When Animals Lead the Way: A 3rd Grade Dual Language Philanthropy Story
Julia Halualani
Dual Language Teacher • Elementary School
Overview
At Truscott Elementary – a dual-language Title I school in Loveland, Colorado – Julia Halualani asked her 3rd graders a simple question: Who do you want to help, and how? The answer became one of the most creative fundraisers the school had seen.
How the Curriculum Was Used
Julia wove Project Heart lessons one through four into her literacy framework, pairing each with picture books and Newsela texts. Students explored time, talent, and treasure through their reading responses, making philanthropy a natural extension of language arts. Guest speakers, including the founders of Kids Pack, whose food bags fed students in the room, made the concepts immediate and real.
What Students Did
Students debated, researched, and voted – landing on the Wild Animal Sanctuary. With their cause chosen, they needed a fundraising idea. Three 3D printers sat unused in the school’s innovation lab, still in the box. Julia taught herself via YouTube, brought in IT specialists and a local library presenter, and her students soon began designing in Tinkercad. They painted their prints, set up a booth at the school’s first-ever Multicultural Festival, and offered a deal: donate $5 to the Wild Animal Sanctuary, take home a student-made piece.
Why It Matters
They raised $275. The Illumination Fund matched it dollar-for-dollar – $550 total, enough to officially adopt a tiger (the school mascot). In a school where many children face real hardship, Julia’s students walked away knowing they’d made something that solves a need in the animal community and gave a Tiger the resources it needed to thrive. Students learned that their small action created a big impact.
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