Ms. Nelson's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 32

• Morning Meeting Calendar & Daily Math Activities

  Funded May 6, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding my project! Although my original project "Morning Meeting Calendar and Daily Math Activities" could not be fulfilled by the vendor, I was able to order teacher read aloud stories that tie into my language arts program! I am grateful to be able to build a classroom library to share with my students! Especially with National Geographic Readers! I now have engaging, non-fiction stories, teaching my students about animals, plants, and space. These books provide a visual field trip for my students and make learning fun!

  Again, thank YOU for supporting my students! Thank you for supporting me!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by Lakeshore Learning and 4 other donors.

• Exploring & Manipulating Letter & Vowel Sounds

  Funded Aug 10, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding my project! My students were so excited to open these boxes and see what was inside....and how quickly they could play with these new resources!

  Each day, during our ABC Bootcamp, I introduce a new alphabet letter and share the letter sound tub with my students. We identify the items in the tub and practice isolating the first sound in each word, reinforcing the ABC Bootcamp letter of the day. During small groups, students love to organize the objects and categorize the items based on the letter it represents. These tubs spark lively conversations with my students.

  During center time, students use the magnetic letters to make CVC words. Right now, the goal is for students to match my word with the magnetic letters. It's a fun game my students thoroughly enjoy!

  Again, thank you for supporting my students and me!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by Lakeshore Learning and 5 other donors.

• Effective Assessments Leads to Effective Teaching!

  Funded May 28, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding my project! The one-year subscription to ESGI online assessments and the Apple I-pad have allowed me to efficiently assess my students, provide feedback to my students, and provide parents with flashcards and games to use at home.

  ESGI has standards-aligned assessments I've used at the beginning of the school year. Something I would normally do with paper and pencil, I now have digital records. I've also been able to create my own assessments specific to my class. I can not wait for grading day because all my data is in one spot.

  While using the assessment data gathered in ESGI, I've been able to make individual sets of flashcards for each student. Since it's the beginning of the school year, we're working on uppercase and lowercase letter recognition and sounds. During conferences, I provided each family a set of individualized letter flashcards and BINGO game cards to play and practice at home. At the end of the 1st quarter, when I formally reassess my students, I will provide parents with a student progress graph, showing the growth over the first 12 weeks of school.

  Again, thank YOU for supporting my students! Thank you for supporting me! I am beyond grateful!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by Ford Drive 4 UR School and 5 other donors.

• Let's Read with BOB Books! Beginning Readers for My Scholars!

  Funded Mar 31, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding individual phonics and sight word readers for my students! They were so excited to see the boxes and all the books!

  I've already started using these readers during small groups. My students are so proud of themselves and exclaim, "Mrs. Nelson, I'm reading, I'm reading!"

  My students will return to their desks with their book, and read it when they've finished an assignment. Everyday, they ask if they can take their book home. Everyday I remind them we're still working on the story. 😉

  At the end of the school year, they will take their books home to read during the summer.

  Thank you for giving my students personal phonics and sight word books to read in class!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 8 other donors.

• Read Aloud Stories that Engage Scholars in the Writing Process

  Funded Mar 18, 2021

  Thank YOU for bringing my writing program to life with these amazing Read Aloud books! We jumped right in!

  Our writing focus this past week was stretching words. We explored "The Flashlight", a wordless book. My students, identified objects the boy was looking at using his flashlight. A student said, "The boy found apples." So we stretched out the word apples, and I wrote it on a post-it note. The goal was to build student confidence in writing words — either through inventive spelling or identifying each individual letter sound.

  I am grateful to be back in the classroom and physically working with my students. In the three weeks we've been back, I have seen steady improvement in my students' writing abilities.

  Again, thank you for these amazing Read Aloud books that will be used throughout the school year! ♥️”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 4 other donors.

• Engaging, Individual STEM Activities!

  Funded Dec 2, 2020

  Thank YOU for funding "Engaging, Individual STEM activities" for my classroom!

  I am happy to report we're returning to school for in-person learning in two weeks. I am looking forward to greeting my students!

  I can not wait to set up these individual STEM centers and watch my students explore, build, and manipulate physical materials. My students will have the opportunity to follow a blueprint to create multiple structures; use wooden planks to build various objects; and use cogs, wheels, and spindles to build bridges, homes and vehicles. These STEM activities will stretch my students' thinking, build their confidence, and work on their fine motor skills.

  Thank you for supporting DonorsChoose and helping teachers like me!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

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

• Hands-On Academic & Art Materials to Use at Home

  Funded Feb 11, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding my project and giving my scholars useful learning tools to use at home during the pandemic. My students were thrilled to receive these bags. I don't know who was more excited, my students or their parents?

  Parents are sending me pictures of their children building words with the letter tiles, illustrating pictures on the magic writing board, and creating new works of art. You've given my students the opportunity to extend their learning outside of the classroom.

  I am ecstatic to have these materials for each of my students! These materials offer unique opportunities to express themselves -- building words with tiles, writing words and sentences in their journal, writing on their magic board, and creating art projects with the construction paper, scissors, glue, crayons, and pencils.

  Thank YOU for making this all possible!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and 5 other donors.

• Hands-On Academic & Art Materials to Use at Home

  Funded Jan 28, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding my project and giving my scholars useful learning tools to use at home during the pandemic. My students were thrilled to receive these bags. I don't know who was more excited, my students or their parents?

  Parents are sending me pictures of their children building words with the letter tiles, illustrating pictures on the magic writing board, and creating new works of art. You've given my students the opportunity to extend their learning outside of the classroom.

  I am ecstatic to have these materials for each of my students! These materials offer unique opportunities to express themselves -- building words with tiles, writing words and sentences in their journal, writing on their magic board, and creating art projects with the construction paper, scissors, glue, crayons, and pencils.

  Thank YOU for making this all possible!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and 5 other donors.

• Social Emotional Learning: The Power of Read Alouds

  Funded Feb 24, 2021

  Thank YOU for gifting my students and I wonderful Social and Emotional Learning Read Aloud books! I read "The Recess Queen" by Alexis O'Neill. My students loved the illustrations, and the story led to an engaging conversation about how we should treat our classmates. We talked about "Mean Jean" and how she bullied other students, and we discussed how our actions can hurt our friends. We all agreed we needed to be more like Katie Sue, who was not intimidated by Mean Jean, and included her in playground activities.

  My students are returning to the classroom in two weeks. This will be their first experience at school. This will be their first experience working and playing with their classmates. This book and all the others will serve my students well by recognizing students' various cultures, their perspectives, and their emotions.

  From the bottom of my heart, thank YOU for funding my project!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson

  This classroom project was brought to life by Allstate Foundation and 2 other donors.

• Building Academic Confidence in a Virtual World

  Funded Jan 17, 2021

  Thank YOU for funding my Drops in the Bucket and Family Fun Pack games! My students LOVE the materials.

  While working with my small groups, I've started "Game Days" with the The Family Fun Pack. Twenty-four games at my fingertips that review 25 skills. My kids can not wait to play! I use my personal document camera that reflects the game board on my computer screen. I hold the game cards up to the camera so the students can see the pictures, words and numbers. I move their game pieces around the board. There is so much laughter and banter during the games.

  I'm using the Drops in the Bucket books during whole group. The phonics and reading skills reinforce lessons previously taught in class. I also use these materials for individual interventions.

  In January 2021, I was struck with COVID. It knocked me down for almost 5 weeks. I still lose steam in the afternoon. My apologies for not posting my letter sooner. I am grateful for your support. My students and I can not thank YOU enough!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Nelson