Past projects 9
Get Teens Excited About Reading With "The Poet X!"
Funded Mar 24, 2021Thank you so much for your generous donation of copies of Elizabeth Acevedo's "The Poet X!" My students are loving the book.
We start each class by listening and reading along with the author. (Acevedo is a slam poet champion and the book is written in verse, and we have been really enjoying listening to her perform the book. Students say they can "hear" the protaganist's voice in their heads now!) Next, students break into reciprocal teaching groups in which each student has a role (Facilitator, Psychologist, Poet, Vocab Builder, or Visualizer) and works to help their classmates make meaning from the day's assigned reading from that particular perspective. Each day we update our character charts that are posted around the room with words and images that describe each character.
On Fridays, we have a whole class discussion about the week's reading. Students write questions, and pose them to their classmates. Last Friday, one student asked, "Have you ever read a book like before?" and one of her classmates responded, "No! I didn't even know there were books like this - with characters who know what real people go through." My students are actively engaging with the book - making inferences about the characters, predictions about what will happen next, and connecting the events in the plot to their own lives. And the best part - they are enjoying the process! Thank you again for making this possible!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
Buzz! New Clicker Technology Needed!
Funded Mar 19, 2012Thank you so much for the Senteo Interactive Response System! It's wonderful! My kids really enjoy it, other staff members are learning how to use it, and I've been able to get formative assessment data super quickly and easily. The clickers are making a profound difference in my classroom.
The kids are always excited when it is time to use the clickers. When they come in and see that it is on the agenda, they cheer, even when the agenda reads "clicker quiz," which is pretty remarkable. My kids are just learning English and have a limited vocabulary to express how excited they are about things, but they make comments like, "Wow. These are really special!" and "These make class amazing."
Since I don't need them every day, every period, I've also been training other teachers how to use the clickers. Now they are getting used almost all the time by some class. The other teachers are raving about how easy it is to figure out exactly what students know. We've also used them successfully in professional development!
I love that I can get information about what students know so efficiently, and that the students enjoy the process. Thanks so much for your donation: it is directly helping to accelerate student growth in my classroom.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
This classroom project was brought to life by Chevron and 3 other donors.The Right Book for Every Student
Funded Feb 2, 2011Thank you so much for funding our project! As the boxes of brand new books arrived at school, I got more and more excited about this unit. We wrapped the books in gift wrap, tied bows, and gave them out a few weeks ago. The energy in the classroom was awesome. Since then, every student has finished reading his or her book!
Every day when we settled in to do some sustained silent reading, the focus and engagement in the room was palpable. In fact, one day I had a substitute because I was out for a conference and she decided to just see how long the kids would read for. They ended up reading for 90 minutes without a rustle or a peep! Pretty crazy for my normally rambunctious youngsters. Kids are sharing the books that they finish with one another, and one student even loaned her book to her mom, who called to thank me.
As you'll see from their thank you letters, the kids really enjoyed their books and they are looking forward to reading more books by the same authors. Some of them wrote about how long it had been since they read a complete book, and how they felt more excited now about books in general. I feel like this unit has been a victory: not just because they all engaged in their books and finished reading them, but also because their attitudes toward reading have changed. Many of them are more confident, and all of them are a little more open-minded about picking up new books. Finally, we all had fun. Class felt more engaging and interesting for everyone.
Thank you so much for making this unit possible. I really enjoyed it, learned a lot from it, and hope to repeat the experiment in all my classes next year.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
Audiobooks for Struggling Readers
Funded Oct 19, 2010I am so grateful for your incredibly generous donation of a listening station and audiobooks to my classroom. My students have already benefited immensely: we received the equipment in time to have 7 of my students access Amy Tan's book The Joy Luck Club through the brand-new listening station. For several of my students, this is the very first time they have ever had the experience of reading a book from cover to cover. These are some of the kids who tend to be the most disruptive and least on task when we are reading, but they were so excited to put the big headphones on and dive into the story. I have never seen them so engaged. For the final exam, they had to explain how the figurative language that Amy Tan uses helps communicate a theme of the novel, and these kids shone. It was so great to see them feeling successful in a reading task.
You made all of this possible through your donation. Thank you so much for your support of our young people! ”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
This classroom project was brought to life by Townsend Press and one other donor.No More Chalkboards! LCD Projector to the Rescue!
Funded Sep 16, 2009Thank you so much for the LCD projector! This super-valuable teaching tool has transformed my instruction. Now I am able to use PowerPoint presentations, to easily show my class pictures off the internet, to use our Senteo Interactive Response system for formative assessment. It is so easy to save the slides and work that I need every day and just re-show them instead of repeatedly writing the same thing on the board. I can show short videos from educational websites, and have a whole class of students play interactive grammar games off the internet. Before, I used chart paper to save all the lessons I would still need, but if I made a mistake or wanted to adapt something for another class, I had to start all over. Now I can quickly edit instructional materials, and continually improve them.
My students have already benefited from this precious resource. In the last few months, I've seen a huge jump in engagement. Also, we are able to move at a much faster pace so we are covering more material, a huge bonus as my students are scrambling to prepare for the high school exit exam which they'll take in a few weeks.
At my school, we are often lacking basic resources like pencils and paper. When I told the students that we had gotten this projector as a donation, they were floored. "Who cares about us?" they wanted to know. "Why would anyone give US something?" I explained that there were people out there that believed that all young people deserved to be educated in the best and most sophisticated ways possible, and that those people believed that strongly enough to take action. We are so grateful for your support. Thank you.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
This classroom project was brought to life by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and 2 other donors.Students Request Fun Sports Equipment for Urban School Club
Funded Sep 5, 2008Thank you so much for your generous donation! When I posted this project on DonorsChoose.org last spring, I explained to all the students what I was doing. When they came back from summer vacation, many of them came running up to me and asked if the project had been funded. I am so happy to be able to tell them 'yes,' now! Under-resourced schools like mine depend on generous donations like yours to provide kids with the best experiences possible, and as a teacher, I'm inspired to feel so supported by the greater community. Thank you so much”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
Empower Student Leadership to Complete an Action Plan!
Funded Apr 28, 2008Thank you so much for the button maker and supplies! My leadership class cheered today when I told them the news. They are thrilled to be receiving high quality supplies that will help them be more professional as well as really advertise for their cause! In this time of proposed budget cuts and what feels like expectations that we as teachers continue to do less with more, it is very encouraging to know that there are people in the community who support the work we are doing in urban public schools. Thank you so much for your generous gift”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
Art Supplies to Help A New Leadership Class Publicize
Funded Mar 21, 2008Wow! I was just closing my computer down on my way out the door when I received word that my project has been funded and that we'll be getting the supplies for our leadership class! I'm so excited! I just pulled a couple of students over to my computer to read the email over my shoulder and they cheered.
We are sincerely, whole-heartedly, grateful for your support! My students are really excited about getting creative and professional with their publicity campaign. I really think that having the right materials will give them confidence and pride in their work. It is really heartening to know that there are people out there who genuinely support the work we do in public schools.
Thank you,
Karen ”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti
Persepolis: A Graphic Novel My Students Will Love to Read!
Funded Nov 24, 2006Thank you so much for the books! I was thrilled to see that the Youth Empowerment School is going to get a class-set of "Persepolis." All of my 9th grade sections will read this book in January during our unit on individual reactions during societal upheavals. I look forward to mailing you my students' opinions on the book, as well as their comments on what they've learned. I really appreciate your generosity. Teaching in Oakland is possible because of donors like you”
With gratitude,
Ms. Pezzetti