Past projects 66
Essential Winter Gear for Military Kids
Funded Nov 28, 2017First of all, words cannot express how very thankful I am for your help and support. My students needed these essential winter items. The six assorted coats, six caps, and ten gloves have arrived. The boxes were delivered to the classroom right after lunch one day. Everyone wanted to know what was in the boxes (of course.)
My students were amazed when the boxes arrived because they know that these items are expensive. Their parents don't have the money to buy new clothes when they outgrow or lose the old ones. And our school does not have emergency funds to help.
We are like a family in my room. I was just going to open the glove and hat box but when I did, my kids were so happy and said that now kid A or kid B could have warm gloves or a hat. They also asked if there were some coats because some kids needed them. I was amazed. I could see that no one was embarrassed so I gave the items away right then.
It was heartwarming to see that my class wanted their classmates to be warm.
Thank you for helping my kids.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Life Essentials Supporters and one other donor.6th Graders Need Diverse Books for Reading and Discussion
Funded Nov 8, 2017First of all, thank you for supporting my project. The thirty copies of Long Walk to Water and the assorted fiction and nonfiction books about difficult contemporary topics have arrived and I have showed and shared the books with my sixth graders.
Every day, after lunch I do a daily read-aloud to my students and I have just finished reading Code Talker: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two. Everyone was fascinated—especially the boys. After the first of the year I plan to do a whole group study and we will read and discuss Long Walk to Water.
Then I plan to create research/literature circles and divide my class into small groups of students. Each of the groups will be reading a different book based on their reading level. They will have class time to read alone, with a partner, or with audio support. Then they will respond to a Journal prompt in writing and discuss their response with their group. When we finish the small group, we will come together. Individual groups will present their books and then we discuss all the books and issues.
Thank you for making this possible for my kids.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose.org Community and 5 other donors.Change Gonna Come: Teaching About Tolerance
Funded May 24, 2017I am so very thankful to you for your support. The materials you helped to fund and put in my classroom are being used by my sixth grade students.
The three music CDs (including the Sam Cooke song titled "Change Gonna Come"),the class set of the graphic novel March by John L. Lewis, copies of the Watsons Go To Birmingham, and six DVDs including Four Little Girls (about the little girls who died in Birmingham when their church was bombed) and background, resource materials have all arrived.
My students were so curious when the materials arrived and they gathered around as I opened the boxes. They could not keep their hands off the books and DVDs.
Having music in our classroom for my students to use is certainly helping them to understand the protest, peace and civil rights movements of the 60s. We have read March and I am teaching the songs and music of the civil rights movement. M y students are stunned, the discussions are lively. The learning is awesome.
Thank you for helping my students learn about the impact of racism and the importance of tolerance. Your wonderful donation is making a world of difference to my students.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and 5 other donors.Litearature Circles for Tolerance
Funded May 25, 2017You are all so wonderful. Thank you very much for your donations to our class. The students and I appreciate your thoughts and kindness.
All of my sixth grade students qualify for free breakfast and lunch but we are not a Title I school. This means that we do not have special funding and support from our school district. My students are wonderful inquisitive kids who attend an older, very diverse elementary school. We often do not have the funds for frills like new books, materials or curriculum materials.
For several years, I have dreamed of making changes and incorporating literature circles in my class to enhance our language arts/social studies curriculum. I wanted texts that would expand their world and teach compassion and tolerance. I was told repeatedly that we had no money in the budget for this type of project.
I needed ten copies of seven terrific, thought-provoking books including Wonder, El Deafo, Touching Spirit Bear, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. The year is just starting, the books have arrived and I have introduced them to my students. Soon I will divide my kids into small groups. They will be reading a different book based on their reading level.
These books are going to be a terrific addition to our class. I am so excited because I know that my students are going learn so much. Please know that you are making a difference in the lives of my students and their successors.
Thank you for your support.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and 5 other donors.My Kids Need a Clean Start: Essentials
Funded May 19, 2017I am so very thankful that you decided to help fund this important, essential project. When I told our community and administration about your gift, they were thrilled also. They were impressed that strangers would be willing to make an impact like this on their students.
Just like every teacher in the world, I want my students to have their best year ever. They are starting sixth grade and grooming, cleanliness and self- image are critical. Unfortunately, the families of my students simply cannot afford these "luxuries" like soap or toothpaste.
I am so grateful to you for providing my sixth graders with Life Essential materials. At the beginning of the year, they were thrilled to take home soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo, combs, washcloths, and deodorant that your donation supplied. Their parents were also grateful.
These simple, basic resources are having a positive impact in my classroom. My students' morale and self-esteem have improved. My students can now concentrate on their school work. Your donation has made a huge difference in the lives of my students--they are on their way to having their best year ever!
Thank you so very much!”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Life Essentials Supporters and 2 other donors.Supporting Sixth Grade Environmental Studies
Funded Mar 19, 2017It is with great appreciation that I write this letter. This is the least that I can do for your generosity to my students. The new bookcase/shelving unit, science journal/notebooks and erasers that your donation supplied to our classroom have been a welcomed (essential) delight.
Our classroom is small and my students have essentially no storage for their work because they work at tables. They needed the composition books to use as science journals, erasers to correct their mistakes, and the storage unit so they can organize and easily access their environmental action projects, supplies and journals.
I am working very hard to gather appropriate materials and resources to teach my sixth graders about the environment. It has been a struggle because we have a science curriculum without textbooks. I am concentrating on environmental issues because I can combine science and current events. It enables me to engage students as I teach the scientific method, observation and report writing.
Thank you for supporting this project and giving my students the resources they need to succeed.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Tom's of Maine and 4 other donors.Getting Ready for Environmental Studies
Funded Mar 4, 2017I would like to send you all a huge Alaskan Quyana (thank you) for your generous donations. The composition books, colored pencils and shelving units that you donated have arrived and have helped my students learn organizational skills that they will take with them into the future.
In the time that we have received the items, my students have learned that they have a place where they can put away their books and other work items consistently. My students are so excited to have a place that they can call their own where they can organize and easily access their environmental action projects, supplies and interactive scientific journals.
With the budget shortfalls that my school is dealing with, my students would have never had the opportunity for these valuable resources to help build their science skills and knowledge. Without donors like you, my students would never experience the joys of learning with great resources like these.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Tom's of Maine and 13 other donors.Okay, So That's News But What Does It Really Mean?
Funded Mar 29, 2017Last year was a terrific year. I had a class of very social, very talkative and very opinionated sixth graders. Many of them were learning English and I admit that I encouraged them to talk about social studies, the news and current events.
The copies of TIME for Kids which your donation helped to fund were a terrific addition. They arrived every week to the applause of my students. I waited and distributed the magazines so that students had to read them, look at the pictures and make inferences before they could comment on the topic of the day. TIME for Kids took our discussions to another level. Kids had some facts!
The dictionaries encouraged my students to learn new words and incorporate them into class discussions about current events.
Time ran out before I could tell you how much I appreciated your donation. Thank you for all your support.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Aspect Ventures and 4 other donors.The Doctor (Who) is in
Funded Mar 29, 2017The copies of twenty-six different Dr. Who books have arrived and there is a buzz in my room that hasn't been there for years. My kids are devouring all the book but they especially liked Doctor Who: The Third Doctor, Volume 1, The Heralds of Destruction because I read it out loud during lunch recess.
My lunch reading started small but rapidly mushroomed. Some days, I had nearly my whole class in there. It became so popular that I had to suspend it and read after lunch so my kids could go out and get some fresh air.
At any rate, The Doctor has taken over my classroom. The kids wanted to build a Tardis. I think it can be a STEM project—math, science, engineering and technology.
The Dr. Who books were a real game changer. Thank you for helping my kids catch a reading craze.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Aspect Ventures and 2 other donors.Got Power? We Need Charging Stations
Funded Mar 29, 2017The three Luxor Chromebook Wall Desk Charging Boxes have arrived. What a difference these have made. Thank you so much for donating and providing them for my students.
The charging stations have done so much to improve our room. I wanted the charging boxes anchored into the wall. It took a while for our maintenance crew to get them up but now that they up and out of the way, it is so much safer in our classroom. We don't have cords all over the place and kids aren't wandering around looking for an outlet.
Our classroom Chromebooks get a real work-out every day. My kids use them for research, reading, GoogleClassroom and GoogleDrive and so much more. They always needed a safe, reliable way to store and charge them.
Thanks so much for helping make my classroom more functional.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Tennyson
This classroom project was brought to life by Aspect Ventures and 4 other donors.