Past projects 4
Communicate, Express Yourself, Be an Interactive Part of the World!
Funded Oct 8, 2019Most of my students don't talk and are just beginning to understand language. Language is the most important thing for students to learn. It is needed to be a part of the community at large! Technology can be used as a gateway to communication.
This Ablenet machine has several settings. It can present 1, 2, 4 or 8 options for choices, with a total of 8 different overlays we can make. I am using the 2 option grid with Yes and No to work on answering yes/no questions and to understand how the machine works. When YES is pushed, a voice says YES. I had a second grader do the recordings for me so it would sound like a kid instead of a grown up teacher. I use the 4 option grid for choices during mealtime (eat, drink, facecloth, all done). The 8 option grid has two different overlays: The students in my class and favorite toys. I still have four available layers that I haven't programmed yet.
Making choices not only builds communication, but it also builds self-esteem by giving students the capability to affect their day by deciding what to do and what not to do.
My students are having a great time learning to communicate. This device is fantastic! Thank you all so much for what you have given my kids!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Jean
Art Supplies for My Budding Artists!
Funded May 6, 2019We used the finger paint to make great messy collages for the families. We used the paint to paint the pictures for our yearly Zoo book. It is wonderful to have every color we need and enough paint for all the children to enjoy art!
The students react differently to paint. One friend loves to make big finger paint projects that cover the entire table and his whole body. He usually has a very short attention span, but will paint with his hands for up to 20 minutes. My girl does not like to touch the paint, but is discovering that the paint brushes are fun. I have a variety of textured brushes that make fun effects on the paper. Some students explore the paint as sensory input and we turn the results into amazing finished products.
Thank you so much for helping my classroom!!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Jean
This classroom project was brought to life by Google.org and 4 other donors.SMILE: Look What I Did!!
Funded Feb 14, 2019My classroom is full of successes and lots of fun and hard work. These moments are important to share with the families! Also, I have a bulletin board outside my classroom to share these moments with the whole school! If I don't have a camera close by, we miss the first time a student is given a communication machine, students working on those first steps, exploring technology, and just having fun at school. My camera was destroyed in a fire at my school last year. It is so wonderful to have the opportunity to again catch those moments as they happen!!
I have three students who are getting closer and closer to their first step! It is great to be able to send photos of each stride toward that step to the families. We make a lot of fun art, and a lot of fun messes. Often they are one and the same. The product isn't important, it is the process. That is what we take a photo of and send home. For holidays the students make gifts for their families personalized by photos.
My students are not the easiest to photograph on school picture day. I try to snap the perfect photo in class during that one moment that a child is smiling or laughing. They do not generally do this on cue for a school photographer. I then make a photo package, laminate it, and send it home. My students are often very medically fragile and the perfect picture can mean the world to their parents.
I cannot imagine being without a camera in my classroom. Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity. Like the perfect picture, it is priceless.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Jean
An Open Shelf to Offer Choice and Fun!
Funded Nov 18, 2018As soon as I received the shelf, I dismantled the duct taped egg crates that were standing in for a shelf. The new shelf fit perfectly in front of the window and we stocked it with books and toys.
When the children arrived the next day, they immediately explored the toys! The ones that could, pulled up to stand. This bookshelf was much more sturdy than the makeshift one they had been using. One student even tried to take a few step along the shelf to reach a favorite book, holding on for support.
Thank you all so much for giving them safe and sturdy materials to help them to learn.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Jean