Key School third graders this week visited the Wellness House of Annapolis to learn more about the organization that was the focus of their recent fundraiser efforts.

The third graders started a schoolwide effort to collect pop tops that were turned in to raise money for several charities, including the Wellness House. An affiliate of Anne Arundel Medical Center, the Wellness House provides free support services for families of those battling cancer.

The students were inspired by one of their classmates, whose father is battling cancer, according to a release.

“Once they learned more about the possible recipients of the money, the third grade students made an important connection: They learned that the recipient of their fundraising efforts could be the Wellness House—a center where one of their classmates has been receiving support as his father battles cancer,” officials said in a release.

“They made a personal connection,” third grade teacher Nancy Conroy said in the release. “It was an opportunity for authentic learning and it was meaningful to them.”

Each year Key’s third grade class devises its own environmental initiative as part of what the school calls “immersion week,” which is focuses on conservation, according to a release.

The students learned they could recycle pop tops for money during a visit to the recycling center as part of the program.

To spread word about their effort, the third graders have made presentations to fellow students in pre-school, lower school and upper school.