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This page has all the information about my Discovery Packs program, including my $1000 grant application and the handouts from the inservice training I presented at the 1999 Math, Science, and Technology Conference at California State University, Bakersfield.  Prior to presenting my program, I created and field-tested 15 packs with kindergarten through second grade students and their families.  The feedback was great!

Although I requested $1000 to purchase books and supplies, you can easily create your own Discovery Packs from materials you have on hand.  You might be interested in knowing that I received the grant, but decided to leave the school district, so I had to leave the grant money behind.  I've created 40 kindergarten/first grade packs for next year from books and games I already owned, and items I was able to create inexpensively.

Please let me know how you adapt and use this information in your own classroom.  You can write to me at kndrcorner@aol.com

All About Discovery Packs
 

• Discovery Packs are thematic collections of fiction and non-fiction books, poems, songs, hands-on educational activities, and games.

 
• Each Discovery Pack contains at least 3 to 5 books, along with supporting materials.  Some of the books are at the child's independent reading level, and others are meant to be read to the child.

 
• On Monday, every child gets to self-select the pack they will take home for the week.  Because children select the packs themselves, there's very little record keeping (i.e., you don't worry about whose turn it is to take home the Farm pack).

 
• Research has shown that children are highly motivated to read materials that they self-select, and that nightly reading at home is crucial to building successful readers.

 
• Packs are returned on Friday morning.  Children who do not return their Discovery Pack on time do not take one home the following week.

 
• Children share the Discovery Packs with their families, reading the books and working on any of the activities that are part of their pack.

 
• Each Discovery Pack has a composition book/journal for parents and children to write about what they did and what they most enjoyed.  The journal stays with the pack for the next family to read and add their own comments.  Filled journals are added to our class library.

 
• Using Discovery Packs in place of some of your regular homework saves your valuable time and helps eliminate boring worksheets and dittos, replacing them with meaningful, learner-centered activities.

 
• I use large laminated manila envelopes to hold my Discovery Packs.  They are decorated with colorful clip art and stickers, which help emergent readers to know what each pack is about.  I considered using inexpensive backpacks or tote bags, but they were more difficult to store and manage than envelopes, which fit nicely into plastic storage crates.

 
• I have a master list of the contents of each pack, so that it's easy to check for missing materials.  If anything is lost or broken, I ask that it be replaced before the child takes home another pack.

 
• Many packs have blackline books that the child completes during the week.  I keep additional copies in hanging pendaflex folders in a crate, so that I can easily replenish my packs every Friday, before refiling them in the check out box.

 
• Children may take home a pack more than once, but they must wait at least a week to do so, allowing other students to have a chance to use that pack.

Dozens of Ideas for Discovery Packs

apples	animals	farm
picnics	alphabet	money
time	pigs	weather
colors	shapes	penguins
bats	counting	ocean
snakes	rainsforest	seasons
flowers	cars	Halloween
Christmas	space	sports
dinosaurs	fire safety	health
family	snow and snowmen	boats
Africa	trees	floating and sinking
butterflies	bugs	tall tales
birthdays	patterns	mice
making graphs	gardens	magnets
rocks	flowers	Martin Luther King
flags	harvest	stars
oviparous animals	food	vacations
babies	scarecrows	monsters
Hannukah	school	Indians & Pilgrims
fairy tales	snakes	friends
days of the week	nursery rhymes	teeth
health	feathered friends	baseball
bunnies	candy	chocolate
elephants	friends	fishing
geometry	geoboards	building
hospitals	insects	Australia
kangaroos	lions	shadows
monkeys	ocean life	popcorn
quilts	kings & queens	light
sea shells	wishes	community helpers
music	water	artists
masks	cooking	cookies
the beach	mountains & volcanoes	camping
soccer	homes	addition
subtraction	heroes	how many is a million?
jump rope rhymes	ants	bears
brothers & sisters	grandparents	the 5 senses
neighborhoods	city and country	circus
clowns	football	ballerinas
gummy bears	movies	favorite books

Favorite Characters ~ Winnie the Pooh, Little Critter, Clifford, Arthur, Magic Schoolbus

Favorite Authors ~ Donald Crews, Eric Carle, Jan Brett, Joy Cowley

Sample Discovery Packs
 

Before you get started ...

• Book titles aren't listed, because it's best to start with what you already own.

 
• File folder games are easy to make ~ many samples are available at the BCSD curriculum, the KCSOS lab, and in teacher books & magazines, and educational supply stores.

 
• Work jobs are from the Math Their Way program ~ you can also design your own.

 
• AIMS (Activities that Integrate Math and Science) activities are great to add to your packs ~ counting, measuring, graphing, and simple science experiments.

 
• You can make your own audio cassettes of one book in each pack and/or of poems and songs that fit the theme.

 
• I like to add recipes from books like "KinderKrunchies," for home cooked fun and healthy snacks.

 
• Adding directions for a simple craft project made from things kids have at home is fun, too!

 

• 1, 2, 3, Count With Me ~ 3 books, one card matching game, two clothes pin games (match the number word to the number, and match the number to the correct # of dots)

 
• Colors ~ 3 books, a laminated poem called "I Can Read Colors," a clothes pin game (match the color word on the clothespin to the color on the tagboard), and a set of watercolors

 
• The 4 Seasons ~ 5 books, a laminated poem, 2 jumbo sized laminated Weekly Readers

 
• Fun With Letters ~ 5 books, a sign language alphabet, two file folder games

 
• Fun With Numbers ~ 3 books, a file folder game, magnetic numbers, flash cards

 
• Shapes All Around Me ~ 4 books, a blackline shapes book to complete, pattern blocks and 2 pattern block puzzles, two poems

 
• How Does Your Garden Grow? ~ 4 books, laminated seed packets, file folder game

 
• What Comes From An Egg? ~ 5 books, Weekly Reader, 3 song cards, class blackline book to add a page to

 
• Penguin Parade ~ 3 books, poem, Weekly Reader, penguin themed file folder game on compound words, pattern blocks with penguin puzzle

 
• Under the Sea ~ 5 books, a baggie filled with seashells, 2 song cards

 
• When You're Smiling ~ 3 books, a video on tooth care (free from Crest), 1 song and 1 poem, and a new toothbrush (from my dentist)

 
• Dazzling Dinosaurs ~ 5 books, Weekly Reader, 2 song cards

 
• Down on the Farm ~ 4 books, plastic farm animals, file folder game, 2 song cards
• I Love My ABC's ~ 3 books, 2 song cards, alphabet chart, audio cassette of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, file folder game

 

 



Photos of Sample Packs
Added July 13, 2001



 

July 13, 2001 I just returned from a wonderful week in Chicago, where I presented two days of seminars to over 70 terrific teachers.  Because traveling long distances severely limits the amount of materials I'm able to take along, I gave handouts on my Discovery Packs Program but did not bring any samples to show.		A wonderful KinderKorner subscriber and workshop attendee, Jennifer, asked what she called a BIG FAVOR ~ could I please provide photos of some of my packs so that she could see what's in them.  So here they are :o) Jennifer also took some nice pictures of other materials at the workshop ... you can see them on her website at www.geocities.com/kinderpond
Laminated envelope to hold materials	Shapes All Around Me Discovery Pack	Laminated instruction sheet for using materials
Laminated poem mounted on construction paper for durability	Most packs have an instruction sheet like the one above (right hand photo), telling families what to do: Read the books, poems, and songs together Play the games, puzzles, and other activities Make ONE entry in the Student Journal and one in the Parent Journal	Laminated pattern block puzzle pages
Student Journal and Parent Journal, very basic.	The books in the pack -- 2 boardbooks including Barney's Book of Shapes, a Shapes book from Benchmark Publishing, and a blackline book (yep, colored and laminated!) which was free from my school district's teacher resource lab.	Student journal entry, sorry for the bad photo.  The student drew shapes, copied the word "rectangles," and wrote: "Dear Journal, I love the shapes and I like reading the books of shapes."
Laminated envelope to hold materials.	Down On The Farm Discovery Pack	Inexpensive 4 piece cardboad puzzle from Walmart.
Page from my Who Lives On A Farm? blackline book	Books in packet include Mrs. Wishy Washy, The New Baby Calf and Wake Up, Wake Up! (both from Scholastic's Literacy Place first grade curriculum), Blue Skidoos to the Farm,  my own blackline book Who Lives On A Farm?, and a very old phonics reader called Red Hen (copyright 1974) that practices short vowels.	Page from Red Barn, Red Barn, What Do You See?  This is a book you could easily make for yourself using clip art or die cut shapes.
Student journal entry:  a compilation of I love ___ sentences and a nicely detailed drawing, plus the student (age 5) wrote his FULL name, Martin Rubalcava, which is a lot for only halfway through kindergarten :o)	For More Ideas, Visit My Down on the Farm Unit	Enlarged detail from student drawing ... animals have been labeled (with the sounds they make) by an adult or sibling. Parent Journal entry: Martin and I enjoyed all the books, the puzzle, the songs, and helping out in his journal to color and write.  We also enjoyed singing Old McDonald song.


 
 

Please take a moment to read the following copyright notice and fine print:

This is the exact text of a grant application I submitted to Bakersfield City School District on March 15, 1999.  It is provided here for informational purposes only, in response to the dozens of letters I receive each month asking how to write a grant proposal and what type of information should be included.  Please note that the entire text of this application is copyright by Victoria Smith and may not be reproduced, distributed, or used by any other person or persons to apply for any sort of funding for a Discovery Packs program or similar program.
 

Project Title:    Discovery Packs

Grade Level:    First Grade

Number of students affected:    20

Number of staff/adult participants:    1

Amount requested:    $1000

Subject Areas:    Reading & Language Arts
                            Math/Science
                            Humanities/Social Sciences

Type of Grant:    Individual
 

I.     Need
 

        The typical student in my first grade classroom comes from a home with few, if any, children’s books. The majority of my students qualify for Title 1 services, including the free or reduced lunch program, which means their families have little or no money available to purchase books for their children. Some of my students have parents with limited literacy and/or parents for whom English is a second language. Because of these conditions, most of my students' parents have not read to them on a regular basis to prepare them for the important task of learning to read. Author Jim Trelease, in The Read Aloud Handbook, suggests that children need to be read to for approximately 1000 hours before they begin school, in order to have the pre-reading skills that make them "ready to read." In a typical year, less than 20% of my students meet that criterion.

        Many of my students are reluctant readers or are having difficulty learning to read, and are therefore below grade level in reading and writing, as well as other subject areas. They do not have access to appropriate books and materials at home to practice and reinforce what they are learning at school. In order to address this deficiency, books must be put into the hands of students and parents to be shared, read, enjoyed, and discussed in a positive, skills-enhancing fashion. Research (Krashen and Pilgreen, 1993; Pfau, 1967; Greaney and Clarke, 1975) has proven that reading at home greatly accelerates the acquisition of reading skills, and shows a strong connection between independent reading and developing reading skills that lead to fluency.

        Another area of concern in my classroom is the lack of time available for fully exploring social studies, science, and mathematical concepts, and for making meaningful connections across the subject areas. Providing appropriate materials for students to explore at home will address this need as well, by reinforcing and enhancing the classroom curriculum while encouraging children and their families to further explore subjects that interest them as they build reading skills.
 
 

II.     Goals
 

• To provide appropriate materials for home use that will encourage children and their parents to read at home, thereby enhancing and accelerating the acquisition of reading skills

 
• To encourage the habit of nightly reading

 
• To get families excited about and involved in their child's growing abilities as a reader

 
• To extend the language arts, math, science, and social studies curriculum beyond the limits of the classroom

 

        Discovery Packs are thematic collections of fiction and non-fiction books, poems, songs, hands-on educational activities, and games. Each Discovery Pack contains at least 3 to 5 books, along with supporting materials. Some of the books are at the student's independent reading level, while others are meant to be read to the child as a Shared Reading experience. Discovery Packs extend reading across the curriculum, enriching the students’ reading experiences and enjoyment while building skills and comprehension. Discovery Packs are not intended to replace other homework or reading activities -- they are meant to supplement and enhance the basic curriculum while providing additional opportunities to practice and acquire skills and knowledge.

        The Discovery Packs program allows students to self-select a thematic collection of books and activities every Monday. They keep it at home for 4 nights, allowing ample time to work with the books and materials while building reading skills, exploring math, science, and social studies concepts, and sharing enjoyable educational experiences with their families.

        In Literacy at the Crossroads, author Regie Routman states:
 

The main purpose of nightly reading is to develop the lifetime habit of reading for pleasure and information. Nightly reading also reinforces the reading strategies and habits being developed at school and at home. Students also learn to self-select books that are appropriate to their reading level and interests, take responsibility for reading these books and carrying them between home and school … and take proper care of their books ... Students develop reading skills, vocabulary, and confidence by reading materials that can be handled easily.

        The materials that comprise Discovery Packs will be purchased from book clubs, local merchants, and educational supply houses, to supplement materials I already have in use. I will purchase and prepare materials on my own time over the summer, so that at least 25 Discovery Packs will be available for use when school begins in August. Other packs will be assembled during the 1999 -- 2000 school year, with a goal of having 40 different thematic packs available for my students to choose from. The Discovery Packs program will run throughout the school year, and will be continued in subsequent years, as it will be simple to manage and maintain once the original materials are purchased and assembled.
 
 

IV.     Evaluation
 

        Evaluation of student progress is ongoing, and will include formal and informal methods of assessment. The first means of assessment is the comments received from students and parents. Each Discovery Pack contains a composition book/journal for parents and children to write about what they did and what they enjoyed the most. The journal stays with the Discovery Pack for the next family to read and write in, creating a cumulative record of experiences with that particular set of books and activities. Filled journals will be added to our classroom library so the children may read their own entries and those of other students and parents. Many Discovery Packs will contain fun worksheets, books, or simple projects that the student will complete and return. Review of these materials will be another means of evaluating progress in reading and writing ability, as well as comprehension of the skills and concepts addressed.

        Additional evaluation will include monitoring student progress in reading, as assessed by daily reading with the child, as well as by Running Records, Quarterly Benchmark and SAT9 achievement, journal writing, and anecdotal observations. During my one-on-one conference time with students, we will talk about the books and materials in Discovery Packs, and I expect to see increased knowledge and awareness in the thematic areas covered in the Packs they have taken home. Finally, all books read as part of the Discovery Packs program will be entered on each student's individual Reading Record and will become a part of their formal Reading Portfolio, which is a BCSD assessment tool for reading.
 
 

V.     Dissemination
 

        Information about my Discovery Packs program will be disseminated in a variety of ways. I presented a session on Discovery Packs at the 1999 CSUB Math, Science, and Technology conference, and look forward to doing so again next year. I would be pleased to present my program at a BCSD inservice, and will continue informally sharing the information with teachers at my school site as well as with other teachers. If the program is funded, I will write proposals to present the Discovery Packs program at next year's California Kindergarten Association conference (January 2000) and the Kern Reading Association conference (October 1999). I also own an Internet mailing list (Kinder Korner) with over 600 international subscribers receiving my free daily newsletter, and have a popular Website for primary grade teachers. I will continue sharing information on Discovery Packs through both of these valuable communications tools.
 
 

VI.     Timeline
 

April 28, 1999            Notification of Acceptance

June - August 1999    Purchase of materials and assembly of at least 25 Discovery Packs

July 1, 1999               Funds become available for reimbursement

September 1999        Discovery Packs go home with all students weekly
                                 Continue purchasing materials and making new
                                      Discovery Packs for student use

October 1999           Present session on Discovery Packs at KRA conference

January 2000            Present session on Discovery Packs at CKA conference

March 2000             Present session on Discovery Packs at MST conference

June 2000                All funds expended
                               At least 40 Discovery Packs completed and in use
                                Program is in place for succeeding years
 

Itemized Budget Explanation

Code         Explanation          Amount Requested          Explanation

4200         Books                   $ 600                             Purchase of approximately 150
                                                                                    paperback books to be used for
                                                                                    home reading in Discovery Packs

4300        Supplies                  $ 400                            Educational Games $150
                                                                                    Photocopies  $100
                                                                                    Other Supplies  $100
                                                                                    Laminating  $ 50

TOTAL REQUESTED $1000

In-Kind Contributions:  Explain any in-kind contributions (outright dollars as well as in-kind services) to this project by the school or school partner(s).

    * note ~ I am asking my principal to contribute $50 in supplies and 1000 photocopies to my project.  Applications that ask about in-kind contributions expect you to find someone to provide them, and if you don't, your chances of receiving the grant are diminished.
 

If you have any questions about the process itself, please feel free to write to me at kndrcorner@aol.com.  I'm not aware of any grants that you can apply for, so please don't send questions to me asking where you might look for funding opportunities.

Sheryl Skufca has some good information about grants on her Bibliocat Webpage, so you might want to look there.  You should also speak to your school district, your local reading association, your union, and any other organizations you belong to.  Get involved and ask around, and don't hesitate to apply when you find something.  Getting a grant is easier than you think.

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Spring Has Sprung!		Come Into Our Garden	A Camping We Will Go!	Under the Sea	A Rainbow of Colors
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Spinning Spiders		Nursery Rhymes		Going Batty