Past projects 6
Less Screen Time
Funded Jan 17, 2023I want to thank you for your generous donations and share a little bit about how your donation has impacted my classroom and my students. In a time when technology is part of every student's learning experience, I asked for donations that would help my students spend less time on the screen.
With your donation, I was able to purchase ink for my printer which has allowed me to print handouts and worksheets that students can physically write on. This has made a difference in their engagement and understanding of our class lessons and objectives.
While technology is now an integral part of education, as Malala once said, "One child, one teacher, one pen, and one book can change the world." I appreciate the opportunity to be able to offer different mediums for students to develop their learning. Paper, pens, and books will continue to be the foundational technologies of education, and I appreciate the role you played in helping me provide these supplies to my students.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Pena
Bean Bags, Loungers, and Poster Boards - Oh My!
Funded Oct 11, 2022I want to begin by thanking you for your generous donations to my classroom. Your donations helped me create a more inviting classroom environment for my students. I think many people misunderstand high school students. The common belief when it comes to teenagers is that they find everything boring or that they are difficult to impress. While I understand where this assumption comes from, over the past 15 years as an educator I have come to see teenagers for what they really are: big kids.
The goal of my project was to provide students with items like bean bags and decorative posters that would liven up our classroom and give them a space to read during independent reading. I wasn't too sure how they would react to the bean bags; I wasn't even sure if they'd be able to use the bean bags. However, as soon as the bean bags arrived, students ran towards them. I didn't even have to tell them what they were for! They immediately integrated them as part of our independent reading time. The posters and bulletin board decor will go a long way in adding positivity to our classroom environment all thanks to you.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Pena
This classroom project was brought to life by Panda Cares and 4 other donors.Practice, Practice, and More Practice!
Funded Oct 23, 2017First, thank you for your continuous support to classrooms around the United States! Giving every student the opportunity to succeed is one of the reasons I decided to become a teacher. Having taught now for about 10 years, I realize that in order to achieve that goal we all have to come together to support our students.
Among the many resources that are currently lacking in our schools systems, technology continues to be one of the most critical areas of need. My classroom, for example, has only 1 desktop computer available to students. We rarely use it because it is outdated and does not allow students to access programs they are currently using. Due to the lack of technology in our classrooms, students rely on their cell phones for Internet access. For this reason, your donation has been extremely beneficial. Students are able to access the Albert.io program on their phones and can, therefore, practice whenever and wherever they are. This has allowed 40 of my students to receive additional practice in preparation for the AP English Language and Composition Exam; practice that I could not have offered had you not donated to this project.
While we will not know the exact impact of your donation until the summer, I am truly grateful for your support in helping all students get a little closer to success.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Pena
This classroom project was brought to life by An anonymous donor and 5 other donors.We Want to Read!
Funded Oct 18, 2016First and foremost, thank you for your generous donation. It may seem a bit cliche, but as an English teacher I cannot tell you how much I believe in the idea that books are the gateway to a better life. That is especially true for students in low income communities, like my students, who do not get the chance to travel or leave their hometown until much later in their lives. Many students never leave their hometown, and for them especially, books offer a chance to come to know other cultures, other beliefs, other people.
In an Advanced Placement Literature class like mine, books are the starting points for our discussions, ideas, questions, essays, and reflections about life. Through literature, students are asked (sometimes forced) to question everything they know about various topics: life, death, friendship, human nature, chance, fate, religion, faith, doubt, and so on. We use novels, plays, and poems, to look at the world critically and unapologetically; to question ourselves as a people and reflect on what authors like Shakespeare, Voltaire, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Melville, James, Wilde, and the like have to say about the human experience.
Your donation has provided my students new opportunities, new perspectives, and new worlds that they can now use to better themselves as people and as intellectuals. The books were selected because they offer students an insight into humanity's dual nature, in hopes that they can learn from other's mistakes and make this a better world than the one written about in the books.
Students will be reading the books over their Winter Break and may possibly write about the characters, themes, and topics in their AP Exam in May. Thank you, once again, for making this possible for my class.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Pena
HE NAMED ME MALALA
Funded Sep 8, 2015Our field trip to the screening of "He Named Me Malala" took place on October 16th, 2015. While that seems like a simple statement, I want you to know that it is not the norm for us. Field trips are very difficult to come by because of funding. Many of the students that were able to attend had not been on a field trip since elementary - they are now 9th and 10th graders. This is more significant because some students are only able to leave the community and explore the world because of field trips due to their family's low economic status.
On the days leading up to the field trip, we talked about Malala's story. It was surprising to see how many of them already knew about her and her courageous acts. They viewed her as a peer, but also saw how inspiring and extraordinary she truly is. We read her speech to the UN and discussed her opinion on the power of education. This was an interesting point for many of my students because they often feel that education is a burden.
I am happy to say that everything went extremely well. The buses arrived on time and students went to a theater that they had never been to before - that in itself was amazing to them. Once the film started, I could tell that students were happy to finally see Malala's story. They laughed at Malala's interactions with her youngest brother and were very quiet when her father told his. The highlight of the trip, for me, was the moment when the film shows the attack on Malala's bus. In that moment all of us grew very quiet and I knew that the reality of Malala's struggle hit home.
The days after the trip students expressed their gratitude for the trip, but also commented on how brave she is. Many of them wondered if they'd be able to fight for what is right if they were in that situation. And I think that is what I most appreciate about this experience: the opportunity to make students think about what kind of person they are and what kind of person they could be. Thank you for this opportunity.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Pena
Ink Helps Us Learn!
Funded Dec 31, 2015Few people know the struggles that most teachers face today in public schools. One of the biggest struggles for me has been being able to provide students with handouts and worksheets that will aide their understanding of whatever topic we are discussing. With so many learning styles, being able to give a student a written copy of notes or a graphic organizer really makes my job and their learning easier. For this reason, I want to thank you for taking the time to donate this printer and toner. It may not seem like a "big deal", but trust me when I say you have made a real difference in my life and the lives of my students.
Because of your generous donation, students have access to a classroom printer which they can use to print assignments as well as graphics for projects. With your donation I am able to provide students with copies of notes and worksheets and do not have to worry about running out of toner at the last minute. Funding is difficult to come by for these types of materials, and we are forever grateful for the time you took to make this donation.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Pena