Mrs. Keene's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 18

• A Little Spot of Emotions

  Funded Nov 22, 2019

  Thank you for the A Little Spot series. These books are designed to help students create a better self. These books are being used throughout the building to teach students about different emotions they experience. The plan is to help students identify the emotions they feel, and teach them different ways to respond to the emotion.

  These books are mostly read to an entire class and discussed throughout the reading, however, sometimes students choose to re-read the book or have it read in a small group. Students of all ages love to have stories read aloud to them. These books are very engaging in the situations and illustrations. Thank you again for supporting social-emotional learning.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

• Visual Mathematics for Understanding

  Funded Aug 13, 2019

  Thank you for your donations of the Tiny Polka Dot cards and Cuisenaire Rods. Your donation has provided Tiny Polka Dot cards for all students in Kindergarten and grade 1. The students get excited when they see the box show up, as they know they are going to be playing a math game. Students have been playing games that allow them to match visual representations to digits. Students have also been able to play games where they create combinations of a specific number.

  So far this year, the cuisenaire rods have been used with 4th grade students. The students were excited to use these brand new manipulatives to explore numbers. Students were given time to explore the rods and make observations. This allowed them to determine the relationships between rods. As the year continues, students are using the rods to create a visual for double digit multiplication.

  These hands-on tools are helping my student be engaged in mathematics. This engagement help students not only understand the concepts taught, but allows students to have a positive experience with mathematics.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

  This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and 8 other donors.

• Mindfulness Moments with Families

  Funded Jul 12, 2019

  Thank you for your donations! The materials we got were able to make our family night a huge success! We had over 100 families attend our family night, where they were able to make calming glitter jars, color mandala patterns, and follow breathing techniques as they moved around a shape. The glitter jars were the most popular activity, as each student was able to make their own glitter jar to take home. The survey results showed that majority of families enjoyed the glitter jar task the most.

  When students saw the boxes of materials, they instantly asked what they were for. After making a sample glitter jar students were eager to sign up and attend family night. With your donations, we were able to get a variety of style and colors for students to personalize their glitter jars. The next steps are that all of the activities have been shared with staff and families who attended so that they can continue these mindfulness practices at home.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

  This classroom project was brought to life by Google.org and 2 other donors.

• Real World Inventions Discovered Through STEM

  Funded Mar 14, 2019

  Thank you for your donation. These activities were used multiple times this year. The main event was our family night. At the family night students were able to problem solve and build. The activities were also used with students in small groups to explore concepts further.

  One activity students loved was the basketball. Students were able to try multiple ways in order to get the basket in the hoop. Another activity students loved was the planes. This was used not only at family night but with students as it went with a math incentive. Students solved math problems about superheros. One of the clues said the superhero could not fly, therefore, students built and tested planes for their superhero.

  The other activities where students build cars and gadgets was a popular one at our family night. These activities also connect to our new Science standards. These activities will not only be used at our family nights in the coming years but also in our 1st grade classrooms.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

  This classroom project was brought to life by AT&T and one other donor.

• Perseverance Through STEM Family Night

  Funded Dec 4, 2018

  Thank you for the hands-on activities for our Family Night. The event is happening at the end of the month, but we did a sneak peak recently to get students excited! The sneak peak had many students asking about the family night and they were all eager to attend. All of the materials purchased with your donation require students to problem solve and persevere through the different tasks.

  Many of the students loved the Gingerbread Man activity where they need to create a raft for him to safely cross the river without the fox eating him. This not only created a connection to the fairy tale but it also required students to test their ideas. When a student build a raft that didn't work, they went back to the design and altered it. These are not only amazing connections to our curriculum but also important life lessons for our students.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

• Rekenreks for Math Understanding

  Funded Feb 28, 2019

  Thank you for the rekenreks! This new resource has already been used in my room. Students are working on adding and subtracting numbers. A rekenrek helps students visualize the numbers in order to add and subtract accurately. Previously, we had homemade rekenreks, however, the beads were hard to move and the paper was beginning to rip. Now these new tools are easy to use and durable.

  Students were excited to start using the rekenreks. This excitement sparked more engagement with the students. They became eager to solve addition and subtraction problems. Not only are these tools helping students build an understanding of mathematics, but they are also becoming more confident. When given the right tools the students feel successful and that they have a strategy they are comfortable with.

  Coming up my students who have been working on adding and subtracting within 10 will start to discover their teen numbers on the rekenreks. The students will also begin to add numbers with sums beyond 10.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

  This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose.org Community and 5 other donors.

• Daily Math Talks to Build Fluency

  Funded Oct 1, 2018

  Thank you again for the Daily Math Talks program from ETA. The resource came with daily number talks and the possible strategies students can use solve the problem. The program also included number strings that include problems that build upon each other. One of the best parts of the program is that it came with two rekenreks. This provides students a visual manipulative to represent the numbers when adding or subtracting.

  Students loved seeing new rekenreks in the classrooms and were eager to use them. As we began solving our daily problems students were taught how to use the rekenreks, asked what they noticed, and how they would use the tool to solve the problem. Now students love participating in the number talk, because they are able to demonstrate how they solved the problem using the rekenrek tool. This program is working to build student's understanding of numbers and has greatly improved their ability to solve addition and subtraction problems. The best part is the program gets progressively more challenging as the year goes on, so my students are continually improving their number sense.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

  This classroom project was brought to life by ETA hand2mind and 5 other donors.

• Financial Literacy Through Money and Decimals

  Funded Sep 21, 2018

  My students and I have been using these resources in small groups. The students are reviewing money and change through games and hands- on experiences. Each time we play the Allowance Game students are upset if our time together is over and ask to play it again next time. The game has given them real world experiences with money that they can relate to.

  My students were excited and surprised that generous people like you have helped to support their learning. This allowed us to have a great conversation about the importance of giving back and appreciating people who help us. Students wanted to open and view all of the materials right away.

  Coming up next is to teach younger age students about money. The students will learn the names and values of each bill and coin. The students will then make different combinations for an amount of money. The older students will learn more about decimals and the place value of decimals in relation to money.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Keene

  This classroom project was brought to life by Charles Schwab Foundation and 3 other donors.