Visit By The Toymaker To Island Park Funded By MISF Grant

Mercer Island, WA, March 29, 2023 - On Friday, March 3, Mr. Hartman, aka The Toymaker, met with all three second grade classes at Island Park Elementary.

The Toymaker’s visit to Island Park was made possible by a grant from the Mercer Island Schools Foundation (MISF).

The second grade curriculum includes a science unit on materials and their uses. In the lessons, classes discuss properties that materials have, the effect to materials when they are heated or cooled, and how materials can be reused/recycled.

The Toymaker came at the end of this unit for a culminating activity which consisted of each student making a "toy" boat using handmade hammers and nails and a wind-up propeller. Students then tested these boats in buckets of water in their classroom, followed by changes to the boats as needed. Some students were able to add sails and weight to their boats, which they had to spend time designing and testing.

As part of this fun culminating activity, which took place for two hours in the library, Mr. Hartman discussed with the second graders the properties of each of the materials he brought for the project and how they have and can store energy. 

The boats were sent home with students to continue their explorations.

The second grade students had a lot of thoughts on The Toymaker’s visit, including:

"I learned a lot about momentum and storing energy". 

"I learned about states of matter."

"I enjoyed learning about properties".

"I had fun making boats and testing them".

"I think that all the grades should have Mr. Hartman come to visit their classroom".

The Mercer Island Schools Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) public service, non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing and improving the quality of education provided to ALL Mercer Island School District students by obtaining contributions for the public schools.

Started in 1981, the Foundation has raised over $26 million thanks to the generous community.

Since its founding, the Foundation has become the catalyst for the Mercer Island community to guarantee every teacher has access to the most up-to-date, innovative educational materials that guarantee exceptional teaching and learning experiences for every student.

The tremendous success of the organization lies in the simple fact that the Mercer Island Schools Foundation was born in a community that places value on quality education. Learn more about the impact of our community’s commitment to education.