Mrs. Monks' Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 6

• Glazes for Community Giving!

  Funded Mar 7, 2024

  Thank you once again for contributing to our fundraiser and helping to supply the ceramics glazes we needed for our community projects. This school year, we were able to create nature themed pendant keychains that we donated to Real Food CT - a local organization that grows fresh organic produce and donates it to local food pantries. We also created ceramic daffodil flowers - our official town flower, that we hid around town for residents to find and keep. Lastly, we were also able to create paw print ornaments that were donated to local animal shelters for people to take when they donate a pet and a local pet store that donates all the food for the local K-9 unit in our town. This is just the beginning and we already have plans in store for next school year to glaze ceramic vases, fill them with flowers and donate them to the senior citizen center in town. We could not have done all of this without your support. Thank you so much for supporting these school to community connections.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monks

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Dalio Family and 13 other donors.

• Help Us Build Our Pottery Wheel Program!

  Funded Aug 10, 2022

  Thank you so much for the donation you made that allowed me to purchase the tools my classroom needed for the pottery wheel. Since then, my advanced 3D students have learned how to use the pottery wheel. I introduced the lesson asking each student to create 4 ceramic bowls. 2 of the bowls students will be donating towards another fundraiser. As a way of paying it forward for your generosity, we will be hosting a fundraiser at our school. In addition to the ceramic bowls, students have also created ceramic spoons. Our culinary students will be working on making soup. We will be selling the bowls, spoons and soup to raise money for our local food pantry. Thank you so much again for your donation that has helped the art programs at our school, allowing new experiences for our students and allowing us to give back to our community.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monks

  This classroom project was brought to life by Bill Gates and 7 other donors.

• Seats for Students: Providing Art Students with Portable Chairs

  Funded Oct 26, 2020

  Thank you for your past contributions that allowed us the opportunity to purchase portable stools for students to use for outdoor observation drawing. With the additional challenges we have been faced the past few years with Covid, having the opportunity to get students outside, in the fresh air and sunshine while actively creating art has been a major benefit.

  The stools have provided students with the opportunity to move around the outdoors campus area and find a comfortable spot to sit and draw. We were able to incorporate mask breaks while lessening the instructional time that was usually being lost during those breaks. Students are able to easily grab a stool on their way out of the classroom, find a location to sit and draw and return the stools at the end of the class period. It also allowed students the chance to really student the architecture and the natural environment around the school. I recall one students sharing with me that they couldn't believe I had them outside looking at leaves to draw and how much they enjoyed it. Thank you so much for helping make a positive difference in these challenging few years.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monks

  This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 9 other donors.

• Providing Ceramic Students With Individual Art Equipment During These Unpredictable

  Funded Aug 11, 2020

  I wanted to take a moment to thank you so very much for your donation and your support in helping me provide tools/supplies for my students during this school year. With your help, I have been able to provide 100+ students with their own set of tools and supplies for this school year. Each student was provided with a plastic bin to carry their projects to and from school and a container of clay tools to use in the classroom and at home. This year has proven to be the challenge that it was expected to be with hybrid learners, full distance learners, and, currently, our school switching to temporary full remote learning. The learning setting has constantly been changing as a result but students have been able to continuously work on their assignments regardless. This would not have been possible without your donation.

  Thank you so much for helping me provide my students with the supplies they need to continue learning and creating despite all the challenges and changes that this year has brought.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monks

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 7 other donors.

• Using Art to Strengthen Math Skills

  Funded Jan 23, 2020

  First I would like to apologize for the delay in sending this thank you letter. It has been quite an interesting school year to say the least! The supplies that you graciously contributed to arrived at our school and students were thrilled to have good quality rulers, drawing compasses and circle templates to use. I started the drawing unit that focused on optical illusions and students began to create their Op Art designs with the new equipment. It may not seem like much, but having rulers with a cork backing makes such a world of difference with precision measuring so thank you so much for helping to supply my classroom with those! Due to Covid-19 and the abrupt closure of schools, we were not able to move forward with the other assignments in our unit that required further use of the equipment we received. I have attached some images of student work in progress and some of the completed Op Art assignments. I am hoping that, with the coming school year, we will be able to move forward with our lesson in the classroom and make further use of our classroom equipment. If not, thanks to you, I should have enough of these tools to lend out to students if we need to continue with any type of distance learning in the year to come.

  Thank you so much for your generosity and your contribution to the students in our school and thank you so much for supporting the arts in our community!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monks

  This classroom project was brought to life by Anonymous Arts Supporter and 9 other donors.

• ART: Bridging the Gap Between Cultures

  Funded Apr 5, 2019

  We are so very grateful for your assistance in helping us fill our classroom with studio equipment to help build our art program at our school. We were able to purchase a drill press along with various size drill bits and tools to measure the size/gauges of holes and wires. This equipment was standard tools that were previously unavailable to students to use for various projects that they will now have the opportunity to take advantage of.

  We received the drill press towards the end of the 2018-2019 school year and we put it right to use! Students were able to drill holes into sheet metal for making various jewelry items and use the gauge measuring tools to learn and use different gauged wire for various jewelry pieces and wire mobiles. In our sculpture class, students worked on a group project that was put on display in the town hall. Several students in the class had a passion for environmental awareness and they decided to make a statement about the plastic pollution problem that exists in the world right now. Students took plastic bags and wrapped them around pieces of tree branches and cut up and drill holes in recycled plastic spoons to make plastic spoon flowers to go on the tree branches. We hung the branches in the hallways of the town hall along with plastic pollution facts to help raise public awareness.

  I have attached some of the student work in progress along with some images of the plastic tree branch artwork on display in our town hall. These are all projects that would not be possible with a drill press. It seems like such a simple thing to just drill a hole in a material but something so simple really and truly opens the door for so many opportunities to create things that would otherwise not be possible.

  Thank you again for support me, our school and our students. I look forward to the start of this school year and the many ways we will be able to put these tools and equipment to good use.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Monks