Past projects 47
Girls Just Wanna Have FUNdamental Rights!
Funded Jan 25, 2023Thank you so much for supporting my project! When I was given the opportunity to run a Female Empowerment Club at school one of my top priorities was to make it fun, and your support allowed that to happen! I asked the girls to help me make a "wish list" of games and other things that they would like for the club, and that is exactly what this project funded.
A great thing about the club has been seeing kids from different classes interact - kids who might normally not have the chance to interact because of scheduling, etc. A usual session for us would be the girls come in and eat lunch & chat, and they would then get to choose an activity from our giant bin of stuff. Girls could be found making beaded bracelets, playing Exploding Kittens, Jenga, Uno, or one of the several other games that were funded through this project. Sometimes another teacher who is great at making string friendship bracelets would join us to do a friendship bracelet circle. After discussing the word "gratitude" and the benefits of it, all of the girl received a Gratitude Journal, which they seemed excited to use on their own time. One of the girls told me that her favorite day of the week is Friday because that's when Girls Club is. Thank you again for your support of public education.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
Let Me Tell You About Budget Cuts
Funded Sep 29, 2022Having appropriate furniture in a classroom seems pretty basic, but the basics aren't always easy to come by. As I mentioned in my proposal, the seating arrangement in my classroom last school year did not work at all, and with the severe budget cuts I knew that I couldn't expect to order furniture through the school budget.
The tables and stools that we received do the job beautifully, and are the correct size to serve the widest range of ages, which is important as I see students ranging from pre-k through 5th grade. Students who I had last year often stop by to comment about how nice the new furniture is, or how different it looks in there. For me it has been a game changer - I always felt so bad about having kids use clipboards to do their work while sitting on a floor cushion. Now my students have furniture that serves them well and allows them to do their best more easily. Thank you so much for your support in creating a solution to this furniture problem - I can not fully express what a pleasant change this has been for myself and my students. I will always be in awe of the impact that DonorsChoose makes, and of donors like you.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 15 other donors.Girls on the Run Is So Much Fun!
Funded Sep 20, 2022We had a wonderful Girls on the Run fall session thanks to your generous donations. Our group met twice weekly to have mini lessons on various social/emotional learning topics like being a good friend, making good choices, and being a leader, to chat and to have fun, and of course to run and prepare for our end of season 5k, which took place on December 11th.
Before Girls on the Run began, I already knew all of the participants as I have had them as students. But this program gave me such a deeper understanding of who each one of them is and what is going on in their lives. Another thing that came out of this program are friendships across grade levels that probably wouldn't otherwise have happened. It warmed my heart to see 3rd graders running with 5th graders, holding hands and laughing as they ran laps.
Girls on the Run is way more than a running program - it's a support system, a safe place where girls can speak freely, and a way to prove that we are all capable of doing hard things. We wouldn't be able to have this impactful program at our school without your donations. Thank you for supporting public education, and please know that you made a real difference!”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 14 other donors.Back To Cool (Third Time's A Charm!)
Funded Jan 23, 2020I am beyond thrilled to be able to bring the Cool Culture program back to our school for another year! Thank you so much for your support of public education & the arts. We live in the greatest city in the world, and Cool Culture makes it possible for families to take part in all that the city has to offer. I can assure you that, without a doubt, this stuff matters!”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by Anonymous Arts Supporter and 26 other donors.Keepin' The Cool At School (With The Cool Culture Card)
Funded Mar 27, 2018What an incredible gift you have given to the Pre-k and Kindergarten families of my school! Pretty soon they will be able to go to virtually any museum or cultural institution in NYC for free, via the Cool Culture program. The individual family cards should be ready for pick-up and distribution soon, and then families will be able to take advantage of this most wonderful resource... just in time for another winter here in the northeast, which seem to go on forever, and can be quite challenging with little kids. We received a grant for the Cool Culture program last year as well, and the feedback that we received from families was tremendously positive. Weekends and school breaks were filled with visits to engaging & enriching institutions across the 5 boroughs.
Cool Culture is a fantastic program which I hope we can secure for our students and families for years to come. Thank you for supporting public education - it does indeed take a village.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by Ripple and 5 other donors.We Could Be (Gym) Heroes
Funded Oct 19, 2017Your generosity helped breathe new life into gym class. The students have been enjoying practicing their soccer skills with balls that do not have chunks missing from them! I actually just started using the scrimmage vests with classes and it has been super fun...now it's not a tragedy when someone forgets their number when we are playing a game, and I don't have to constantly remind kids of who is on their team, because they are color coded!
The Exer-Rider scooters that we received are a huge hit, and kids often ask if they can come by the gym to play on them. The Occupational Therapist and the Adaptive PE teacher at my school use them with their students with disabilities as a core strengthening exercise, and for fun!
Thank you for supporting public education, and please know that your support makes a difference.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose.org Community and 16 other donors.What's Cooler Than Cool? The Cool Culture Family Pass!
Funded May 27, 2017Since picking up the Cool Culture cards for my school last month I have had a steady stream of enthusiastic families coming by to claim their cards. People have been quite excited about having access to over 90 cultural institutions around NYC, making comments like, "Oh, an early Christmas present!" New York City is rich in opportunity... if you have the means to partake in all that is available. Your donation has removed that hurdle, helping to level out the playing field. As I was distributing the cards I took a survey to find out the places that families were most excited to visit. The American Museum of Natural History won hands-down, with the Intrepid and the Museum of Modern Art following right behind.
It is my goal to enroll our school in the Cool Culture program every year, as we are a Title 1 school and are therefore eligible. I can safely assume that the school will never have money in the budget for this, so sadly we must rely on generous donors like you. Please know that your donation has made a difference in the lives of many families, and we thank you so much for that.
Happy New Year, and Cheers to YOU!”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
It's the Bare Necessities!
Funded Dec 3, 2014Thank you so much for choosing to fund my project, "It's the Bare Necessities"! Many people don't realize how much time, energy, and money teachers often spend just to get the basic resources they need for their classrooms. I can without a doubt say that I have had to either had to modify or just not do a project with the kids because of a lack of materials. I have been a NYC public school teacher for over 10 years, and I can tell you that it's a problem across the board, not just at a few schools.
It has been a pleasure to have all of the paper, crayons, and glue that my students will need to get through the school year, and then enough to get started for next year. At a time when teachers are under attack by our governor, it is nice to feel supported. I am so grateful for DonorsChoose, as they have made so many things possible for my students, yet I look forward to a day when organizations like DonorsChoose aren't necessary for teachers to get the basic resources they need for their students. School funding is a huge issue, one that directly impacts our children, that has yet to be really dealt with. Thank you for filling in the gaps and for making things possible.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
Farm to Table to Classroom
Funded Aug 23, 2014Thanks a million for choosing to fund this project! My students use the materials that you funded every single day - they really support my curriculum, and are age- appropriate and fun. I have used all of the books to round-out lessons and to really get the kids to understand concepts such as the 5 food groups, taking care of the environment, recycling, and composting. This is the first year that I am teaching this "Farm-to-Table" class, and the materials that I received through this grant were the springboard to getting this class off the ground and running. I am continuing to see what I can add to the curriculum as I go along - it's definitely a work in progress!
Thanks again for funding this project, and for your commitment to public education.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by Gates Foundation Back To School and 5 other donors.Too Mulch is Never Enough!
Funded Oct 9, 2014Thank you so much for choosing to fund this project. Since establishing a school garden along the perimeter of the school building many years ago, the biggest challenge we face year after year is keeping up with normal maintenance items for the garden, such as mulch, compost, and equipment replacement. Without donors such as yourself it would be nearly impossible to maintain the grounds properly. I teach a "Farm to Table" class, and on good weather days my classes can often be found outside doing garden maintenance, planting, cleaning-up, mulching, or doing anything else that may need to be done. Many of the kids often tell me that they had never been in a garden before doing so in my class, yet it is so important for children to have an understanding of where food comes from, how plants grow, why it's important to take care of the environment/not litter, etc. Please know that your donation really does make a difference to students, as well as to the community as a whole. Thank you again for your generosity and to your commitment to public education.”
With gratitude,
Ms. D'Amato
This classroom project was brought to life by Wells Fargo and one other donor.