Past projects 15
Starting the Year off Strong
Funded Sep 18, 2024Thank you so very much for your generosity and support. Having this project funded is a lovely way to begin the year. We have 25 lovely second grade students at all different levels that will benefit from your thoughtfulness, as will I. This project was full of necessary, somewhat random items that are all important to our classroom's organization and day to day operations. Thank you for making our busy classroom run more effectively!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community & an Anonymous Partner and 4 other donors.Creating Enriching and Nurturing Classroom Spaces
Funded Sep 20, 2023We are very excited and grateful that our project was funded. Thank you very much for your support and generosity! This project contains materials that will help us differentiate for the needs of our students. The stools and cushions will help create an inviting and comfortable space for small groups. The math manipulatives and teachers pay teachers gift cards will help me plan, differentiate and make my lessons more visual for my students. The plastic cabinet will help me organize my small materials. You have made it easier for me to meet my students where they are at.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 4 other donors.Attention and Motivation-The Beginning of Instruction
Funded Dec 29, 2022Thank you for your kindness, thought, and generosity. Your donations allowed me to purchase a color printer for my classroom and materials to help me teach my students letters/sounds, numbers, and counting. We work in small groups constantly and the materials that you bought for us allow meaningful and engaging activities to be going on at the level of each student. Thank you very much for this!
The color printer is a miracle. I can print the many visuals that I use each day on it. I don't have to depend on the 1 color printer that we have to support 10 classrooms and whether it is working or has ink or colored ink, etc. I can also stop abusing my home printer which gets me points with my husband.
Many of my students have sensory and occupational needs with which the Theraputty and kinetic sand will help. They provide the experiences of textures and squeezing to help soothe and strengthen the fingers of my students. The kinetic sand is wonderful, too because it sticks together and there is less chance of it going everywhere.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
Creating Engaging Reading Experiences
Funded Dec 15, 2022Thank you so very much for your generous donation. I love to read, it has been a source of inspiration, a way to travel, to learn, to bond with others, and a way to relax. My students with Autism have mixed feelings about reading. They are typically drawn in by the pictures, however, books with too much language lose their attention. The big books with activities, puppets or figures help that language to come alive make stories more relatable and understandable. It also allows reading to be a more shared experience in which students are able to interact with the book, the concept, and each other.
Not only is my class of 12 students using the big books, but, I am sharing them with 5 other teachers. That means that your kind donation is affecting more than 70 students, just this year!
Since the books that I use to teach a concept need to be very focused and specific in our teaching, I have made my share of adapted books. The book binding machine helps make all of that work last and enables me to save the books to use with future students.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by an Anonymous Classroom Supporter and 5 other donors.Setting up for Success
Funded Sep 16, 2022Thank you for your generosity and thoughtfulness in donating to our classroom. Students with Autism often have unique sensory and communication needs and my students are no exception. Your donation allowed me to purchase a laminator and Teachers Pay Teachers gift cards that helped me create or edit a ton of visuals, adapted books, and curriculum materials to meet the needs of my students. I literally laminate materials I make daily.
We purchased three visual and tactile lamps to offer my students a way to decompress when overstimulated. We also bought sensory tiles with liquid that moves as they walk on them. Walking and stomping on them provides them with a movement break they definitely need.
My students and I love these purchases. My students request the sensory materials during break or play times that they earn during the day. I love that these materials help me meet the unique needs of my students. Thank you for being a part of our classroom! Your kindness helps us to be the proactive and positive space we need to be.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
Put First Things First--Self-Regulation to Help Focus
Funded Aug 25, 2021Thank you for your generosity. With your support I was able to buy books to introduce our social-emotional learning on feelings-what they may look like and feel like in our bodies, and self-regulation skills-what we can do when we have strong feelings to help us remain on or return to baseline so that we can be available for friendship and learning.
We were able to use the books to introduce and reinforce our lessons on social-emotional learning and self-regulation. At the beginning of the year we always focus on community building-team building and getting to know each other to ensure that the classroom is a safe space for learning. We knew that after learning virtually for a year and a half, most of our students would need extra support to "relearn/remember" classroom and social-emotional expectations and be able to meet them.
The books helped me introduce social-emotional concepts. After reading we had amazing discussions that gave us all a common reference point and vocabulary that has helped us understand each ourselves and each other.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by Dollar General Literacy Foundation and 2 other donors.First Things First-Learning About and Teaching Emotional Regulation
Funded Jul 12, 2021Thank you very much for the support and generosity. Due to your kindness, I was able to attend a "Zones of Regulation" full day training, buy the curriculum book and several student books to use with the curriculum.
This year will be unlike any other year that I have taught. The majority of my students have been learning remotely (a difficult choice that their families made) for a year and a half. As they return I will be facing the challenge of supporting that social/emotional transition, any possible trauma, and making up for any missed learning. Using the Zones will give us a common vocabulary and understanding of our emotions/feelings and help us to develop coping strategies to deal proactively with our experiences and emotions.
All this will help us to co-regulate our emotions so that we can do the important and challenging work of learning. Thank you again for your support!! I literally could not have done it without you!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by J.W. Couch Foundation and 4 other donors.Active Learning and Practice Makes Permanent
Funded Mar 20, 2021I want to thank you for your generosity and thoughtfulness in supporting our classroom! During the 2020-2021 my students and I were fully remote. We missed being in-person a great deal! I worked hard to mitigate the challenges of remote learning for my students and they and their families juggled distractions, technology issues, work, and illness to learn.
One of the things that was very time-consuming for me was creating remote lessons that were differentiated for the students in my remote classroom. Each year I spend well over $500 of my own money to extend and differentiate the curriculum. This year, that is where your generosity was so very helpful.
This year, while remote learning, I was able to use the Teachers Pay Teachers gift cards to buy on-line activities to differentiate, support, review and extend the concepts and strategies that I was teaching. Thank you for your kindness and willingness to help us during this time. It means a great deal!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 2 other donors.If you can't hear me, raise your hand.
Funded Aug 11, 2020Thank you very much for your generosity in helping me purchase a portable PA system for my classroom. I knew that between social distancing, masks, and difficulty with articulation and voice modulation, hearing each other would be an issue.
At the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year I was to be the in-person teacher for my students. That changed even before the students began, as so many students went remote. I have been teaching remotely since the students started their learning. I have not had a chance to use the portable PA system.
Once we get back into the classroom, I know that it will be a help. Even without masks or social distancing, the background noise that students need to filter out (the heaters banging, the air conditioning unit, hallway, and playground noises, other small groups) is louder than my voice. I plan on using this system to help with focus and attention once we are back in the classroom. Thank you once again for your generosity!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and one other donor.Hearing and Learning in Crowded Places
Funded Aug 11, 2020Thank you for your generous donation that allowed us to buy headphones for our students! So many of my students are learning from home in rooms that are classrooms for other siblings, offices for parents, playrooms for younger siblings, etc.
At the beginning of this year I was told that I would be fully remote as so many of my students had chosen to learn from home. It is not ideal at all, but, many of my students or someone in their family have a condition that put them at risk should they get the corona virus.
The headphones you helped us purchase have been an incredible help in terms of my students ability to focus and learn. Now, when it is too loud in their home, I am able to say, "Please get your headphones." Your generosity made a very difficult situation easier.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Mary Fox
This classroom project was brought to life by A Generous Donor and one other donor.