Nea Kindergarteners Sock it to San Jose Flood Victims

Kindergartners at Alameda’s Nea Community Learning Center are running a sock drive to support San Jose victims of flooding, due to the recent heavy rains.

Kindergarten teacher Charlotte Pickett incorporated the community service project into science exploration activities around weather and rain, which coincided with last month’s flooding of Coyote Creek.

Students reviewed news media coverage of the floods in class; Pickett contacted the Salvation Army of Silicon Valley to find out what her class could do to help.

Incorporating media production skills – sign, poster, and with teacher support, video, creation, and letter writing – students sought donations from the Nea community. The Ks will also have to practice math skills by counting, sorting and organizing donations received.

Jana Chabre, Nea’s Assistant Lead Facilitator explains the benefits of project- based learning, explained, “project-based learning is interdisciplinary and brings social studies, humanities, math, science, language arts and geography together all at the same time instead of separate processes.”

At the end of the drive, Salvation Army representatives will visit the school to collect the socks and talk to students about community service.