Past projects 7
Graphic Novels and Series for Jr High Reading
Funded Jan 19, 2022Thank you so much for this generous donation. The graphic novels and series books have revitalized my classroom library. My students have especially enjoyed the new hardcover copies of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dog Man. Those books are consistent favorites among my students. It was also helpful to replace missing copies of Raina Telgemeir's graphic novel memoirs.
I was able to get a copy of the graphic novel of Animal Farm as part of this grant. As we read Animal Farm by Ray Bradbury, I used the graphic novel to supplement the original text and review previous chapters.
These graphic novels and series books will be enjoyed for years to come. Thanks again for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber
This classroom project was brought to life by Utah State Board of Education.Picture Books for Special Ed English
Funded Nov 23, 2020Thanks so much for your generosity in purchasing picture books for my classroom. I have already used several in my special ed reading class to build background knowledge, identify theme, and for social-emotional learning. My school has been in-person with masks and social distancing since August, and while it has been a challenge, we have learned so much over the last 6 months.
We read That's Life to learn to cope with the ups and downs of life, especially during this last year of Covid. We read The Whatif's to help us reframe our thinking that we can focus on positive what if's and not just negative ones. We read the award-winning non-fiction book Honeybee to build our knowledge about nature. My students recorded surprising facts such as the Queen bee lays 2000 eggs a day. We read The Girl and the Wolf to see a different perspective on the traditional Little Red Riding Hood story and gain a respect for nature.
I look forward to reading more of the books with my students this year and for years to come. Thanks again!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber
This classroom project was brought to life by Allstate Foundation and one other donor.Graphic Novels for Jr High Reading
Funded Aug 13, 2020My students love the graphic novels we added to our classroom library from this project. I had sent books home with students to read right before the school shut down in March and some of the books did not return. This project allowed me to replace popular graphic novels such as Drama by Raina Telgemeier and Mighty Jack and Zita the Space Girl by Ben Hatke.
This project also allowed me to add new books to my classroom library that students have enjoyed such as Zatanna and the House of Secrets and The Weirn Books 1 and 2. We are getting ready to read The Diary of Anne Frank play in 8th grade English and I'm sure many students will want to read the graphic novel alongside it or following it.
We have been encouraging more independent reading at our school this year and your generosity has made accomplishing this goal easier. Thanks again for your contribution to our classroom!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber
This classroom project was brought to life by Kleenex® Brand and 3 other donors.Graphic Novels for Resource Reading
Funded Dec 3, 2019My students have loved having these graphic novels to borrow from my classroom library. Several students were anxious to finish up the Bone graphic novel series. Coraline was another popular book, since many had seen the movie or read the novel. It creeped them out! A new generation fell in love with The City of Ember and Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel: A Modern Retelling of Little Women. Surfside Girls is rarely on the shelf, making the rounds through many of my students.
The other day I asked my 7th graders if they have read more this year than the year before. Almost all of their hands shot up. Thanks to your contribution and generosity, students with special needs are having access to a variety of books and reading more than ever!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber
This classroom project was brought to life by An anonymous classroom supporter and 3 other donors.Classroom Book a Day for Jr High Resource Reading
Funded Sep 23, 2019Thank you so much for your generous donation! We have used the pictures books for a variety of purposes. I had a student teacher this semester, and she helped me share these books with my students.
One way I used the books is for #classroombookaday. In my resource reading class, we read several of the books aloud to enjoy reading and build background knowledge. While my students were familiar with 9/11, they were unaware of the Oklahoma City bombing as portrayed in The Survivor Tree. Books such as The Good Egg, I'm Worried, and Most People contributed to social-emotional learning in our class. Another way I used them was to find Notice and Note reading signposts in my 8th grade co-taught class. What is Given From the Heart was a perfect example to teach my students this reading strategy. Additionally, in my 7th-grade co-taught class, when we were talking about elements of fiction and summary, we read Maddie's Fridge and completed a graphic organizer. These books will be part of my curriculum for years to come!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber
#Classroombookaday for Special Education Reading
Funded Oct 10, 2018We have loved using the books in our classroom. We have used some of the books as part of our #classroombookaday challenge. Each day, we read a picture book to build empathy and background knowledge and explore theme. My students loved Potato Pants, Rot the Cutest, Horrible Bear, I Love Lemonade and many more. We are excited to continue reading more pictures books throughout the year.
Additionally, we used some of the picture book biographies such as Chester Nez, Hidden Figures and A Boy, a Mouse, and a Spider--The Story of E. B. White in a biography inquiry unit. Students read the picture books, identified a story or action from the person's life, and then came up with qualities or characteristics that helped the person succeed.
Last, I used some of the picture books in a Notice and Note Signpost unit in which I taught students to identify important parts of a story. We used The Remember Balloons and When We Were Alone to identify memory moments and determine why the memories were important.
My students have benefited from these books and they will be used for years to come. Thanks for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber
This classroom project was brought to life by Chevron Fuel Your School.Mrs. B's Classroom Book a Day for Jr High Special Education
Funded Sep 12, 2018Thank you so much for your donation. My students have enjoyed the books. These pictures books have been shared as part of #classroombookaday with my resource reading class. Every other day I share a picture book with my students. I ask them 2 questions: What did you think of the book? and What is the book really about? They have built background knowledge and have used the books as windows into the lives of others and mirrors for their own life.
One student, who is adopted from China, loved Drawn Together which featured Asian characters. On another occasion, our school psychologist came in and read I am Enough and did a lesson on worth. This was helpful for my students because many suffer with depression and feelings of low self-worth.
I used I Walk with Vanessa and Small Things as part of an inference unit. Along with those books and other wordless picture books, students tried to figure out what was going on and then summarized the plot.
I plan to use Malala's Magic Pencil in an upcoming unit in my co-taught 8th grade English class where we will look at picture book biographies and character traits.
I still have a few books to share with my students and I am sure they will enjoy them and find meaning. Thanks so much for your donation.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Barber