A Glimpse Into the CIS JPMorgan Chase Publishing Centers
Walk into any school that has the CIS JPMorgan Chase Publishing Center, like King Westwood Elementary School, and you will see children alongside volunteers reading aloud and polishing up stories they have created in their classroom.
"We've aligned this program with the Kalamazoo Public School's expectations for writing. Our volunteers come in at the proofreading and publishing stages of the writing process," says Helen Walls, Publishing Center Coordinator for CIS. "We support and reinforce the work the teachers are doing with their students. As the Lucy Calkins writing program used by KPS points out, editing makes good writing better."
Volunteers Barb Goodwin and Laufet Morrison are in the room preparing to work with kindergarteners on one of the last days of school. Two students arrive with drafts of stories. Here is a snippet of a conversation:
"The first thing I'm going to do is listen to you read your story because I'm so excited to hear it." The student reads her story aloud. "That's a wonderful story about ponies splashing in the water."
"I love ponies."
"I can tell. We need to let the reader know about the author because you are the author of this story."
"I've never been an author before. This is the first book I wrote."
"What do you want to be when you grow up?"
"I want to be a teacher."
"Now it's time to make a dedication page, would you like to thank somebody special?"
"My mother."
They review the story, making edits. "You are a good writer!"
"I like writing books!"
Barb and Laufet ask the students about summer plans and then the next students appear.
Barb is a retired schoolteacher whose granddaughter attends MLK. She volunteers weekly to support students in the Publishing Center. "When I was teaching I would have loved this program. There is never enough time in the day to give as much individualized attention as you'd like with students."
Laufet has a social work background and is a mother of two. She became interested in the Publishing Center when her daughter's class participated in the center. (Warning to potential volunteers: Once you start volunteering, you may find you like making a difference for kids and will begin to volunteer more. That's what happened with Laufet. In addition to supporting the Publishing Center at MLK she now volunteers at Kalamazoo Central two times a week as a math tutor.)
Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Vader, stops in at the end of the day to see how everything went with her students. She says her students love to read their stories and see the finished project. "I want them to be proud of what they're writing. The Publishing Center helps with that. Every teacher," she says, "should have their students experience this at least once."
Soon, the children's stories will be handed off to yet another CIS volunteer. Known to the students only as "the lady who will type your book up for you," Laura Strunk enjoys her behind-the-scenes work. "Opening a new packet of stories is like opening a present," she says. "It's so fun to see what the kids have been working on. What imaginations! I've laughed, cried, and been grossed out. It's great. The children in every grade have a lot to say and they do a good job of expressing themselves."
Photo: Participants at the CIS Chase Publishing Center.
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