Mrs. Monarez's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 4

• Calculators are for Science Too

  Funded Feb 13, 2020

  Thank you for your donation to our project, we received our calculators just in the nick of time. Over the years my classroom set of calculators have been lost or broken and the numbers have rubbed off. I regularly purchase replacements from a dollar store but they can be flimsy, buttons get stuck easily and sometimes don't even work when they come out fresh from the packaging. These calculators are much better quality, they feel durable and easy to use.

  We used them right away this weekend at Saturday tutorials to calculate the mass of atoms and determine the number of neutrons. We will use them to review speed, force and acceleration.

  I can't thank you enough for helping us have a full classroom set of high quality calculators.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monarez

• Students + Technology = Engagement and Feedback

  Funded Sep 17, 2018

  I can not thank you enough for the financial support you provided in order for our students to have access to this technology. There are so many ways we are able to use these Chromebooks and the students are always excited on days when we will use them. Originally, I planned on using them for classroom research, Ondine simulations and review games like Kahoot. However, as the year goes by I find more new exciting ways to use the Chromebooks.

  I have awesome students, new to the country who are still learning English. These students have found it tremendously beneficial to have the Chromebooks which they can use Google translate. Students are able to help complete assignments or translate questions they have for me and I can translate to answer them.

  Something else I have discovered that my students enjoy is a review website called Quizziz which allows them to review competitively with their classmates and it has funny memes build within it. This has been very engaging and it gives great one-on-one feedback which is very helpful for me since my classes can be as large as 32 to 36 students.

  My students and I cannot thank you enough. Thank you for believing in us and supporting us!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by Verizon and 2 other donors.

• Aprons? Check. Googles? Check. Let's GO!

  Funded Oct 26, 2017

  My students and I truly do appreciate your donation which made it possible for us to get new lab supplies. Our students are always excited to do a science experiment however having aprons really adds to the experience. It was nice to do our electrolysis lab on the same day as our neighboring science class since we now have our own set of lab aprons.

  We have yet to use our other lab materials like the chemicals and electronic scales but I know they will be excited to use them later in the year. Especially the electronic scales. Several students feel frustration with the triple beam balance which we will still use but will have reassurance that they measured properly when they can verify the mass of an object with an electronic scale.

  Finally, I can't say thank you enough for the paper cutter I received for my classroom. No more waiting in the copy room for my turn to the paper cutter. My neighboring colleagues were also excited to be able to use it.

  It warms our hearts that you all are so generous and you chose us to share this blessing with. Thank you for making our science classroom that much better.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monarez

• Science Hands-On

  Funded Dec 20, 2016

  Many of our students have smartphones that can do many of the applications a computer can do. Students can Google information or pictures to help them understand complex concepts or vocabulary, they can search YouTube videos to help with their homework, monitor their grades online, participate in online learning games. There are numerous advantages to having access to such technology in their pocket. However, not every student has access to technology for a number of reasons. Having these Chromebooks accessible at anytime in the classroom has been a true blessing for many of our students.

  In the attached photos students are working on group projects in which they are creating a poster about a particular weather concept, which they need to include maps. Several groups had at least one person with a phone who could search additional information online but two groups didn't didn't have any students with a smartphone. It was great having the Chromebooks available for those groups to use, the other groups were jealous. We also play games like Kahoot in class in groups and again if the group doesn't have someone with a smartphone these groups can still participate thanks to the Chromebooks.

  Stations are different activities the students can work on in class and rotate to learn or review a learning objective. Having the Chromebooks to use at a station is great, the students are always engaged when they use the Chromebooks and I can give more attention to other stations. Finally, my eighth grade students are very competitive about their grades many of them check there grades daily but not everyone who has the ability to go online and see what they are missing. It has been great for these students who care about their grades to now have access to their grades and not have to rely on me to check what they might have missed.

  I can't thank you enough for these resources, not to mention the aprons, gloves and chemicals you sponsored. The students faces always light up when we pull out the aprons. Our unit on chemical reactions passed already but next year when I am teaching that unit, it will be great to have these materials for activities we weren't able to do this year.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monarez