Past projects 3
Read Alouds for School Readiness
Funded Aug 13, 2019Teaching routines to students early on in the school year can alleviate problems that may arise with students not knowing what to expect. By teaching positive behaviors, this sets students up for success in the classroom and to the start of a great year! These books were used to teach procedures, such as how to use the classroom library, how to read a book, and how to treat other students. I read the books to the class and we discussed. Then we did different group activities, such as brainstorming, writing kindness notes, and writing how they would use the skill in the classroom. Afterwards, the books have been available for the students to sit and reread, along with taking comprehension tests over the books.
Looking into my classroom, one would see that reading is done in a number of different ways. We have a reading series where we spend time learning different skills that helps students be successful comprehending different texts. Students are also given opportunities throughout the day to practice their reading skills by reading around the room. Students can use flexible seating around the room to find the best fit reading spot. They can ready alone or with partners. On Fridays, we shut the lights off and close the blinds and the students use flashlights to read around the classroom.
I want to Thank You for investing in my classroom and my students! Your donations help me provide books and resources to make learning fun and meaningful.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Meyer
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 4 other donors.Lion Readers ROAR!
Funded Oct 5, 2018Thank you so much for the 2 separate supplies that I was able to purchase through Donors Choose! The kids are excited to use these materials and I am thrilled to have such excellent resources at my fingertips!!
The first materials I'd like to thank you for are the I Can tubs. These independent skills tubs are used during my small group time to review skills that have previously been taught. I am able to confidently work with students knowing that my other students are getting good practice and exposure to materials to help them advance in their knowledge of these reading skills. Plus, each card must be read, so that in turn helps them practice their independent reading.
The second set of materials I'd like to thank you for are the StoryworksJr magazines. The first time I showed these to the kids they were SOOO excited to read!! The stories are engaging and the pictures and illustrations are excellent!! They grab the kids' attention!! I like that there is a complete set of teacher's manual with each magazine that gives me guidance as to how to implement instruction & cover all of the essential points. I'm super excited to use these magazines for my Text Feature surgery that we will complete in the spring. I did this activity with last years class and they learned sooo much!!
Thank you again for your generosity!!!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Meyer
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 5 other donors.Smartie Students Need Stockpile of Supplies
Funded Feb 2, 2018Thank You so much for supporting our classroom project. I'll be completely honest. Our project got funded at the very best time of the year. We had a tragedy happen in 3rd grade and we received the items from our project just days afterwards and it totally lifted the student's spirits!! For that I am grateful!
The first thing out of my class' mouth when the boxes were delivered to my classroom was "we can do worksheets like Mrs. Bixenman" since she is another teacher in our 3rd grade team that uses a document camera!! It was funny to see how excited they were for the document camera!! We use the document camera daily for assignments in Reading, Spelling, English, and Social Studies. I'm sure I will use it even more in the future as I get used to using it!
The flashlights have been fun to implement Flashlight Fridays!! Each Friday, we turn the lights off, shut the blinds, and the students take their book boxes & flashlight to any spot in the classroom. They read for 15-20 minutes and absolutely LOVE this time in the dark!!
The stackable chairs are a hit with students as well! They use them instead of their desk chairs, but they are light enough that they take them to different parts of the room to use while doing work or reading!
If you would stop in our room at any time in the day, you would also see our ball chairs being used. Sometimes the students use them to sit at their desks. Most of the time you will find someone in the book corner sitting or laying on the balls. This provides them some different sensory options throughout the day to help them be productive students!!
Because I was able to receive an electric pencil sharpener, I am able to effectively implement pencil pouches in my classroom. Kids are able to keep 4 sharpened pencils in their pouch. On Fridays, they are able to turn in their pouches for a reward if they have all 4 pencils. I then sharpen them and have them ready by Monday. This allows me to have productive classroom time, because we don't have to stop to sharpen pencils during classroom time!!!
And lastly I would like to thank you for the children's dictionaries!! These colorful and kid-friendly dictionaries have made completing spelling and other language assignments easier! When I ask the students to look something up, I never have to ask twice! They are used weekly by most all of the students.
I can't thank you enough for helping this project become a reality! Each donation was extremely important and appreciated! Our classroom is more functional and the resources provided allow us to not only to be productive, but also allows me to make learning fun!!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Meyer
This classroom project was brought to life by The First Million Fund and 14 other donors.