Upper School Service Learning

Baking for All is designed to empower students to exercise their creativity while at the same time helping our community service program. Students will learn how to bake and decorate their cupcakes during lunch on Thursdays at the Student Center. Students will then sell their creations to support other programs with the funds raised: Camp Cáritas, Casa Maria Helena, GAA, Elderly Home, or any other that requires funds.

The Bem-Vindos! project aims to help immigrant children and adults adjust to life in Brazil by teaching them about Brazilian culture and the Portuguese language. These lessons help Graded students enhance their social skills while also instilling kindness and respect for different cultures. The members of Bem-Vindos! are responsible for organizing and implementing meaningful activities with children as well as assisting with Portuguese lessons alongside Graded Brazilian Studies teachers.

Bricks for Community is a community service program that strives to make São Paulo and the surrounding area a better place for its citizens by inviting students to take action and make a difference in the lives of others. Previous work-related sightings include, but are not limited to: aiding with restaurant constructions, classroom repair such as wall painting, and reconstruction of shelters. This group is also responsible for the organization of Zombie Zoo, a semi-annual night of performances by students that raises money for Bricks' causes.

This group welcomes 25 kids, ages 5 to 10, from Cáritas João Paulo II. Members entertain these young students in collaboration with a team of middle schoolers to promote healthy interactions through learning activities and play.

This group supports Casa Maria Helena Paulina, a shelter for children from North and Northeast of Brazil, who come to São Paulo for cancer treatment. Support comes in different forms: students play with the children, organize clothes bazaars, and collect money for the House, among other initiatives.

Cáritas Teen is a program that strives to provide a non-academic, enjoyable atmosphere for teenagers from Cáritas Santa Suzana. The club's main objective is to reduce academic-related stress and introduce new, fun sports, arts, and music activities every week.

An internet-based tool that promotes and facilitates the connection between donors and nonprofit organizations.

Do Something is an award-winning Association of American Schools in South America (AASSA) club based on a nonprofit organization of the same name. Members focus on various topics, including mental and physical health, the environment, poverty, and social issues. Do Something empowers its members to make a positive impact in their community.

This group assists twelve elderly women living in Lar Abrigo Novo Pentecostes. While keeping them company, our students learn a lot by conversing and listening to their life stories. Elderly Home provides students with an incredible opportunity to exchange experiences with senior citizens from various social and economic backgrounds.

Friendship and Language Acquisition (FALA) is an English language school for economically disadvantaged people from neighboring communities, in which classes are taught by high school students. Graded students undergo training to learn how to teach English, evaluate student strengths and weaknesses, and succeed in the classroom. During the school year, these student-teachers teach English to over 200 people of various ages, many of whom are family members of Graded's staff. FALA is not all work. "Friendship" is a key element of the program, which fosters life-changing ties between Graded's young teachers and outside learners. To join, please contact Ms. Sandra Greenwald to start your application process.

Graded Green Eagles is an environmentally-friendly group that works to make both the school and the city of São Paulo greener. The club collaborates with TerraCycle, an NGO that provides a reverse logistics service that returns used markers, pens, dry erase markers, and sponges to industries. This encourages proper waste disposal and allows industries to utilize materials to their fullest "life extension."

Graded Global Issues Network (GIN) is a dynamic student group dedicated to working on Graded’s campus to address a number of the 20 issues outlined in J.F. Richard’s book High Noon: 20 Global Problems, 20 Years to Solve Them. GIN's mission is "to empower young people to collaborate locally, regionally and globally to create sustainable solutions for global issues." Graded’s GIN chapter works hard every day to achieve this goal.

Graded students and teachers work with various animal rescue NGOs, such as Mata Ciliar, which rehabilitates injured or abused wild animals before releasing them back into the wild, and Aliança Internacional do Animal (AILA), a large animal shelter that provides life care and adoption services to more than 2000 abandoned and/or abused domesticated animals (primarily dogs and cats). GAA's continued assistance to these organizations includes fundraising, advocating dog and cat neutering, building enclosures, and providing volunteers for adoption fairs.

Graded's Entrepreneurial Enterprise (GEE) is a student-led organization that strives to be a financial support group for Graded's community service programs. GEE instills a social-entrepreneurial spirit and a sense of community awareness in its members by inspiring them to organize effective fundraisers. Upon request, these funds are then redistributed to community service groups in need.

Graded Silver Ribbon (GSR) aims to promote Graded students' emotional well-being, raise awareness about the importance of talking about mental health, and normalize mental health issues. GSR also provides a safe and accepting environment for all students to speak up and discuss their concerns, whether school-related or personal. We also welcome students who wish to learn more about the subject.

Graded Soccer Cares is a community outreach group that invites children from nearby underprivileged communities to play soccer and have fun at Graded's Athletics Fields.

Harmony is a community service organization that promotes music education. Graded students provide underprivileged children from Cáritas Santa Suzana with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to use Graded facilities for producing and studying music. Requirements include proficiency in guitar, drums, or piano, experience teaching and supervising children aged 10 to 14, and commitment to the activity.

Kuns' mission is to help underprivileged children express themselves and reduce stress through art. Each lesson consists of an artistic activity that promotes and encourages individuality.

Learning Actively with Fun and Friends (LAFF) aims to create an environment in which children from Cáritas Santa Suzana interact with each other to creatively solve problems, develop leadership skills, and improve teamwork.

Projeto Steps was founded in mid-2020 with the primary goal of helping individuals living in poverty cope with the crippling effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, the student-led organization has continued to help less fortunate communities and institutions. Steps members have conducted several cestas básicas — food and supplies baskets — campaigns, supporting over 5,000 families in need; purchased and delivered hundreds of protective masks to local hospitals; organized toy and clothing drives; donated blankets during São Paulo's harsh winter, among other initiatives. Apart from conducting short-term campaigns, Steps members are now working on long-term projects, such as the development of a library to help in the education of underprivileged children at Comunidade Pró-Paraíso.

This organization's mission is to inspire young children to participate in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) activities and to develop a natural inquisitive learning profile.