Past projects 31
We Need a Printer That Doesn't Break the Bank
Funded Mar 7, 2022Thank you so much for funding this grant. It is not an understatement to say that our printer is central to the functioning of our classroom. Every day it prints out lesson plans, worksheets and letters home to parents.
The printer was integral to the creation of this year's self portraits. We could not have made them without it!
Even the labels on our book bins and jobs chart were created with our all important color printer.
It is especially helpful when we have to print things out last minute, and there is no time to get to the office printer & copier. For example, this week I had to print out a hundreds chart for a struggling student, and the chart helped her to learn addition past the number 100.
Thanks again for this invaluable tool.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
Online Magazines and Flocabulary for Students
Funded Mar 4, 2021Thank you so much for funding this grant, which paid for subscriptions to Scholastic Magazine and Flocabulary for our 4th graders.
Being able to read Scholastic Magazine really helped to introduce a feeling of normalcy to a totally unusual school year. Reading this magazine online felt comforting to my students, who had grown used to reading Scholastic Magazine in the classroom and for homework every week during the 2019-2020 school year, until lockdown began.
Every week during the last school year we read Scholastic Magazine articles, usually ones about animals, a topic that all of the students enjoyed.
And Flocabulary was another amazing tool, which I have continued to use with my students this year. Flocabulary helped me to teach so many concepts, from social emotional subjects like empathy to story conventions like setting. Thanks again!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
Reading and Spelling Resources at Home!
Funded Mar 1, 2021Thank you so much for funding this grant, which allowed students to use an online spelling, vocabulary and reading platform. This platform particularly helped students who were below grade level pre-pandemic. This was sorely necessary, as those students were the ones most negatively affected by Covid's impact on education.
It was excellent to be able to access all of the Learning A-Z programs and platforms that this grant made available. We were completely unable to use our traditional spelling curriculum from March 2020 until June 2021, due to it requiring so many hands on activities that could not be replicated remotely. Utilizing Learning A-Z helped us to make up some of the ground that we lost during this difficult 16 month period. Thanks again for your donation.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
BrainPOP Lessons in Every Subject
Funded Mar 3, 2021Thank you so much for funding the BrainPop grant. Last year was so difficult for our students. They spent some much time having to learn through a computer screen, which would be a struggle for college students, let alone 4th graders.
Holding our students' attention was a difficult task for teachers, especially as the remarkable year wore on.
Being able to use BrainPop, after it was funded by the grant, was so helpful in keeping our classes engaged. In addition, BrainPop videos helped to explain a lot of concepts, from story elements in literature to rhythm in poetry, that can be confusing to elementary students.
Thanks again!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
Student Work in Technicolor
Funded Sep 22, 2020Thank you so much for paying for our new color printer!
It was so exciting to be able to print out the self-portraits of fully remote students, and hang them up alongside the self-portraits of hybrid students.
Doing this helped the hybrid students in our class, and in other grades, feel connected to the fully remote students, some of whom they have not seen in-person in nearly one year.
I can't wait to print out more fully remote students' work to share with my hybrid students! The printer has also been so helpful for everyday tasks such as printing worksheets, particularly since we do not have enough staff to make copies in our office, due to Covid.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
No More Ziplock Bags!
Funded Oct 8, 2019Earlier this year, my students were getting frustrated with their book baggies. Every day, someone was complaining that their baggy ripped, or wouldn't hold all the books they planned on reading that week. I had my own complaints. It wasn't lost on me that every lost book baggy (a.k.a. 1 gallon ziplock bag) was another non-biodegradable piece of refuse soon to be taking up space in a landfill. That's why researching reusable baggies was such a eureka moment for me. I realized that we could solve a classroom materials problem while also doing something pro-environment.
My students were so excited to get their fabric baggies. It helps that the baggies have a place for a decorative name tag, and come in so many vibrant colors.! These baggies are also very well made. They can hold two weeks worth of books, including books of all sizes. The kids have done such a great job taking care of these things. The students seem to grasp how special it is that they have these fabric baggies, after years of using ziplock bag after ziplock bag. Thank you again for your generosity!!!
Getting these fabric baggies has been a great experience for my students and me.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
Hands-On History
Funded Sep 16, 2015Thank you so much for contributing to this Donors Choose grant. We are now right in the middle of our Lenape curriculum. A few weeks ago we made clay pots, which the kids loved. We are now in the midst of cutting out moccasin patterns, which we will begin to sew this week. Next up comes the wampum weaving! I can say unequivocally that these hands-on projects are the highlight of our 3rd grade social studies curriculum. The kids are so excited to make real life, useful items in the Lenape fashion. After each project, the question that I get asked most is, "When can I take this home?" The kids are so excited about their crafts that they want to bring them home to show their families. Thanks again for allowing my students, along with our friends in the other 3rd grade class across the hall, to do these projects! I feel sure that my students will remember doing these projects every time they remember 3rd grade.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
History Gets Crafty
Funded Oct 25, 2015Thank you so much for supplying our clay pot and moccasin-making supplies! We just made the clay pots a week ago. The kids learned so much from actually having the experience of molding the clay pots after reading about the experience in The Indians of New Jersey. Afterwards, we compared and contrasted our clay pot-making experience with that of the Lenape. The kids did an excellent job of pointing out the similarities and differences, both in conversation and in writing. In this way, I feel like the clay pot-making was meaningful to them as a reading, writing and listening experience in addition to being a memorable part of our social studies curriculum. We have just begun going through the same experience with cutting out moccasin patterns. As challenging as these projects can be for 3rd graders (there are a lot of directions to be read, heard and followed), they are also beloved by the kids. I really think that these are the most valuable, most memorable social studies experiences they will have in my classroom. Thank you so much for giving the whole 3rd grade such a wonderful gift!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
Classroom Materials Matter
Funded Dec 20, 2014Thank you so much for the donation of our beloved bean bags and other classroom supplies! Having three more bean bags has been very special to my students this year. They have a schedule, and they all know which day is their "bean bag day." Having the bean bags has helped my students to get comfortable as they independently read and listen to read aloud books. It has also cleared space on our rug!
In addition to the beanbags, we have also greatly appreciated the other materials that you paid for. It is wonderful to have caddies, book bins and charts that are in good shape. These items get so much use that they can quickly disintegrate. Having high quality versions of these items has made a real difference to us. I can feel comfortable knowing that the kids can handle this supplies again and again, and they won't break!
Thanks again.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin
Rounding Out Our Literature Circle Library
Funded Dec 17, 2014Thank you so much for your generous donations! The books that you paid for really made a difference to our class this year. Without your donations we would not have had the multiple copy books that we used for book clubs. This year in book club, my students made wonderful progress in terms of being able to discuss the books they read with other students. It's amazing that this group of conversationalists is the same group that sat silent during their initial book talks last school year! Their discussions would never have come so far without having such rich texts to delve into.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Dobkin