Tim Ferriss's Give-Back Birthday

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Thank you all so much for this generous donation. As you may have known, the order for the Tag Readers got mixed up and didn't arrive until much later than expected--let me tell you, it was well worth the wait! When we were finally able to introduce the Readers to the kids, they were thrilled. In fact, they have been so interested in reading the Tag books that we've had to set aside a special time for reading and use a timer to make sure everyone gets a turn.

When I asked for the Tag system, I was excited for my students to get to hear a story read to them so that they could connect new words and sentences to the pictures and stories they saw. But what's even more exciting is that the kids can interact with the pictures as well, not just the words on the page. When the kids touch different elements, they hear words and sound effects--just like we would do if we were reading with them.

Using the Tag system has become a really wonderful part of our routine. Giving a couple kids a moment to read independently has also allowed me and my paraprofessionals to give more attention to the other kids in the class so that everyone is getting more. Thanks again for your generosity. Please don't underestimate the impact of your gift. ”

With gratitude,

Ms. Courtney

This tool has been an enormous blessing to my class! We use it daily to enhance our education through lessons, large and small group learning games, for review, to work mathematics problems, as well as to watch educational videos and interact with interactive learning tools online.

The children are HIGHLY engaged in whatever work we are completing when I plug in the Mimio! Every visitor/observer that has been in our room since we started using this technology has commented on how involved and eager the children are to participate!

It has also been very beneficial to helping the children learn how to use technology. Whereas before I could show children how to use a program such as Internet Explorer or a word processing program at the computer station where few children could see the work/steps I took, now I can teach these types of skills to the whole class and they are able to see clearly how I arrive at a particular site, how to do internet searches, and how to use the computer to create a document, draw a shape with the shape tool, or create a table or graph.

We are all THRILLED with this gift you have given us. Thank you doesn't quite say enough!”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Thomas

Thank you so much for your generous donation. The books have been a light of sunshine in my student's lives. They are so addicted to the mythology,graphic novels,fairy tale books, and it is a pleasure to see them so engaged. The books have been shared by 3 classes and every child has found something they really enjoy reading. Our school, with many others across the country are facing ridiculous budget cuts, and without your help they would not get the opportunity to read such great literature.”

With gratitude,

Mr. Dictenberg

Thank you so much for donating to our "Focus on Literacy" project!

As you know, the development of strong reading skills is crucial for all students. Thanks to your generosity, my students will be able to read two additional highly engaging texts this school year.

Both of these books will provide the opportunity for teaching important reading and writing skills, and these books will help to keep students engaged in the learning process.

My students and I often discuss the concept of being "people for others." You are and will continue to be wonderful examples of "people for others."

Thank you again for your kindness and generosity. ”

With gratitude,

Mr. Cashman

I want to thank you with all my heart for helping my students. Being an inner city school, funds are low and with this economy almost non existent! Thanks to you all, you have given my class and future classes the opportunity to have new and exciting books to read and listen to. Even those students who are struggling are able to truly enjoy your gifts.

I have noticed within the past months, their fluency has improved as well as their ability to follow along with a tape or CD. It is wonderful to know there are still people such as yourselves that are willing to help. Now that times are tough, it is even more appreciated!

Thank you again, from my students, as well as future students which will also benefit.”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Passarelli

This project has been wonderful for my students! They read and reread all the new books that they received. One of my struggling readers really "fell" for some of the I Can Read Leveled Books. This project also included a word study program that allows me to better teach my students phonics patterns. Thank you for supporting public education and believing in my students. They inspire me each day to work harder and achieve more. Thank you for making a difference in my classroom!! Great class pictures to come!”

With gratitude,

Ms. McLaughlin

Thank you for turning my proposal "Sophisticated Readers" into reality. The children are thrilled about the books. Reading nonfiction is very important for 4th graders.

With your donation the children were able to learn different features of nonfiction texts first hand. They often read nonfiction without thinking about things such as tables of contents, subtitles, captions and many other important features.

We were able to dissect the different books about penguins. The books were on different reading levels and the children were able to find themselves a book suitable to them. As we dissected the book, the children learned how nonfiction texts, as opposed to fiction texts, should not necessarily be read from cover to cover. Many liked that idea! J Even the children who don't enjoy reading, were pleased to read the sections that they were attracted to. Thankfully, during our readers' workshop, as the children shared different sections during accountable talk, others went back to sections that they may have missed to find facts that their reading partners had shared. In the end, they ended up reading the whole book and many times, just as nonfiction texts should be read. Our readers' workshop has taught them to successfully tackle these complex texts independently.

Since some of my students are reading on a first grade level, they paired up and read to each other. They enjoyed learning about the penguins and were fascinated by the facts. Our next stop is the mummies. The children are very excited. I want you to know how much we loved the books and how successful they are in teaching children to approach different genres and successfully read them and get a full understanding of the topic and what reading is about. These books were used as touchstones texts to model and set children up with nonfiction texts.

Thank you for your kindness and your generosity. The children appreciate the gesture very much and are happy to be chosen. They also feel special and are grateful that you donated these books to them even though you have never met them.”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Thadal

We just visited the Jewish Museum and had a super time and learned quite a bit. It was very interesting to see the different types of information each child deemed important and understood. Many children learned of the word mosaic for the first time (mostly my ELL -English Language Learners), one in particular understood it to be about different tiles (he wrote tiels), another thought it only meant a Jewish calender (because these mosaics were designed to represent that) and nothing I could sway (so far) can sway his interpretation. I'm going to show him different mosaics this week to get him to understand.

All of the kids loved the actual digging in an "archaeological pit" and finding replicas. It was wonderful to have them experience that aspect and have a chance to describe their findings.

The bonus of the trip was that there was an exhibit featuring Houdini. Quite a few students had heard of him from the Cartoon Network. We were able to go in and learn more about him and the best part, in my opinion, was having the kids get to see a silent film! Naturally, kids aren't knowledgeable about that time period. The concept of silent films and being a silent actor shows up on a reading level story that I have use to quiz some students. Now they have some background concepts of it all.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Books' (really Ms.Moskowitz's) Library!!!

Thank you so much for all of our new New York City books! We have learned so many new facts and so have I! Surprisingly after all my years living here, there is still so much to learn, especially about New York City long ago. It has been a great experience for all of us.

The children have actually used all of the new information that they have learned to start writing their own New York City books. Their illustrations and facts are just as amazing as the books that you were able to donate to us.

Thanks again for your help. We truly appreciate it! ”

With gratitude,

Ms. Glembocki

Thank you for your generous donation to my classroom. It is wonderful to know that you are concerned about providing a quality public education to all students in our state.

My students will be so excited to have these new book series in our classroom library. At this time in the year, they are reading fiction and nonfiction with fluency and enthusiasm and will be ready to tackle these interesting new titles. What second grader will be able to resist curling up with a full bin of Dr. Seuss or Clifford books?!

Thank you again for your generosity.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Costello