Friday, February 26, 2010

Annoucing our 2010 Project!

When life gives you lemons... make lemonade! Inspired by the journey of Philadelphia-area hero Alex Scott, the Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand Project celebrates the idea that just one kid can make a difference. Join schools from around the world to raise awareness and money for pediatric cancer research, all while participating in standards-based projects that make the process both inspiring and fun. It's all about kids helping kids - - and we want you to get involved!

As part of this two week program, each participating school will hold their own lemonade stands to help raise funds for pediatric cancer. Schools can hold one big lemonade stand day or a series of lemonade stand events throughout the two weeks. They will be able to communicate and interact with one another through a project blog, student-created videos, poster contest and special videoconference events!

Alex's Lemonade Stand is a national organization with Greater Philadelphia roots. The organization grew out of the front yard lemonade stand started by Alexandra “Alex” Scott, a pediatric cancer patient. In 2000, at the age of four, Alex opened her first annual lemonade stand with high hopes of raising money for pediatric cancer causes. Every year thereafter, Alex held an annual lemonade stand in her Pennsylvania front yard and inspired others to donate money to her cause.

So register now! And join us in our quest to make a difference.

Project Timeline
  • Online Registration Open: Now through April 15, 2010

  • Make a Difference Commercials Due: April 28, 2010*
  • Videoconference Testing: April 19 - 23, 2010
  • Kick-Off Virtual Pep Rally: April 30, 2010 from 11:00 AM EDT - 12:00 PM EDT via videoconference
  • Lemonade Stand Projects: April 30 - May 13, 2010
  • Poster Competition Entries Due: May 7, 2010*
  • Wrap-Up Celebration Videoconference: May 14, 2010 from 11:00 AM EDT - 12:00 PM EDT via videoconference

Required Project Components:

Create a Lemonade Stand Project: Schools participating in this project will have 2 weeks to host an Alex's Lemonade Stand. Sites can have a one-day lemonade stand fundraiser or hold a stand every day for a week - - or some other combination. After each day of sales, please head the MAGPI website and complete an online record form so we can keep track of how the entire project is doing. Each participating school will receive a package of resources from Alex's Lemonade Stand, including: return envelopes, banners, thank you notes, stickers (I support Alex’s Lemonade Stand), newsletter, and brochures.

Participate in the Kick-Off Virtual Spirit Rally and Celebration Videoconferences: These multisite videoconference events are how we bring everyone around the world together to share their projects! During each program, your school will have time to share a brief presentation. The first videoconference is our spirit event, so your school has 30 seconds to show their lemonade spirit, introduce themselves and share why they’re participating in the project. During the celebration videoconference, schools will have one minute to share their projects. We encourage creativity in project presentations! Both programs will also involve special guests.

Special Optional Projects:


Enter the MAKE A DIFFERENCE Commercial Contest: Alex made a difference in her community by helping others with the simple idea of a lemonade stand—we want your students to think about what they can do to make a difference in their community. Challenge your students to reflect on the statement: How Can I Make a Difference and then use digital tools to create a 45 second commercial video. We know 45 seconds isn’t long - - but it’s about the time to takes on an elevator and sometimes that’s all the time you have to convince someone! Each school is eligible to submit one commercial entry. Please note that commercials are due on April 28, 2010.

Enter the Alex’s Virtual Lemonade Stand Poster Contest: The best way to sell lots of lemonade is to get the word out! What better way then through posters? Each school that participates in the poster contest project should conduct a school-wide 'lemonade sale poster' contests. The top scoring poster entry at each school should then be submitted to the national contest. National poster entries need to be photographed and scanned as .jpeg images. We’ll post all of the entries on the project blog and the winning entry will be featured on the Alex's Lemonade website! Posters are judged on a rubric system by volunteers from the University of Pennsylvania. Please note that poster entries are due on May 7, 2010.

Be a VJ: We are looking for a school to be our virtual host for the kick-off virtual pep rally and the closing celebration event. Host sites will be responsible for working with the project coordinator from MAGPI to develop a script for each event, and to provide student anchors/commentators. VJ schools will introduce each guest speaker and school before their presentation. We have a sample script that sites can use a reference from previous years’ projects. Interested? Send an email to Heather Weisse Walsh at hweisse@magpi.net.

Blog about the Project: We would love for your students to be project bloggers during the event. Your students can either contribute to the project blog or write for your own school blog and we'll link to it. Simply send an email to Heather Weisse Walsh at hweisse@magpi.net to let us know you're interested in blogging. Bloggers will be responsible for reaching out to participating schools to get information about their projects as well as chronicling what their own schools are doing throughout the project.

Participate in Lemonade Bingo: Looking for a way to keep your students (especially younger ones) engaged throughout the entire videoconference kick-off and wrap-up? Play lemonade bingo! We'll create a scavenger hunt workshop that students can complete while viewing the kick-off videoconference. They then use their answers to complete a unique lemonade bingo board - - and we'll call out squares during the celebration videoconference! You may want to have a small prize for the first person to win 'bingo' in your classroom!

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