Case Book Two

MR. TRUK: Children, today is going to be an unusual day. As you can see, all of the work areas have been pushed to the sidewalls. We have a special event today and we are going to stay in our large group for part of the day. That means that all of you need to be comfortable on the big carpet. No lying down, but you can sit with your legs crossed or out in front of you. Those of you in the back that want to see better, you can sit on your knees if you want, but please do not stand up during the speakers talking. You have to keep all body parts to yourselves, no touching each other. Our speakers are not used to talking over students talking, so you have to be very quiet and show respect to our speakers. Today we have the animal doctor, Dr. Ming, and a helper, Ms. Yamin, from the animal shelter here, and one of the caregivers, Mr. Elton, from the senior center. We help both places, and the two places have gotten together because of our hard work! They are now going to offer us a special opportunity, but we have to listen very carefully to learn more! Please welcome Dr. Ming, Ms. Yamin, and Mr. Elton. (applause and students saying, "Hi.")

DR. MING: I think I speak on behalf of all of us, that we are delighted to be here today. As you know, you have been donating time and supplies to the animal shelter for some time, and many of you have helped animals get new homes when they needed them. Ms. Yamin and I are so grateful for your services. Your work means that a lot more animals get to live wonderful lives! Mr. Elton and I met a few weeks ago, when I helped you bring pets over to the senior center. At that time, we started talking about all the good work you also do over there to help the seniors write letters, and feel good about themselves. We decided that we ought to be able to work together on more projects. We talked some more, and we are here today to make a proposal to you!

MR. ELTON: That is right, Dr. Ming. Children, you do so much for all of us, we decided that maybe we ought to give something back, make this more of a true partnership. So, here is our thinking: vFirst, as you know, the senior center has to meet rules from the city and state, just like the animal shelter has to meet rules. The rules that the animal shelter has to meet are different, though. The animal shelter needs new space, and you have talked about how you might help them raise money for that space. We have already talked about how because of government rules, we cannot build an animal shelter onto the senior center.

Second, you have helped us with our recycling project, and we now are making money on that. Thanks to you, the project is going well. You helped us organize it so well that we now have extra space in the lot next to our main building. Remember, that is the lot where the recycling pick-up trucks and dumpsters used to sit.

We think that the animal shelter may be able to build a new building on that lot, and then our seniors could be close to help out at the shelter, with you. It would also be close enough that you could bring some animals over to the senior center from the shelter, assuming the animals are okay with that!

MS. YAMIN: Here is a picture of what we think it might look like. We could even build on an education area, for you to work with the animals! Wouldn't that be great? What we want to do is have some of the money from the recycling be donated to build part of the animal shelter. Of course, other donations would be needed, but that could be the start. We could say that in addition to recycling materials, we are hoping to help animals recycle into better lives from a better space!

DR. MING: We think it would be easier for you to provide service to us if we were close to each other, and we could do a lot of things together. Some of you have told me that different seniors are really happy when they have an animal see them, this could really cheer them up! They could see animals, and you, more regularly!

MR. TRUK: Thank you everyone. It sounds like a great plan. The question is, students, do you want to be part of it? (heads nod and students say, yes). Okay, what we need to learn is how others raise money, how we can help get donations for the building. We also need to learn how much money might be needed. Let's all get thinking about this, and break into your problem-solving groups. Each group should work on a list of the things we need to know to build an animal shelter. In 30 minutes we will come back together and compare lists, and then start the process of figuring out how we will gather information and sort it. Any questions? Dr. Ming, Ms. Yamin, and Mr. Elton have given us wonderful things to think about. Let's give them a round of applause, and then they can stay and help give you things to think about in your groups as we work through this problem. Are there any questions?

Teacher Notes:

• This is a great example of cooperation between a school and a community site. It is also a great way to help students think more about aspects of serving the community. However, before you have students engage in any activities that may result in raising funds for another group, you need to check with administration. Make sure that the school policies allow this and that you have administrative support in writing. Also, make sure that parents know about this and agree to the role that their children will play in supporting an external organization.