Education United States Project #4440

Inspire DC Youth Through Soccer, Poetry & Service

by DC SCORES

Inspire DC Youth Through Soccer, Poetry & Service

Project Report | Jun 9, 2011
DC SCORES: Service-Learning in Action

By Jake Lloyd | Communications and Development Assistant

Noyes shows off one of the new trees

In the spring, DC SCORES students participate in soccer and service-learning. Through our service-learning curriculum, Writing for the Community, participants explore their community and, as a team, develop and implement a project to address a particular issue. Below is an example of one of the 26 service-learning projects that took place this spring.

The 2010-2011 school year has been Noyes Education Campus’ first year with DC SCORES after-school programming.

It didn’t take Noyes’ poet-athletes long to take ownership of the program.

While the coaches provided direction, the students took charge of December’s Poetry Slam! performance, which was especially impressive for a first-year program competing against schools used to the competition. This spring, that leadership carried over into Noyes’ service-learning project. Soccer and writing coach Dan Boyer watched as his students dutifully went through each stage of DC SCORES’ service-learning curriculum.

"They've been really helpful,” Boyer said. “They're always enthusiastic."

First, there was the neighborhood walk to observe and identify issues within the school and surrounding community.

"What they found was a lot of trash and all things nature weren't being taken care of,” Boyer said.

Sixth-grader Rakkia A. added, “We noticed that we needed more energy [around school].”

Out of that, the students decided it would be a good idea to start by beautifying their school grounds as much as possible. They had a head start — Boyer’s fifth-grade class had planted 28 trees the previous school year with the help of nearby nonprofit, Casey Trees. The students quickly took ownership of caring for the trees. On a hot afternoon in late May, students rolled out a pair of hoses and carried buckets of water to each of the trees on the school grounds.

“We plant trees because we care about the world and we care about nature,” said fourth-grader Erica W.

They’re waiting on a mulch shipment to help keep the trees healthy, and a summer programs director expressed interest in taking cares of Noyes’ project while the students are away.

"It's gone really well,” Boyer said. “It's been all them, which is a good thing. They don't have bad ideas at all.”

Boyer also coaches Noyes’ soccer teams, and he has noticed the positive energy from the project translate to practices and games. During the fall, he said, Rakkia showed poor sportsmanship on the soccer field and he wasn’t sure she should remain on the team.

Now?

“She’s definitely become a leader on the team.”

The DC SCORES team’s next project is “the whole trash cleanup thing,” Boyer said. Whether that gets completed during the next couple weeks or the 2011-12 school year, one thing is pretty clear: Noyes poet-athletes will lead the charge.

Planting trees

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Feb 28, 2011
DC SCORES: Getting Ready for Spring

By Cory Chimka | Elementary School Program Director

a performance at our Poetry Slam! in December

A third-grader holds his coach’s cell phone to his ear with his shoulder. His hands are occupied, pencil and notebook at the ready. He knows what information he is looking for. He speaks confidently, professionally. He’s never called a business before, but he’s rehearsed this conversation, with his coaches and classmates playing the roles of store personnel.

“Can you please tell me the largest piece of plywood you sell?”

One teammate sits close in hot anticipation. He didn’t feel comfortable making the call, but in his lap lay the final designs for a sign his team hopes to create and attach permanently to the fence in front of their school. The design had gone through several edits. The team agrees now; it’s perfect. They are proud.

At a computer across the room sit a pair of sixth grade girls. Originally, they sat down to find the phone number for the hardware store. Now they’re perusing the Home Depot website, researching paint colors and prices. They hope not only to use it on their sign, but to also spruce up the antique fire call boxes around their community like they’ve seen done in more affluent neighborhoods.

This is a snapshot of a scene unfolding in DC SCORES writing classrooms across Washington, DC this spring. Our coaches are taking a backseat, offering guidance and resources, as the students implement sustainable projects of their own design to address and impact issues observed in their communities.

The students are gaining real-life experience and job readiness, sharpening academic and higher-order thinking skills, developing strong ties to their communities, and positively contributing to their schools’ climates and environments.

This is service-learning. This is DC SCORES.

The DC SCORES spring season, beginning in March, pairs soccer with service-learning. The students at each of our partner schools put their teamwork to good use by developing and implementing a project to help their community.

last soccer game of the fall season

middle school Poetry Slam! performance

two teammates

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Nov 30, 2010
DC SCORES Fall Update

By Amy Nakamoto | Executive Director

Middle school boys playing soccer

DC SCORES' 16th fall season has been a great success so far! This school year, we’re serving close to 800 students in 25 elementary and middle schools across the District. More students in more schools than ever before have excelled in the classroom and on the soccer field. Some of this fall’s highlights include:

Our Fall Frenzy celebration at Kelly Miller Middle School brought out hundreds of parents and volunteers for a day of soccer and fun activities including face painting, arts and crafts, and a book giveaway made possible by a grant from First Book. Read about one coach's experience on our blog.

Two days a week, our students have been participating in our 12-week Power of Poetry curriculum where they learn about and write various forms of poetry, perform their poems in front of their team, and prepare for the annual Poetry Slam! competition on December 1 and 2.

Some of our middle school students at one school wrote and recorded an original song with a professional band through the ASCAP Songwriter Residency program.

Our students have also participated in our soccer and health curriculum two days a week with Thursdays and Fridays reserved for game days through our city-wide soccer leagues. Our middle school league’s season ended last Tuesday with the Capital Cup Championship games played under the lights at Bell Multicultural High School.

As you can see, we provide a unique and dynamic after-school experience. Public schools throughout the country and especially in the District are getting a lot of media attention. We believe programs that begin after the bell rings can also bring about transformational change in students. DC SCORES’ innovative learning environment connects and motivates young people in ways the formal school day cannot yet provide.

Our vision is to provide DC SCORES for all youth and schools in Washington, DC in need of a free, engaging after-school program. All DC public school students DESERVE to be on a team, DESERVE to be heard through their writing and spoken word, and DESERVE to be valued as committed community members. Your support has allowed us to begin this year without making cuts to programming. To sustain our current program and to achieve our vision, we need you on our team. By donating to DC SCORES, you display the type of teamwork, leadership, and commitment we cultivate in our students.

Writing poetry

Writing a song with The Great Unknown

Playing a soccer skills game

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