Bring A+ School Resources to My Title 1 Classroom!

Funded Oct 14, 2019

The generosity shown by your gift has given my students so many new resources to enjoy. Most of my students came into my room this year with very limited exposure to books and other learning tools. Some of them have no one at home who will read to them, due to their own illiteracy or interest. With your gift of a complete library of assorted books, my students have loved sitting and sifting through the pages. Even though some are not yet reading, their interests have sparked and they are now even checking out books from our school library to take home and share. Maybe they can start reading to their families!

Kindergarten now is not what is used to be. No longer are the days of finger-painting, nap-taking or playing ring-around-the-rosy. Five and six-year-olds are now expected to sit for expended periods of time, use their brains for critical thinking and are tested weekly, sometimes more often! It's overwhelming for some little ones who are not yet ready for the rigor of a regular classroom setting. I believe the books and some of the other tools you provided has given them something to look forward to doing, a break for their brains and an escape into other fantastical scenarios within the books.

I want to share that I one little girl in particular who was struggling from day one to nail down sounds that correspond with letters and how to decode easy words. Once she saw beautiful new books with pictures, she desperately wanted to learn how to read. She strives daily to be my book helper, always raises her hand to answer questions about the setting, the characters and the story details. I owe her interest to having books in the classroom. She loves to bring me books and share the story with me, and even points out words she sounded out and learned on her own.

I can't thank you enough for your support in my classroom. My students will forever have the memories of the feeling, the visuals and even the smell of opening those books from their first experience in school. I know it has sparked a love for reading in a few of them...that alone is a true success!”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Baez