Oak Lawn Middle Schoolers Create Digital Picture Books to Share Messages of Peter H. Reynolds

The following blog post was written by Tyler Stott, an intern at FableVision Learning.

Students from Oak Lawn Middle School create a painting activity for the book Sky Color.

At Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School in Oak Lawn, Illinois community service is at the center of everything they do. 

Heather McCarthy, a media specialist at the school works with over 1,100 middle school students and shares, “My library centers around empathy, inclusion, and service learning…Throughout the years, they have raised over $50,000 for clean water projects in Africa, have packaged over 250,000 meals for families in need, and host an annual walkathon to raise money for pediatric cancer patients. We even host a ‘Day of Service’ where the entire school spends the whole day completing community service projects. “

This passion for helping others didn’t slow down during the pandemic. McCarthy and her students kicked into high gear. As recipients of a Hershey's Heartwarming Action Grant, McCarthy and her students got to work creating interactive story books using the stories and messages of their favorite author Peter H. Reynolds. These books were then donated for children at Child Life at Hope Children’s Hospital.

“Peter H. Reynolds is one of our favorite authors since his books and illustrations encompass the themes of resilience, bravery, confidence, patience, and individuality,” McCarthy shared. “These are all qualities our middle school students strive for. We use Peter H. Reynolds’s books for our SEL work, STEM projects, and to read for enjoyment. When we wanted to send picture books over to the children’s hospital, we knew Peter’s books would be the perfect fit.” 

For this project, students selected books by Peter H. Reynolds, and filmed a reading of the book and a video of a project. By adding QR codes to each book, recipients could follow along from anywhere. 

We recently connected with McCarthy and her students to learn more about the project and school. Read on to learn more. 

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Abby Murphy reads Our Table

Your students created interactive story books for children in the hospital, how did that journey begin?

McCarthy: “The idea for this project came about when we were remote learning. We had a classmate whose little sister was in need of a heart transplant. The class of students really bonded over this experience. They showed great empathy and love for their classmate and her sister. We decided that as soon as we were back at school in person, we would put together a project to support the local children’s hospital. When we saw the Hershey’s Heartwarming Grant, everything fell into place.”

What has the response been from these children and their families when they were given the books, videos, and podcasts?

Angel Swiatek and Sophia Falcon read The Dot

McCarthy: “We delivered the books to the staff of Child Life at Hope Children’s Hospital. Then  they chose which patients would receive our books. They reported the patients absolutely loving the books, videos, and projects. Many of the children watched the videos over and over again. The parents and families were grateful that there were children outside of the hospital thinking about their child in the hospital.”

What has been your favorite part about this project?

McCarthy: “I love that this entire project was student led. The students came up with the idea, collaborated together, and did all the creating, filming, and editing. This project really showcases the power of allowing student voice and choice. I believe when you give students the freedom to design their own thinking, they can come up with amazing ideas. I loved how this project highlighted how empathic, kind, and caring our students are.” 

Isabel Bello, a 7th grade student at OLHMS: “My favorite part of this process was the filming. Me and my friends were all able to collaborate with each other and filming together. I also loved that it was for a good cause. It was amazing!”

Selena Garza Prieto, a 7th grader at OLHMS: “My favorite part of this process was imagining the smiles on the kids' faces as they listened to our videos of us reading to them.”

ZZ Cabanas and Selena Garcia create a STEM project to go with the book Going Places.

What advice would you give to other students wanting to do a similar project?

Sophia Falcon, a 7th grader at OLHMS: “If you want to do this, I would recommend talking to someone that could help you and pitching the idea to them. For example, maybe you should talk to your principal, librarian, or even someone on the school board. They could help you with getting together the community, and help you get the things you need to do something like this.”

Isabel Bello: “Whoever wants to get involved in this, if you're doing this for the "fame" don't. I was doing this only out of good spirit. All the attention this project has received was never the original intention. It was all done out of the kindness of our hearts.”

Angel Swiatek, a 7th grader at OLHMS: “If someone wanted to do this in their community or school I would tell them to have fun with it and to express themselves in any way they want. They should feel free to be open to enjoying this experience knowing how others will benefit.”

Selena Garza Prieto: “My advice to others working on a project like this would be - Don’t be nervous while you're reading. Instead just think of the smiles you are giving to kids who need an extra smile right now.”

Principal Dr. Sean McNichols, Aidan Zak, Kendall Phipps, and Grady Gilhooly do the Cow Pose for guided meditation and yoga for I Am Love.

What is your favorite Peter H. Reynolds book?

Angel Swiatek: “My favorite book by Peter H. Reynolds was 'The Dot' because to me the book was teaching about no matter what you think you can't do, you can always do it and it's a way to express yourself.”

Selena Garza Prieto: “My Favorite book by Peter H. Reynolds is ‘The North Star’. I enjoyed reading this book with my best friends because it really shows you that you experience difficulties but you should never let it pull you away from following your own path to happiness.”

What’s next?

McCarthy: “Our school motto is, ‘Create a dream; make it a reality.’ The students of OLHMS know that in the library, anything is possible. We strive to make the world a better place through our community service, creativity, and empathy. If they have an idea, we will do everything we can to help them bring their ideas to life. April 29th is our Day of Service and we will host our annual walkathon for Live Like Abby to raise money for pediatric cancer patients in May.” 

FableVision and MetroWest YMCA Encourage Campers to Follow Their North Star

Cardboard boxes, aluminum foil, markers, balloons, and a splash of creativity were all the ingredients needed for Friday’s North Star Summer Celebration at the MetroWest YMCA. Wrapping up the third week of FableVision Learning’s North Star Digital Storytelling Program, campers donned their STEAM caps as they collaborated on the design, construction, and testing of a boat. 

With an audience of State and local leaders—including State Representative Carolyn Dykema; Framingham Mayor Yvonne Spicer; YMCA President and CEO Rick MacPherson; New York Times #1 best-selling Author/Illustrator Peter H. Reynolds; and FableVision CEO/Co-Founder Paul Reynolds—elementary-aged campers worked through the Engineering Design Process to create their floating vessels.

The event not only celebrated campers creations, it also shined a light on the partnership between FableVision and MetroWest YMCA. With funding from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Afterschool and Out-of-School Time Quality Enhancements (ASOST-Q) Grant Program, which is administered through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), the team shaped five weeks of the North Star Digital Storytelling Program. 

At the launch of the program, students read The North Star, a powerful allegory about finding one’s unique path, by Peter H. Reynolds. 

Using newly-created materials developed for this program by FableVision Learning, which extend the themes of the story, students are designing, collaborating, reflecting, and creating, all while developing a strong sense of self. In addition to hands-on projects, students used FableVision’s web-based animation tool, Animation-Ish, to produce their own animations. And received video coaching from The Peter H. Reynolds Storybook Academy as they developed pieces of their personal stories.

About the MetroWest YMCA: For more than a century, the MetroWest YMCA has responded to community needs in the MetroWest area. Annually, the Y serves more than 25,000 children, adults, and seniors living and working in MetroWest communities. Led by the values of youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility, the MetroWest YMCA strengthens the community and addresses critical gaps in kids’ education and health through programs and activities that focus on academic enhancement, health, social growth, and safety.

About FableVision Learning: Founded by Peter H. Reynolds, award-winning author of “storybooks for all ages,” FableVision Learning provides programs and tools to support teachers and learners to develop essential creativity skills. FableVision’s programs provide support to teachers through its Creativity Circle International community of practice, through custom training programs, and through digital software programs developed to unleash the creativity of students. All of FableVision Learning’s programs and tools support transformational themes found in Reynolds’ best-selling books. FabMaker Studio, Animation-ish, and The Peter H. Reynolds Storybook Academy are three of FableVision Learning’s signature creativity programs, which foster creativity, confidence, and self-expression. The online programs feature both digital and physical learning activities in which students create animations, books, and 2D/3D designs. More information: www.fablevisionlearning.com.