Dog toy supplies and finished toys.
This winter, the cats and dogs patiently awaiting adoption at the Columbia-Greene Humane Society will have toys and beds thanks to the students at Catskill Academy.
As part of a school-wide service learning project, Catskill Academy students worked with retired teacher Trish Ross to create toys and warm beds out of donated materials. People throughout Questar III donated clothing items such as socks, t-shirts, sweatshirts, fleece and quilt batting. Ross also provided several bags of fabric scraps and batting received from her Quilting Guild.
Before this project, Adam had never made a braid. He welcomed the opportunity to learn how to braid specifically for this project.
During their scheduled art classes, students sat down for a quick tutorial on how to make the beds and toys. Dog toys were formed by stuffing socks with a combination of tennis balls, empty water bottles and more socks. Cut fabric strips were then used to create sections and tie off the ends of the toys. Some students added braided handles to the toys (pictured above).
The pet beds required quite a bit of sewing, so Ross proactively prepared the materials by sewing three sides of the new beds. That way, students had to close the beds on only one edge after filling them with stuffing. Some beds were finished by hand-sewing the last edge and others were cut into fringe and hand-tied.
Trish Ross and Catskill Academy student Allison Drumma finished a cozy pet bed. This bed, along with other beds and toys, will be brought to the Columbia-Greene Humane Society.
Ross also assisted Allison Drumma, a student at Catskill Academy, with a unique pet bed design. After stuffing the body of a sweatshirt, they stuffed the sleeves and then sewed them in a way that created a soft pillow wall.
“Many students wanted to make beds and toys for their own pets,” said Ross. She assured the students that if there was enough time and materials at the end of the day they could make something to bring home.
“As the students start making the donations and they make more pet items, they will develop a bar graph and shade it in to reflect their progress,” said Sally Lauletta, School Counselor and Transition Coordinator for Special Education at Questar III.
This project will continue through January and part of it will count toward work-based learning hours.
Visit Questar III’s Facebook page for more photos of the students working and the finished pet beds and toys.
