News Details

February 2025

As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. Just ask Kriquet Johnson and her fourth-grade students as they work to understand challenging science concepts at Westlake Elementary.

“Science, as we all know, can get very overwhelming with the complexity of terms and information,” said Mrs. Johnson. “Science is hard to learn without being able to visualize what is being taught.”

Mrs. Johnson wanted to supplement her students’ primary classroom materials with additional books to make that visualization process easier. Funding from the Wayne Township Education Foundation and DonorsChoose allowed her to purchase a series of well-written, nicely illustrated books that have quickly made a significant difference for her fourth graders.  

One of the books is called “Planet Power: Explore the World’s Renewable Energy.” The book explains and illustrates different types of renewable energy produced by the Earth. “The pictures of solar power, wind power, geothermal power, and water power helped the students see exactly what I meant when I would use those terms,” said Mrs. Johnson. 

Those pictures are particularly helpful for children learning with a language barrier. Thirteen percent of Mrs. Johnson’s students are Spanish speakers. Four different languages are spoken in this fourth-grade classroom: English, Haitian Creole, Spanish, and Igbo. 

“The majority of my students can speak English fluently,” Mrs. Johnson said. “However, their vocabulary is lacking in the English language. By using the pictures in the book, students are able to relate the picture to the word in their home language and then I can introduce the English word to them. This way I am learning new words right along with my students.”  

The books - colorful and engagingly written - are making science more fun.

“My students absolutely love reading these books,” said Mrs. Johnson. “Sometimes it is hard for me to get them to put them down. They love learning about the different types of energy and how it is created. I saw multiple light bulbs go off yesterday during our small group discussions. 

“These materials are priceless. It is comforting to know that our community supports us.  Without WTEF and DonorsChoose, there would be many classrooms that would not have the ability to supply these types of high quality supplemental learning materials for our students.”

ABOUT THE WAYNE TOWNSHIP EDUCATION FOUNDATION
The Wayne Township Education Foundation (WTEF) provides community leadership to enrich, engage, and stimulate teaching and learning in the Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township. WTEF accomplishes this by supporting school programs and resources, while recognizing excellence among students and staff. To learn more about WTEF and/or establishing a named, designated fund, call 317-988-7966, visit wtef.wayne.k12.in.us, or follow us on Facebook or Twitter @WayneTwpEdFound.