The projects in this category are meant to target helping those who are homeless and impoverished. Many of these projects also tackle world hunger or benefit local soup kitchens.
Projects are listed alphabetically by title.
Primary Subjects: Science, Horticulture
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Science, Horticulture
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The Ag Harvest Campaign is a year long project to benefit families in need in our community. The campaign consists of four school-wide food drives throughout the year and more than 40 families participating in the Plant a Row for the Hungry campaign. Donations collected through the food drives and garden collections were given to our local food bank.
Primary Subjects: English, Math, Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Math, Social Studies
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our after school leadership and service-learning program made, decorated and delivered more than 800 snack bags for the Lord’s Table in Gaithersburg for distribution to people who are homeless.
Primary Subjects: Government
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Government
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect
Project Description: 9th grade Government students learned about and provided service to clients of a Christian Shelter in Salisbury, Maryland. The students were also engaged in a directed writing exercise and discussion on what service-learning meant to them.
Primary Subjects: Character Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Character Education
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students work with the local Department of Social Services to provide a brighter Christmas for less fortunate children in Caroline County. This program involves 80% of the total school population with 50 students directly involved. This past year 83 children were adopted.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students work as a team to collect personal needs items for a local homeless shelter, Diakonia.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students collect basic essentials for homeless people. Each grade level is responsible for donating an item. (e.g. toothbrushes, shampoo, combs and brushes)
Primary Subjects: English, Character Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Character Education
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our annual Empty Bowls Project lets students learn about and discuss the issue of poverty in our community. Students explore this complex issue and then work to alleviate the problem by raising money through a culminating fund and awareness event. They donate any funds raised to local charities.
Primary Subjects: Art, Social Studies, English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Art, Social Studies, English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: After a lesson on hunger in our world, students worked in year long art classes to produce ceramic bowls for the "Empty Bowls Dinner Night." The dinner allowed guests to choose a bowl to keep as a reminder that there are always Empty Bowls in the world. Proceeds of the dinner (100% donated by Outback Steakhouse) were donated to the American Red Cross.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Health, Family and Consumer Sciences
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Health, Family and Consumer Sciences
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect
Project Description: Student collected donations to be given to the sponsoring organization of a 30-Hour Famine. Students pledged to fast for 30 hours in solidarity with people who don't have enough to eat, and to collect pledges for their 30-Hour famine to donate to an anti-hunger organization. During the famine period, students participated in three service projects. They recorded a textbook for a reading disabled student, attempted to make lap robes for a local nursing home, and provided entertainment as well as serving and getting to know some of the veterans of the Charlotte Hall Nursing Home. Seven sophomores, juniors, and seniors participated in this project.
Primary Subjects: Math, English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Math, English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: After researching the various social service needs in the District of Columbia (DC) area, the student government association discovered a deficit of prepared food for those in need and decided to serve the hungry by making sandwiches for a local soup kitchen. After planning the event and coordinating the details, 100 students made more than 750 sandwiches for DC Central Kitchen. Throughout the entire project, the students who participated reflected on how their efforts were making a difference by providing something too many go without: a meal.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: The students will learn about being responsible and supportive members of the school and neighboring community. They will be providing decorative food bags/baskets and paper goods to families in need.
Primary Subjects: Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Math, English
Level of Service: Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: This service-learning program is infused into the math curriculum, focusing on topics in consumer math and preparation for the Maryland Functional Math Test. The unit is called Business Skills, and it reinforces basic skills such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, decimals, fractions, and percents. We spend about one week on business concepts of profit, loss, gross, net, discounts and taxes. The students then conduct a fund raiser using these skills, and take their profits to buy food to make bag lunches to donate to a local soup kitchen.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students are challenged to help the UN's World Hunger Programme by earning grains of rice on FreeRice.com, a website that donates rice for correctly answered questions related to subjects such as grammar, language, and geography.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, English, Science, Math
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Perpetual Prosperity Pumps Foundation (PPPF) is a not for profit organization that collects and recycles used athletic shoes and cleats through the “Adopt-A-Family” program. This program meets not only a local need but, an international need. In this program, students collect used athletic shoes and donate them to PPPF. By recycling the used shoes, they are kept from local landfills, resold in Ghana, West Africa, and the proceeds are used to establish scholarship funds to send the poorest rural farmers to an award winning agricultural institute for training in Modular Organic Regenerative Environments. This program teaches the farmers to create regenerative environments, conserving year round income to raise these farmers out of poverty.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Common Core (Social Studies, Reading/LA, Science/Math, Art)
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect or Advocacy
Project Description: Students work with an international organization to collect and reuse athletic shoes and cleats. The funds generated from the sale of these shoes overseas is then used to train poor farmers in Africa in Modular Organic Regenerative Environments.
Primary Subjects: Science
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Science, Math, English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Glean: “to gather the crop that has been left in a field by reapers.” 490 Berwyn Heights Elementary School Students in grades K-6 worked together for three days to harvest several tons of potatoes and green beans at Beltsville Agricultural Research Center. Crates of vegetables were collected and immediately delivered to the Washington Area Food Bank by the Food for Others program.
Primary Subjects: Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Math
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: "Going Grocery Shopping" was created so that the students that need to take the Maryland Functional Math Test (MFMT) could realize that the objectives of the test are problems that the students will have to solve in everyday life. Our seventh grades complete the project at the beginning of the year and it includes problems that pertain to about half of the objectives on the MFMT. Items that are "purchased" by the students are later donated to the Advocates for Homeless Families at the completion of the project.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Science
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Science
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our school was contacted by Habitat For Humanity and asked to participate in a can recycling program. The cans that the students turned in are recycled and the money is used to buy supplies for Habitat For Humanity. As of April, Banneker students have collected 622 pounds of cans.
Primary Subjects: Family and Consumer Sciences
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Family and Consumer Sciences
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The James M. Bennett Health and Human Services Technology Classes studied various issues regarding family needs. Students applied this knowledge as they participated in an experience that taught them the basics of teamwork using Baldrige quality systems principles, and manufacturing technology in the textile field. They donated over 100 fleece hat creations to the Joseph House Crisis Center.
Primary Subjects: English, Social Studies, Science, Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Social Studies, Science, Math
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students participated in the Harvest for the Hungry, “Kids Helping Kids” campaign. They learned about world and local hunger problems, conducted a food drive, and toured the Maryland Food Bank.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, English, Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, English, Math
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our project objective was for students to participate in activities to gain an understanding of the issue of homelessness in our area and develop activities that are designed to provide money and necessary items to these shelters. Our project, developed primarily by the students, included written and visual preparatory activities, a collection for a local homeless shelter, and written and visual reflection activities.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Math, English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Math, English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our 8th grade students completed an indirect service-learning project January through March 2002. It was our goal that students demonstrate every individual's role in affecting positive change. In fact, our motto throughout this project was, "Kids CAN make a difference!" This year, we worked with a local homeless shelter to collect a range of items at our school and within the local community, which was then donated to adults and families in need in Howard County. All of our activities were created to help individuals who are underprivileged in our community.
Heart to Heart by Carol Clark and John Kostic in
Harford County. Created for high school (Self-contained Special Education). Sherry Unger winner.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Ms. Clark’s and Mr. Kostic’s classes worked on a “Heart to Heart Homeless Shelter Project.” Through the “Heart to Heart Project” our classes identified a shelter in Harford County that could use assistance. The students communicated via telephone with the case manager to identify the specific needs of families at the shelter. As an ongoing project, the students have and will make birthday cards for the children staying at the shelter now and throughout the summer. A calendar was established and hand-made birthday cards are sent to the shelters as birthdays occur. After talking to the case manager to find out the needs of families, we also collected $98.00 to purchase items such as cleaning supplies, toiletry items, and school supplies.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Science
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Science
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Approximately eighty-five Banneker Middle School students participated in a local Help the Homeless mini-walkathon around the community to raise funds for two local organizations (Montgomery County Dental Clinic and Threshold Services). These organizations contacted the school indicating their need for funds to keep their services in our neighborhood. Students decided the walkathon would be an efficient way to raise awareness and money. Students advertised, coordinated, pledged, participated, and reflected on the project as a group. We raised over $1200!
Primary Subjects: Character Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Character Education
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: During the holiday season there are many families throughout the Baltimore Area who are in need of gift and food assistance. The Salvation Army helps people throughout the year through public assistance programs, food banks, and student development summer camps and programs. Throughout the holiday season they step it up and provide gifts and food to families who would normally not have a Christmas at all.
Primary Subjects: Business
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Accounting, Financial Management, Computer Applications
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The Edgewood High School Business Department partnered with two Harford County non-profit organizations (Harford Family House and Harford Habitat for Humanity) to make students aware of the homeless situation in Harford County. Our theme was “Homelessness in Harford County” and our goal was to make students not only aware of the homeless situation in Harford County, but also to become a part of the solution.
Primary Subjects: English, Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Math
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students completed a performance task entitled "Houses to Help". In this task they read for information and to perform a task. The final product (gingerbread houses) was then created based on the directions given and these products were auctioned off to raise money for families in need during the holiday season. This project raised more than $870!
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Math, English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Math, English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our 6th grade students completed an indirect service-learning project September through November 2001. It was our goal that students understand the needs of students around the world. We had our students work in groups to raise money to purchase school supplies to be sent to Kenya so that students there would be allowed to attend school.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Math, English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Math, English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our 8th grade students completed an indirect service-learning project in January and February 2002. It was our goal that students demonstrate every individual's role in affecting positive change. In fact, our motto throughout this project was, "Kids CAN make a difference!" We worked with a local homeless shelter to collect personal hygiene items at our school, which were then donated to adults and families in need in Howard County. All of our activities were created to help, in some way, individuals who are underprivileged in our community.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Our school conducts and annual school supply and clothing collection for those in need.
Primary Subjects: Character Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Character Education
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: We developed an international service club called The Leo Club at our school which is sponsored by the local Lions Club. The purpose of the club is to serve the community.
Primary Subjects: Science, Health, Social Studies, Technology Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Science, Health, Social Studies, Technology Education
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: What do cows, chickens and goats have to do with reading? Students at Lime Kiln Middle School in Fulton can tell you. 8th graders participated in Heifer International’s Read to Feed program. The more books the students read, the more money they raised to provide hungry families with farm animals.
Primary Subjects: English, Math, Social Studies, Health
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Math, Social Studies, Health
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Three hundred and fifty 7th graders at Windsor Knolls Middle School participated in a walk-a-thon that raised approximately $16,000 for the Lindsey Learning Center and Bread of Life Soup Kitchen of the Frederick Rescue Mission, an organization in Frederick County that helps people who are homeless and in need. Through their curricular classes, students learned about homelessness, planning a fundraiser, and used other skills that made the walk-a-thon a huge success.
Primary Subjects: Character Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Character Education
Level of Service: Direct
Project Description: As coordinator for student service at Franklin High School for the last seven years, my students and I have been able to develop and become involved in various projects and activities. One project that continues to bring the community, parents, students and teachers together is our Meals on Wheels route. The route exits through the mutual efforts of parent drivers and students who deliver the meals daily. The students willingly meet this community need by providing meals to homebound seniors.
Primary Subjects: English, Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Math
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The third graders at Cedarmere Elementary School organized a clothing, toiletries, and food drive for the families living in the Hannah More Shelter in Reisterstown, Maryland. Third graders helped to design the fliers that were sent home to the student body of the school. They also encouraged contributions by writing and then reading announcements on the school intercom several times a week. Students organized donations as they came into the classroom.
Primary Subjects: English, Social Studies, Math, Science
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Social Studies, Math, Science
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect
Project Description: The service project revolves around the story "A Christmas Carol" and the theme of poverty. Students help single mothers by providing supplies for their babies, thus performing service and learning the negative consequences of teen pregnancy.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: Students explore the concepts of economic decision-making and supply and demand through this service-learning project. Depending on the contents of the collection, schools could support charities such as the Salvation Army, Goodwill, Bea Gaddy (in Baltimore), the Learn Shop (Montgomery County), Purple Heart, AmVets, homeless shelters, or other local organizations.
Primary Subjects: English, Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Social Studies
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect
Project Description: Our Youth Rise group deals with the problems of homelessness and poverty in our community. We accomplish this through both direct and indirect action. This year, we worked with a local food bank to collect food at our school which was then donated to families in need on Kent Island. We also put together holiday food and gift baskets which included the makings for a turkey dinner and new clothes and toys for families in need. All of our activities are created to help, in some way, individuals who are underprivileged in our community.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: Students learned about the local and global impact of poverty, especially on educational opportunities. With support from O Ambassadors and Free the Children, students targeted poverty, education, sustainable development, and health. Students raised funds to build a school in Latin America. Students also supported our county Shoes for Students fund.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: Unfortunately, hunger is a serious problem in Maryland. Even in these booming economic times, there are many people in need and more of us need to give to help those who do not have their basic needs met. A whole new approach was developed surrounding the idea of the Raider Ghost of Hunger haunting the school in costume.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: A class challenge turned into a school-wide book collection program in partnership with the University of Maryland, Baltimore Police Force. The collected books were donated to: an elementary and middle school, two homeless shelters and Ronald McDonald House in Baltimore City.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, English
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: “Read to Feed” will foster a love of reading in children, a passion to help others and a way to help create a better world. It is a wonderful global education opportunity.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, English
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: “Read to Feed” will foster a love of reading in children, a passion to help others and a way to help create a better world. It is a wonderful global education opportunity.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Students read articles on the problems of hunger and homelessness and completed activities which support Frederick County Public School's (FCPS) curriculum using the information they learned. Students participated in a read-a-thon where they were "paid" in canned food by sponsors for reading a certain number of minutes per night. My four classes alone raised over 600 cans of food for our local food bank; the entire 7th grade brought in more than 1200 cans of food. Next, guest speakers from the Coalition for the Homeless in Washington, D.C. came to our school for an excellent discussion on the topic of homelessness. Two men who had been homeless spoke to the students about their personal experience. Then, we watched United Streaming video clips on frostbite in a continued discussion of hardships of homelessness and again, used the information in activities which support FCPS curriculum. Lastly, we collected over 300 pairs of socks and mailed them to the Coalition to be distributed to the people who are homeless on the streets of our nation's capital.
Primary Subjects: Technology Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Technology Education
Level of Service: Direct
Project Description: Each year, the Frederick County Service Learning Advisory Board (SLAB) adopts a house through Rebuilding Together with Christmas in April. During one day in April, approximately 80 students from all over Frederick County help rebuild a person's house that lives with a disability or financial barrier. This project is amazing because it really shows what impact students can have on people's lives and society.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, Science, English, Math
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, Science, English, Math
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: Students will examine a time line of the RMH history, regulations, and guidelines. They will read articles about infectious and non-infectious diseases that could affect potential families. The students will write letters to businesses asking for donations to the RMH. Students will collect monetary and other donations and categorize the items into charts and graphs. They will read and reflect on stories written by parents and families who have stayed at the RMH.
Primary Subjects: Character Education
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Character Education
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: Each year our student council (SGA) sponsored a "SGA Christmas Service Day." One of the service projects had the student council members adopting 4-5 local families in need for Christmas. We would specifically try to identify and focus on our own teen mothers and their families. Approximately 25 SGA members participated in this activity. The students identify the families in need, contact and meet with the families regarding their needs, conduct a school-wide food drive, make shopping lists, shop for gifts, wrap the gifts, and then actually deliver the gifts to the families.
Primary Subjects: English, Family and Consumer Sciences, Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English, Family and Consumer Sciences, Social Studies
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The Southern Middle School (SMS) Bulldawgs Cookbook was a yearlong project of the eighth grade class of 2004, which demonstrated their dedication to serving the community. Through the project, students became more aware of community and societal needs. The Southern Middle School class of 2004 proudly took on the challenge of creating and publishing a cookbook in order to share their recipes with family and friends and raise money for their community. Working together with their parents, students gathered histories of family recipes, as well as the recipes themselves. They then researched local charities to select a program to which they could donate the $1750 cookbook proceeds.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The students first approached our principal about conducting the "Think Links - Caring Connections" ("Links") service-learning activity after seeing ads in the local newspaper requesting people and organizations to donate toys for the U.S. Marines Toys for Tots Program. We thought for sure that the school could raise enough money to purchase at least $500 worth of toys.
Primary Subjects: English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: English
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: A core group of students annually organize a school-wide campaign to raise funds used to purchase critical items for teen parents who are homeless and their children. Our annual "Trim-A-Tree for Baby" campaign addresses the community need of teen parents who are homeless and their infants. This project was an outgrowth of other projects that addressed the needs of youth and children who are homeless throughout our city and state.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: After researching the various social service needs in the DC area, the Student Government Association discovered a deficit of prepared food and decided to serve the hungry by making sandwiches for a local soup kitchen. After planning the event and coordinating the details, 100 students made over 750 sandwiches for DC Central Kitchen.
Primary Subjects: Art
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Art
Level of Service: Indirect
Project Description: The "Vessels of Hope" project was developed originally when Baltimore County required all art teachers to give seventh graders five student service-learning hours. Student watched a video "Hunger in Maryland" and we discussed how we could end hunger in our community. We looked at contemporary and traditional recycled art for inspiration. Students created their vessel using all recycled objects. After the "vessels" were completed, students "sold" their artwork to their families for two canned goods with the "hope" of feeding the hungry in our community for the holiday.
Primary Subjects: Social Studies, English
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: Social Studies, English
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect
Project Description: A team of 6th grade students raised money for a local homeless shelter through a walk/jump/shoot-a-thon. We presented the money to a shelter representative at a celebration luncheon attended by the top fundraisers. In the spring, we divided the students among our 3 or 4 local shelters and they helped the shelters with various tasks (i.e. plant flowers, scrub and clean, wash laundry, paint, do yard work, etc.).
Primary Subjects: World History, American Government
Maryland Curriculum Indicators for: World History, American Government
Level of Service: Direct, Indirect, Advocacy
Project Description: This unit/project was centered based on the goals of the O Ambassadors Club, which was created in conjunction with the Oprah Winfrey’s Angel Network and the Free the Children Foundation. It is designed to teach students how to research share, and devise activities that will raise awareness of the four main goals of the club: Sustainable Development, Health, Education, and Poverty. Throughout the course of the school year ,each goal is to be addressed. The curriculum is designed to be infused into a course or as a special interest club.