Past projects 5
Building a Thinking Classroom
Funded Jun 8, 2023I just want to take a minute to thank you for supporting my students and classroom. Your donation helped to purchase eight drawer systems for students to store their materials in. Their desks are less cluttered now, making transitioning from one subject to the next a lot easier. Your donation also allowed me to change an outdated chalkboard into a dry erase board. This has allowed my students to work through problems without the mess of chalk dust. It has also allowed me to see their thinking more easily. We use our whiteboards daily. My students love working together and having a space large enough to show their thinking.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Claytor
Making Math Visual
Funded Aug 7, 2023I just want to thank you again for your support of my students and "Making Math Visual." The manipulative sets that you helped me purchase have allowed my students to visually see their problem solving on their desks. This has been so important, especially for those students who struggle with "seeing" the abstract. The tools have made the abstract concrete.
The photos show how my class utilized the tools to complete beginning of the year tasks. In one of the activities, students had to follow a set of given rules to construct a model using the Base Ten Blocks. They then had to calculate the value of their model. This activity was the beginning of my students working with place value. In a second activity, students used the Pattern Blocks to recreate or create from scratch a pattern. They were then challenged to use fewer or more blocks to create the identical pattern. This helped students begin to understand that the smaller blocks were fractions of the larger blocks. In the third activity, students had to strategize, once again with the Pattern Blocks, to win Last Block Down. Again, this helped students see the fractional parts of the hexagons. In the final activity, students were given a set of clues and had to create a model using the Connecting Cubes. Problem solving at its finest.
In the future, the tools you helped provide will be used more in depth to teach place value, fractions, and geometry, along with problem solving skills.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Claytor
Recess While Social Distancing
Funded Sep 21, 2020I wanted to take a moment to say thank you for your donation that allowed me to purchase recess equipment and bags for my students. These bags are used on Tuesdays and Fridays, and these days have become my students' favorites.
When we first took the bags outside, it was like Christmas. My class was so excited to see what was inside. I thought they would use the equipment in typical ways, but instead, they started to create their own games.
Please know that your donation has gotten my class up and moving on Tuesdays and Fridays. I wish you could hear them laugh while they play. It definitely brings a smile to my face.
Thank you again.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Claytor
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose 20th Anniversary Fund and 3 other donors.Books to Mirror Students' Lives
Funded Aug 11, 2020I wanted to take a moment to tell you thank you again for donating to the diversity of our library. My students were so excited when I unveiled the books. My Hispanic and African American students smiled when they saw characters with their skin color.
One of the most important reactions I received was from one of my non-binary students. She asked if I had any books that had LGBQT characters. When I pointed to an entire section, she clapped and smiled from ear to ear.
Seeing how simple books brought about smiles on my students' faces made me wonder why I hadn't added more diverse characters a long time ago. Now my students can read about characters that represent them. Thank you again for your support.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Claytor
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 2 other donors.All Students' Voices Should Be Heard!
Funded Jun 26, 2019First of all, thank you again for funding the purchase of a Q-Ball microphone system for our classroom. Anytime we are engaged in class discussions, the Q-Ball is used.
My students first saw it sitting on my bookshelf and were very curious as to what it was. The first time we actually used it, I couldn't believe the difference it made in the number of students that wanted to participate. Having something novel to spark student engagement was such an easy way to get all my students involved. It doesn't matter if they're sitting at their desks or we're all sitting at the carpet having a conversation, hands shoot into the air to be the next one to speak.
We will continue to use the Q-Ball. And the nice thing is, it recharges itself overnight, so I don't have to worry about batteries.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Claytor