Past projects 2
Making the Most of Each Morning!
Funded Aug 27, 2024Our students are so excited to play with the games and materials each morning! Students work together to learn new games or to get better at activities they are already familiar with. When you walk into the rooms each morning you can hear all of the chatter and it may seem chaotic at first glance, but when you look and listen closer you can see students using strategies and problem-solving and you hear them encouraging each other and applying what they know to the activities in the morning tubs.
One of the favorite activities is the game Tapple, in which students take turns thinking of words that start with a given letter and match the category card. These tables are always crowded and full of laughter. Students also love building with the Picasso Tiles and linking geometric shapes. With these morning tubs, they are competing to see who can build the most interesting creations.
Some new activities that have been introduced to students are origami, Boggle, and the many word-building card games. At first, students were having difficulty following the steps to create the origami shapes, but they learned to persevere and keep at it until they had created the given shape. Now, they come in excited to learn how to make new figures. Students have also been excited to play the many games in which they get to make and build words. Watching students have fun while improving their verbal skills is amazing! Students start each day in a fun and positive way while still learning and growing which has made a big difference in their attitudes toward school.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Williman
This classroom project was brought to life by The Gates Foundation and 10 other donors.Bouncing Our Way to Success
Funded Oct 1, 2014My students absolutely love their ball chairs! They are thrilled that they can move and bounce, but still complete their work. They think it is so "cool" that they have chairs that help them get their wiggles out evening while they are learning. Immediately after creating procedures for using the ball chairs, my students became proud and even experts at using the ball chairs. They often tell me how other students wish they could have seats like ours.
My students use their ball chairs everyday. I also use a ball chair to sit on during read-alouds and whole group lessons on the carpet. My students are allowed to choose between a traditional chair and the ball chair, and almost all of my students consistently choose the ball chair.
The ball chairs have had a tremendous impact on my students' learning. They are better able to focus and pay attention during instruction. They sometimes don't even realize they are moving while they are working. With all the pressure to make sure my students are meeting their learning objectives and standards there is little time left in the day for movement and exercise, and the ball chairs help my students exert some energy and move all while learning.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Williman