of our work. In order to build and maintain the safe, supportive 826 environment in which great leaps of learning occur, we commit to inclusion: We will not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, nationality, marital status, English fluency, parental status, immigration status, military service, or disability.

826michigan Staff Dr. Naimah Wade, Executive Director Judy Tipton, Development Director Catherine Calabro Cavin, Education Director Frances Martin, Operations Director Megan Gilson, Program Manager Ariel Kaplowitz-Hahn, Volunteer Engagement Associate Josi Evingas, Development Associate

Copyright © 2020 by 826michigan and Blotch Books.

All rights reserved by 826michigan, the many whims of Drs. T & G Blotch, and the authors.

The views expressed in this book are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of 826michigan. We believe in the power of youth voice and are thrilled that you picked up this book. No part of this book may be reproduced without express written permission from the publisher, except for small excerpts for the purposes of review or scholarly study.

Many thanks to University Prep Science and Math Elementary School and our volunteers for their participation in this field trip.

By purchasing this book, you are helping 826michigan continue to offer free student programs. For more information, please visit: 826michigan.org

Table of Contents New Monument Proposals A New Monument for Doctors................. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 A New Monument for President Barack Obama. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 A New Monument for Reading................. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 A New Monument for Doctors................. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 A New Monument for Toddlers............... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 About 826michigan.. ....................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

A New Monument for Doctors Group one Did you know some doctors help kids who have cancer get better?

A doctor who works with kids is called a pediatrician, and a doctor who works with people with cancer is called an oncologist. We all want to say thank you to doctors who help these kids so they don’t pass away and are never seen again. We thank them for persevering because sometimes when we try to help, we have to persevere to make it work.

Since pediatric oncologists helps save kids’ lives, they deserve a monument.

New Monuments | 1

A New Monument for President Barack Obama Group Two Barack Obama is really cool and is actually a nice guy.

He was born in Hawaii. He was the 44th president of the United States. He has a wife and two daughters.

We feel happy for him. He dressed really well.

Our vision for our monument is to create a statue or fountain, or a fountain with a statue on top.

2 | Ms. Islam’s Class

A New Monument for Reading Group three Did you know classrooms have a lot of books?

During lunch time, students can read books at their level or try ones that are harder. Reading is so fun. Books can take you around the world. Some of the most fun stories are Dr. Seuss books, like “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.�

You can also read books at libraries. You can learn a lot from libraries, like how things work and about places around the world. Books will even make you want to visit new places.

Our vision for this monument is that it will look like students reading. Some will be quiet and some will be laughing. The monument will be colorful and big.

New Monuments | 3

A New Monument for Doctors Group Four “Lub dub!” “Say ‘ahhhhh!’”

Doctors deserve a monument because they help you no matter what. There are many different types of doctors. Doctors give us hope. Doctors can come up with the cure for Covid-19!

To be continued . . .

4 | Ms. Islam’s Class

A New Monument for Toddlers Group Five At some point, we were all toddlers and we all see toddlers. Since we get so attatched to toddlers, we want to keep the idea of toddlers with us as a monument!

Toddlers always run away when they’re told to do something like clean up toys. They act like they’re teething and always hungry in order to get attention and more food. Toddlers are a lot smarter than we may think!

Toddlers love us and reach out to us to play, and they’re so cute!

Toddlers look up to who is with them, so we must be good role models so they will grow up to be good people and do good things in the future.

When toddlers grow up they could become your boss or manager and you can still care for them.

Building a toddler momument would be great because it would spread the love and kindness to everyone who sees it along with everyone they share it with, which can change the world.

New Monuments | 5

inspires school-aged students to write with skill and confidence in collaboration with adult volunteers in their communities.

Our writing and tutoring programs uphold a culture of creativity and imagination and support students in establishing strong habits of mind. Through publication and community engagement, we provide students with an authentic and enthusiastic audience for their writing.

Our programs provide an energizing creative outlet for students and meaningful volunteer opportunities for community members.

ONLINE LEARNING LAB For the 2020–21 school year, our programs will remain virtual. When is it safe to return to our in-person programs, we plan to continue to offer virtual program opportunities as well!

SCHOOLWORK SUPPORT The program formerly-known as tutoring has been given an updated name, but the same great foundations remain. We organize trained volunteer tutors to work with students one-on-one with their homework after school. Schoolwork Support is available for all subjects, for students ages 8–18.

WORKSHOPS We offer a number of free workshops taught by professional artists, writers, and our talented volunteers. From comic books to screenplays, bookmaking to radio, our wide variety of workshops are perfect for writers of all ages and interests. One of the most popular workshops we offer is our weekly Wee-bots program for elementaryaged writers.

IN-SCHOOL PROJECTS Our trained volunteers go into local public schools every day to support teachers with their classroom writing assignments. Based on the teacher’s curriculum, assignments range from writing tales to crafting college essays to exploring poetry.

FIELD TRIPS Students come as a class to our writing lab to join a group of volunteers, interns, and staff in order to help solve a problem through writing—whether that is our editor Dr. Blotch’s insomnia, our looming story deadline, a mystery in need of solving, or one of the many others we encounter. Our field trips always end in a finished publication of original writing that students take home.

OUR STORES Our Robot Supply Co. stores are one-stop shops for robots, robot owners, and enthusiasts alike. They are designed to inspire creativity and bring awareness of our programs to the community. Please visit us online at onwardrobots.com. All proceeds from our stores directly fund our free student programming. Onward robots!

WRITING IS

A way to figure things out by ourselves

We create a safe place to be ourselves and try new things We support the ways that writers work (like thinking, sketching, talking)

A way to help us connect to our world

We study the writing we want to do so we can try it We learn how to change our writing for genre, audience, and purpose

A way to help us learn who we are and who we will become

We work with a group of writers who help and support each other

A way for us to use our power to make changes and build a better world

www.826michigan.org

826 National was inspired to take a stand on issues of inclusion and diversity in light of the many events that spotlighted social and racial injustices throughout the country. We as educators, volunteers, and caring adults need to be aware of the wide range of issues our students face on a day-to-day basis. We need to support these young people as they navigate through and try to make sense of the world and their own identities.

We need the support and the feedback from our community to ensure 826 is living up to these standards.

Through our inclusion statement, our internal diversity and inclusion group, cultural competency resources provided to staff and volunteers, and partnerships with other organizations, we are always working towards being a more inclusive and supportive organization.

We at 826 have the privilege of working with the next generation of scholars, teachers, doctors, artists, lawyers, and writers. It's our job to make sure they are able to take their own stands.

As an organization committed to encouraging youth in their creative expression, personal growth, and academic success, 826 National and its chapters recognize the importance of diversity at all levels and in all aspects of our work. In order to build and maintain the safe, supportive 826 environment in which great leaps in learning happen, we commit ourselves to inclusion: we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, nationality, marital status, English fluency, parental status, military service, or disability.

The 826 National network is committed to encouraging youth to express themselves and to use the written word to effectively do so. We encourage our students to write, take chances, make decisions, and finish what they start.

And 826 strives to do this in an environment free from discrimination and exclusion.

by Gerald Richards, CEO