Mission x
Keep Your Change MISSION STATEMENT
KYC will provide cultural enrichment and professional exposure to its students. The purpose of Keep Your Change Inc. is to teach students how to be successful in the classroom and provide them with the academic and social skills to effectively function and thrive in a mainstream academic environment and in society. KYC’s mission is to assess academic levels and mentor underserved students; to assist the students in achieving and maintaining their academic, personal, and future goals. The students academic goals and objectives are determined from a needs assessment. These will determine many of the academic features of individual students program design and implementation. We encourage students to take their future in their own hands. Keep Your Change Inc. will foster academic achievement, build character, self esteem, self confidence, self respect and respect for others, which will result in strong cohesive communities. The work of Keep Your Change Inc. will empower students and have a positive impact on future generations.
A detailed description of the proposed activities that will accomplish the
mission
Keep Your Change Inc. activities encourage students to develop into well-rounded and healthy adults who are contributing members of their communities. Keep Your Change Inc. will provide literacy and related educational services to the families of the students that are based on the their needs. Keep Your Change Inc. will accomplish the mission of the organization through evaluation and instruction based on the needs and learning styles of students through specific academic instruction. That instruction will include but not be limited to the following curriculum:
STEM:
This STEM program will blend the digital, hands on and print experiences. From life earth sciences, to biology, chemistry, physics and more. STEM will give students the practice they need to succeed in developing solutions to whatever challenges they may encounter in their academic careers. Students will get hands on activities to reinforce scientific concepts and to connect to real world science and engineering. We will provide project-based learning activities and hands-on investigations to experience science in real-world situations Develop critical thinking skills today's students need to look at problems from a variety of angles. This program will meet students where they are through engaging features and thought-provoking questions that encourage them to relate the science concept to the world around them.
Real History
Alternate titles of this class could be The History Not Taught at School or Lies Your Teacher Told You. Standard history courses apply a Eurocentric model to understanding events. Because of this, the stories of vast majority of people in this world are only seen as footnotes to “standard history”. Our Real History class looks at history through the eyes of peoples in the African Diaspora. It covers the same timeframes as public school does but gives a focus on the journey of African peoples from the homeland to the entire world. Students will take a critical look at ancient artifacts, famous historical events, and timely literature as they explore racism, identity politics, economics, and more in this dynamic and informative class.
We are utilizing standards-based content and research-based reading instruction. Our program utilizes standards-based curriculum to ensure mastery. Hands on interactive activities bring abstract concepts to life.
Project based learning opportunities increase critical thinking, engagement, and academic skill development. The program will use video streaming, instructive games, and interactive features to create a riche understanding of the past and its impact on today. The program exposes students to primary sources and requires students to analyze a variety of perspectives and investigate key historical topics.
Math Curriculum
Consistently ranked as the least liked subject, mathematics has received a reputation as being difficult and useless in everyday life. However, math instruction professionals such as Dr. Jo Boaler and Dr. James Tanton wholeheartedly disagree. The chief problem is not what the material is, but how it is taught to students. Inspired by their teaching methods research, the Math Applications class will dive into various aspects of math with an emphasis on understanding the concepts behind common math topics instead of relying on rote memorization. Students see math applied in areas like technology, current events, and money, ultimately learning that math is not a competitive subject: it is a collaborative one.
Our mathematic curriculum is designed to teach students specific skills that build as the student progresses. After an initial assessment each student is placed at the appropriate entry level in the curriculum. This systematic and cumulative approaches a definite, logical sequence of concept instruction. The mathematics curriculum is structured with step-by-step procedures for introducing, reviewing, practicing, and mastering concepts. Each lesson teaches using multi-sensory tools such as videos, manipulatives, and other resources, designed to appeal to any type of learner.
Self-Regulated Reading Strategies (SRSD)
Competent readers understand what they read and the message the author declares. Competent writers express their ideas concisely and freely. Competent readers do not read simply to answer questions, and competent writers do not use a formula. The SRSD model does away with standard practices to provide a research-based and classroom-proven method that is effective in encouraging scholars to be better readers and writers. SRSD is not a program; it is a set of practices that develops the self-regulation that students need to take charge of their literacy lives. This six-stage model offers practical strategies to help readers and writers to strengthen their ability to: learn in social contexts, be strategic, engage in purpose discovery, and become independent thinkers.
Skills
Reading Skills
cause and effect
main idea
context clues
sequence
compare & contrast
inference
drawing conclusions
figurative language
vocabulary
Writing Skills
teaching confident
poetry
short stories
mystery
augmentative
diary
social media post
newspaper article
advertisement
poetic devices
Reading/writing-workshops for Middle & High School students
Student centered instruction using Integrated Reading and Writing workshops are a must in driving instruction for at risk youth. The skills changes and intensity for students in secondary school is no longer about identifying reading skills but using literary devices and literary elements. We therefore focus on developing reading skills and writing skills in our students.
Career Readiness
A diminished outlook on the importance of future planning in public schools has
allowed too many of our scholars to enter post-high school life without basic skills. The Career Readiness curriculum developed by the Suffolk County
Department of Labor aims to counteract this problem. The curriculum covers a
variety of key topics including social (managing different forms of communication
effectively, following up on job offers), practical (using public transportation,
renting an apartment), and even fiscal responsibility (budgeting money, financial
literacy). These skills will help our scholars become reliable workers, effective communicators, and thoughtful entrepreneurs.
The target beneficiaries of the organization
The purpose of Keep Your Change Inc. is to teach students how to be successful in the classroom and provide them with the academic and social skills to effectively function and thrive in mainstream society. We encourage students to take their future in their own hands. Keep Your Change Inc. will foster academic achievement, build character, self-esteem, self-confidence, self-respect and respect for others, which will result in strong cohesive communities. The work of Keep Your Change Inc. will empower students and have a positive impact on future generations.
The communities where the activities will be conducted.
The community where the activities of Keep Your Change Inc. Will be conducted at the Quintyne Community Center, located at 1 Commerce Blvd., Amityville, NY 11701. The students the program will serve will be students from the local public schools of Copiague and Amityville and will include students in the schools in the Town of Babylon, Suffolk County and Nassau County.
The communities where the activities will be conducted.
The community where the activities of Keep Your Change Inc. Will be conducted at the Quintyne Community Center, located at 1 Commerce Blvd., Amityville, NY 11701. The students the program will serve will be students from the local public schools of Copiague and Amityville, and will include students in the schools in the Town of Babylon, Suffolk County and Nassau county.
Expected sources of financial support
As a not-for-profit Keep Your Change Inc. will solicit funds from the Town of Babylon and federal and state funding and private donations. We will be eligible to apply for Community Learning Centers Funding Grants from the New York State Education Department, and the Town of Babylon community funding sources. Keep Your Change will solicit funds from the local Assembly. We will also solicit funding from the Stony Brook University Center for Community Engagement and Leadership Development, who funds community organizations.
Specific fundraising plans
In addition to soliciting funds from private and public sources we will purchase personalized T-shirts and resell them to supporters to raise funds for the cost of operations.