Past projects 10
Help Us Maintain a Clean Classroom!
Funded Aug 29, 2019Excellent! I'm so happy for your help. It seems so minor, but this little bit of paper product makes a huge difference in how my classroom runs - and makes it easier on parents who are given lists of supplies. I want to keep it easy for them. Thanks for your kind donations!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Printer Basics
Funded Sep 9, 2018The ability to print on demand is a lifesaver for my students, who sometimes want to work with a digital document that they've created that must be marked up with a pencil, and for me. I always need to print out some form, some story, some or some tool that will drive instruction.
We run out of ink quickly, and a lack of access to this basic material can set preparation back anywhere from an hour to a day. Your donation ensures that my classroom materials are ready before my students ever walk into the room, and that they feel secure in knowing that their teachers are prepared with the tools to help their learning move smoothly.
As always, donors, thank you for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Challenging All Readers With Chromebooks
Funded Mar 27, 2018My students LOVE to use Chromebooks, especially the touchscreen kind! They are now able to do instant research for their independent writing projects, check on a document they've sent me, create a new publication, or take out some ebooks from the library. This batch of Chromebooks is just the coolest thing going in my classroom.
Kids really like these machines because the gestures needed for touchscreen functionality are native to them. They've been using smartphones for so long that computers without touch technology seem heavy and less capable - and in lots of ways, that capability is more about interactivity and making information as accessible as possible. My students, particularly those with attention and handwriting issues, really warm to this technology.
Thank you again, donors. My classroom really has come to live because of you!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
This classroom project was brought to life by Ripple.Building English Fluency in Context
Funded May 13, 2017Your kind donations to my classroom have been particularly meaningful. My students, native and non-native English speakers, have been able to use sturdy, small tools that helped them dive into the reading and writing of fiction and poetry.
To build their poems from their most meaningful ideas, all students used thesauruses to find precise words to match their thinking. In revision stations, they coached and coaxed each other into better vocabulary, using dictionaries to understand the shades of meaning between synonyms.
Non-native speakers translated picture books in their own languages into English with the help of bilingual dictionaries, and translated from home languages to English. This work helped students engage with and find purpose in their own writing.
Thanks again. They couldn't have done the same caliber of work without your donations!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Signed, Printed, and Sealed!
Funded Mar 11, 2017The technology you've donated to my classroom helps my students in so many ways. The printer allows me to supply teacher and student-created tools on demand to build reading comprehension and English fluency. The laminator lets these tools remain neat and clean so that students can use them across classes.
Most exciting for students is the novelty of having small instruction cards to efficiently launch ideas from. It is also fun for them to see a need for information or tools immediately met. Students who are visual and tactile learners benefit from quick dry-erase charts made with the laminator. They enjoy drawing out their own reusable tools to organize information in interesting ways. They also benefit from conferences with teachers where individual instructions are delivered using these instant wipe-off charts.
Thank you so much for this technology that has helped my students engage with their learning.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Kids Need Book BFFs!
Funded Jun 28, 2016My students love the books you donated to our classroom! So far, many students have practiced making inferences about characters and saying why characters behave in unexpected ways.
What's most fun is the passing around of books. Kids are choosing instead to put books directly in the hands of a classmate they know is waiting for a title. They are excited to read the next title in a series or the book they saw a friend carrying, and I like to be able to say we have another copy.
Thank you again! We were able to begin the year with a real desire to read!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
School Supply Basics for Success!
Funded Nov 6, 2015My students were so pleased to have received your generous donations. They are happy to know that so many people care about their learning.
Of course, they wanted to get right into the materials! We've been using plenty of Post-Its to help us organize ideas around arguments and to capture what persuasive texts make us think, feel and wonder. They complete summaries and draft essays on donated loose leaf. Other classes are using Post-Its to capture musical lines from text to write poetry off of.
Coming up, students will be given new notebooks as they finish the ones they started at the beginning of the year. They'll continue to use your supplies through the end of the year!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Bring Color to Reading and Writing!
Funded Sep 16, 2015My students really enjoy using the art projects you've donated to our classroom. We've used them for two projects. First, seventh graders created symbolic art representing character emotions based on our class novel. They especially liked using watercolors! Sixth graders illustrated their original poetry using pastels, markers and charcoal.
They were all so excited to see the new materials! I could see ideas brewing in their eyes, and they were so willing to share what they wanted to do with the materials.
As seventh graders move more toward some poetry work, they will use color to illustrate what the envision from a poet's words.
Again, thanks so much for your donations!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Books Can Teach Academic and Life Lessons!
Funded Aug 22, 2015My students are so excited to read Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie together! Many of them spoke of their thankfulness to you for donating to our classroom. They are happy to know that there are people out there who value their education as much as their parents and teachers do.
My students are comparing the book you've donated to another book we've read. A few have read it on their own and have explained to classmates what's beautiful about the narration and the author's craft. I'm pleased to see how they are drawing comparisons between themes and characters - they are very ready to meet these characters.
This project will reinforce their learning about point of view and perspective in fiction writing. They'll do some nice work thinking about what a first person narrator is willing to tell us versus what they choose to leave out, and how others involved in the narrator's life experience conflict and respond to the narrator.
Again, thank you so much for your donations!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut
Brooklyn Readers ISO Captivating Books To Start The Year!
Funded Jun 28, 2012I can't thank you enough for the books that were donated to my classroom... and to my students. Just knowing that there was a new box of books in the classroom created such a stir! A group opened the box together and immediately started making plans for who can have which book first.
Students are reading these books to study character development, setting development, and theme. They are also reading these books for the enjoyment of having a great story in their hands. As I write this, some kids have already read two titles.
There is a special pleasure that comes with holding a just-unpackaged new book. I'm so glad that, with your help and kindness, the kids were able to feel excited about what they'll read! The books will be well-read and well-loved by this year's students and students to come!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Schildkraut