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Blossom Montessori School for the Deaf http://www.blossomschool.org
Position: President
Email: rengwall@blossomschool.org
Phone: 727-539-7879
Fax: 727-539-7627
Blossom Montessori School for the Deaf
14088 Icot Boulevard
Clearwater, FL 33760Map thisBlossom Montessori School for the Deaf is the only deaf Montessori school in Florida, and one of only 2 in the United States. %newline% %newline%Blossom was founded in 2003 to provide an innovative and exciting academic environment for children ages 3 through15 who are deaf or hard of hearing. Unlike other...
For more information:
Name: Richard EngwallPosition: President
Email: rengwall@blossomschool.org
Phone: 727-539-7879
Fax: 727-539-7627
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Strokes of Genius ProgramVisual art is so important to deaf children, as their entire world depends in large part on their eyesight. With this in mind, Blossom is seeking sponsorship of a six-month arts education/ enrichment program for our students.
Each month our students would spend time at the Museum of Fine Arts in a guided curriculum learning about classical masterpieces, their artists, the culture, the history, and geography of the time the piece was created. A cross-curriculum program would be developed so that teachers can follow-up with in-class discussions, assignments and reviews. The Museum's Curator of Education will build in an assessment component of the program.
At the conclusion of the school year, the Museum will hold a a \"Garden Party\" for Blossom's students, sponsors and community members, complete with students dressed in costume dressed as their favorite artists, answering questions about their lives and masterpieces. Student original artwork would also be displayed.
Transportation is a big piece of this request. Right now, Blossom does not have a large bus or van to use for field trips, so we are seeking that as well.
General SupportWhat makes Blossom unique and innovative from any other deaf school is our Montessori curriculum. We know that to maximize children's learning we must guide them in such a way that allows them to experience what they are doing, not just be told this is the way it is. With small class sizes, individualized lesson plans, and a visual and tactile curriculum, what a better way for deaf children to learn!
Combining the philosophy and programming of Montessori with expertise in Deaf education creates the perfect environment for our students. Each child is treated as an individual and their educational needs are met as such. We strive to advance every child to their maximum potential and do whatever it takes to accomplish that.
Like most private schools, Blossom relies on tuition and charitable gifts to provide \"the Blossom experience\" for our students; however, we have a significant gap between tuition collected from each family and the total cost per student to operate our school.
General support is an integral part of closing that gap. It is our annual community fundraising effort and helps to sustain:
financial aid for student scholarships
classroom materials
science and technology equipment
professional development for our Montessori-trained teachers
library books and magazines
additional support services for the children
Our exciting future depends upon financial support from all members of the Tampa Bay community. This critical support provides Blossom with the means to react quickly to opportunities and needs as they arise. This translates to more personal attention and a closer school community.
Thank you for considering Blossom for your charitable giving.
Scholarships for deaf children neededThe nationwide statistics are staggering: 90% of all hearing parents never learn to communicate with their deaf child and 85% of all deaf students are graduating from high school at a 3rd â?? 4th grade reading level. The needs of the school have greatly expanded and enrollment projections for 2009-2010 have put us at five times our original size.
With almost 100% of our students receiving some sort of financial aid, there is a significant gap between family tuition and the total cost per student to operate our school. Will you please help? In these tough economic times, community support is crucial in closing that gap.
$7,000 ($583/mo.) would fund a scholarship for a financially needy Upper Elementary student.
$5,500 ($458/mo.) would provide a scholarship for a financially needy child in pre-school.
Blossom opened for the first group of students in August of 2003. Blossom is one of only two schools in the United States, and the only school in Florida educating deaf and hard of hearing students, hearing siblings, and children of deaf adults (CODAS), in the Montessori method.
Sports equipmentSporting equipment is needed to compliment the recent addition of a Sports Club for our school. Specific needs include:
Volley ball set
volleyballs
kids fitness obstacle course
knee pads
play parachute
soccer balls
Kid fitness tug of war
junior training hurdle for our existing running track
materials for our middle schoolBlossom has 4 classrooms: 3-6 year olds; 6-9 year olds; 9-12 year olds; and our oldest - 12-15 year olds. Our middle school classroom (ages 12-15) is in critical need of Montessori materials, science materials, and cultural offerings. While the younger classrooms have a healthy compliment of academic manipulatives, Montessori materials for older students are in short supply and are expensive. We are in need of science equipment, computer software for science activities and cultural enrichment offerings, including maps, country flags and globes.
Playground equipment and shade structure for our 3-6 agesPlay is such an important part of any child's physical, emotional, intellectual and social development. Playgrounds and outdoor play provide fun, fresh air and exercise. We would like to embark on an overhaul of our preschool playground area. Our youngest group, our 3-6 year olds, go outside for recreational play and fresh air twice daily. There is a fenced-in playground area specifically for them. The 3-year olds are okay, but for our 4-5 year olds, the existing structure is inappropriate to play on, it is too small. In a nutshell, these \"older\" preschool children are too old to play on our current equipment, but too young to play on our playground equipment designed for ages 5 and older.
A deaf child's playground does not need to be any different than a hearing child's playground, and does not need any particular structures. We are just in need of updated equipment to safely accomodate all of our students to make our innovative school fully functional.
Some of our students, in addition to their hearing loss, have additional physical or learning disabilities, including children with severe scoliosis, Down's syndrome and feeding tubes.
Our children are always taught how to play safe and act responsibly on the playground.
Relating to this request is a shade structure. Our play areas are under full sun and it would be most beneficial if the students had protection from it's harmful rays. We are a small school and simply cannot afford an awning.
Montessori materialsThroughout her life Maria Montessori began to see that children blossomed when allowed to learn for themselves. If they were given the opportunity to discover or experience something themselves instead of being told how or why it is, their potential was boundless. Because of this, Dr. Montessori developed many materials to allow the children to discover and learn for themselves. She strongly believed that human beings learn best by doing, touching and manipulating so she devised materials where the children could do just that to learn and grow.
Blossom is always on the lookout for new or used Montessori materials and manipulatives. These would range from preschool through middle school age groupings.
Teacher Wish List of Items(3-6 Classroom) - $30 for portable CD player/boom box with speakers (for daily use)
(6-9 Classroom) - $150 for a portable DVD player; $25 for EAI Education Materials (linking cubes, dice, fraction pieces)
(9-12 Classroom) - $250 gift card for a new camera; $50 gift card to Wal-Mart for 5 50-gallon storage bins with locking lids
(12-15 Classroom) - $500 for an assortment of Montessori materials; $500 for hands-on science equipment & environmental studies; $300 for PBS DVD Series 'The Planets' (CC version); $300 for PBS DVD Series 'The Writing of the Constitution' (CC version); $200 for cultural materials such as country flags, globes, etc.
(School Wide) - $250 for shirts for public performances; $100 for 4 rolls of laminate; $50 for computer software program for the school to create a yearbook; $30 for a box of copy paper; $30 for portable CD player/boom box with speakers (for performances)
AED machine w/pediatric padsBlossom is in need of an AED (automated external defibrillator). Many of our students, in addition to their hearing loss, have additional physical disabilities. Some have severe scoliosis, Downâ??s Syndrome, complex cardiac history, one child with epilepsy and a feeding tube, and another born without a fully formed ear.
We have one child here in particular who has had two heart attacks already. Her history includes congenital heart defects, multiple cardiac surgeries, failure to thrive, moderate to severe hearing losses on both ears, and a PE tube placement. She will be having a heart transplant sometime in 2009. It was highly recommended by her cardiologist that Blossom has an AED on-site, and that staff be certified in CPR. Coincidentally, Pinellas County is undergoing a series of budget cuts, including fire & Emergency Medical Services (EMS), which may result in longer response times starting in 2010.
We would use the AED in times of a medical emergency while we are waiting for EMS to arrive. Children over age 8 can be treated with a standard AED. For children ages 1â??8, the American Heart Association recommends the pediatric attenuated pads that are purchased separately. Early CPR is an integral part of providing lifesaving aid to people of any age suffering sudden cardiac arrest. CPR helps to circulate oxygen-rich blood to the brain. After the AED is attached and delivers a shock, it will prompt the rescuer to continue CPR while the device continues to analyze the child. It would check the child's heart rhythm and would recognize a rhythm that requires a shock. And it can advise the rescuer when a shock is needed. The AED uses voice prompts, lights and text messages to tell the rescuer the steps to take. The rescuers in our case would be our staff, teachers and administrators, who would need to be trained in the usage of the machine to successfully.
We are asking a caring individual or an AED manufacturer/distributor to help in our quest. The cost would be approximately $1,750 for the machine, pediatric pads & batteries. Due to the current economic climate, our funds are limited. Thank you for your consideration.
IRA Rollover Provision Reinstated!If you are age 70 1/2 or older, you are able to donate funds from your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) to a charitable organization such as Blossom Montessori School for the Deaf without taxation.
The IRA Rollover provision expired at the end of 2007; however, the initiative was reinstated as part of the $700 million economic bailout bill signed by President Bush in October 2008. The provision is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2008 and will apply to gifts made from that date through Dec. 31, 2009.
The following limitations apply:
The donor must be age 70 1/2 or older.
The cap on annual IRA rollovers is $100,000.
The contribution must be a direct gift to a charity (no planned gifts).
School for the deaf helps students blossom By ALEXANDRA CALDWELL - Article published on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009 by Tampa Bay Newspapers.
Article is about Ivy Richardson, who came to Blossom Montessori School for the Deaf in Clearwater when she was 7. She could not spell her last name and was years behind her age group in school. Ivy is deaf and had a hard time communicating and learning in a traditional classroom at Cross Bayou Elementary School in Pinellas Park.
Stacy first discovered her daughter was deaf when Ivy was about 2 years old, Stacy said. When she began public school, Stacy said Ivy felt extreme frustration because she couldnâ??t communicate or understand the lessons very well. Then she transferred to Blossom. Read on...
School for deaf kids receives grantBlossom Montessori School for the Deaf in Clearwater has been awarded a grant from the Glazer Family Foundation, the philanthropic organization founded by the owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The school received $3,648, which will go toward two projects: a new playground structure for 3- to 6-year-olds and general sports equipment for all grade levels. The school, which opened in 2003, serves deaf and hearing-impaired students in preschool through Grade 8. The school received the award at a ceremony at One Buc Place on March 9.
A Chance to Learn, Fit InMariah Potter is a spokeswoman of sorts for Blossom Montessori School for the Deaf.
The 14-year-old student government president has written and delivered speeches at Habitat for Humanity dedication ceremonies since 2005, the year her school began donating bookshelves and children's books to new homeowners. Remarkable for a child once labeled severely learning disabled and ineducable...
