Spanish Lake Elementary's fifth graders win in HOPE

Sharon Wallen, Spanish Lake Elementary’s (SLE) fifth-grade teacher and her students won the 24 Annual HOPE Contest Elementary Class Division out of 124 school entries. Students are required to develop innovative campaigns to help raise awareness about our roles as the stewards of domestic animals. This year, students were asked to develop messages about preventing and reporting animal cruelty.
Approximately 7.6 million animals enter shelters nationwide each year. Miami-Dade County school board member Dr. Martin S. Karp founded and has sponsored this contest for the past 24 years. His hope was to instill in students that if they see a problem, examine the problem and see how they might be part of a solution in meeting community needs and how they can give back.
This year’s theme and research projects centered on student research on making pet ownership less expensive along with becoming a responsible pet owner. The students’ submissions included a video, a power-point, flyers, a wall-sized ABC Chart relating to animal care and an original book titled TLC – Tender Loving Care. Each student wrote an original poem and illustration to support responsible pet ownership. The students also held massive drives for blankets, food and toys for the animal shelters.
Their efforts were rewarded on May 21 at the Miami Dade Animal Services Department. The students gave voice to an important cause. They were not only surprised with the win but they were awarded four tickets to a Marlins game, a $50 Target gift card and a bag of goodies. In addition, for 24 years of dedication and support for The HOPE Contest, a surprise proclamation of thanks was given to their teacher Sharon Wallen. This came from the office of Miami Dade’s Mayor and Commissioners.