The Orange County school board approved the nomination of Timber Lakes Elementary School third-grade teacher, Jennifer Wojcik, for the Toyota Family Literacy Teacher of the Year Award.
School staff nominated Wojcik for her work with family literacy activities that began in May 2011 with a Harry Potter book club that has involved more than 5,000 parent volunteer hours, enticed more than 52 percent of all third through fifth grade students to enroll in before-school book clubs and raised more than $173,000 over a 6-month period to renovate the school media center, among other book projects.
Wojcik has also paired struggling and unmotivated students with reading buddies from the local high school and community members, collaborated with a national design school to build literacy graphics, a website, and an online reading game students can use at home and at school to increase literacy proficiency. She has joined with 29 other businesses to help meet the needs of students, families, and the book clubs.
One outstanding teacher nationally, will be awarded $20,000. Should Wojcik win, the funds must be used to further engage families in literacy proficiency.
Wojcik would deliver a speech at the National Conference on Family Literacy in March, next month.
