Mrs. Santamarina's Classroom Edit display name

Current requests

Past projects 12

• Lunar New Year Cultural Celebration

  Funded Dec 31, 2023

  Thank you for generously supporting a festive hands on cultural learning environment as we embarked on learning about the Lunar New Year! Most of the my students had never heard about the Lunar New Year, so it was wonderful to witness their excitement in learning about the event and demonstrating sensitivity to cultural traditions.

  We enjoyed reading books and completing writing projects on the various cultural practices of the celebration and language. We also created beautiful lanterns with various motifs and cultural themes. A highlight of the celebration was making ramen noodles and eating the meal together. The students especially enjoyed learning how to eat with chopsticks! Amazing!

  Thank you for making the joy of learning and celebrating possible! Each student personally thanks you for your kindness!

  Gong Xi Fa Cai!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

• Our First Chapter Book

  Funded Sep 27, 2023

  Thanks to your generous donation, my students embarked on an amazing reading

  journey into the lives of four orphaned children surviving in a boxcar! Yes, each step of this amazing journey reading "The Boxcar Children" by Gertrude Chandler Warner helped my students not only develop a love of reading, but build essential reading skills and strategies.

  These reading skills and strategies included identifying the author's purpose and central idea of the chapters with fun hands on activities. One of these activities was to create a "Tissue Box" book summary and report. My students said it was the best assignment they have ever completed in class!

  We also enjoyed taking turns reading with expression and fluency in the classroom and buddy reading outside on sunny days. A highlight for the students and parents was being able to read at home together!

  Your kindness has brought a wonderful reading culture in my class and at home that will remain for years to come! Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

  This classroom project was brought to life by Unilever and one other donor.

• Superlative Readers

  Funded May 18, 2023

  It has been delightful to see the love of reading develop in the children through the reading of their first chapter book "Charlotte's Web". The children have devoured each word, sentence, paragraph, and chapter with enthusiasm and anticipation! Each day they beg me to start the day with the reading of a chapter from "Charlotte's Web" and then they look forward in taking the book home to read with their family.

  The students have so connected with the characters and plot, that it has fostered a great interest in learning about literature styles, vocabulary, and genres. In fact, I see the transfer of the vocabulary and figurative language learned in the story unfold in their conversations and creative writing. Amazing!

  Your generosity has been instrumental in developing a love of reading that will last a lifetime! It is the gift that will continue to flourish! Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

• Lunar New Year Celebration!

  Funded Dec 20, 2022

  Thanks to your generosity, our future generation of leaders experienced an amazing cultural event as they celebrated the Lunar New Year 2023! Your kindness enable them to dive into cultural traditions by experimental learning!

  For two weeks, we learned about the Asian cultures, foods, clothing, and cultural impact. We created lanterns and learned various words and phrases in Mandarin and Cantonese. We strengthened our reading skills and strategies by reading books and researching topics of interest. Furthermore, we had an amazing celebration by making ramen noodles in a crockpot and eating them with chop sticks! It was so much fun!

  As we reflected on all the learning that took place, the children told me that they will never forget the wonderful time they had as they celebrated the Lunar New Year 2023...neither will I! Thank you for making this possible!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

  This classroom project was brought to life by Panda Express and 2 other donors.

• Our First Chapter Book

  Funded Aug 31, 2022

  What a beautiful journey my class has experienced as they have read through their first chapter book: "The Boxcar Children". The children have devoured each word, sentence, paragraph, and chapter with enthusiasm and joy! Each day they have looked forward in reading a chapter in class and then taking the book home to read with their family.

  The students have so connected with the characters and plot of this book, that it has fostered a great interest in learning about literature styles, vocabulary, and genres. My students even created a "Boxcar Children" Tissue Box Book Report. This has made reading even more engaging and memorable!

  Your generosity has been instrumental in developing a love of reading chapter books that will last a lifetime! It is the gift that will continue to grow! Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Allstate Foundation and one other donor.

• Cultivating Skilled Readers

  Funded Aug 10, 2022

  There were shouts of joy and sunshine smiles as I gave each student their very own magazine! Most of my students had never seen or held a magazine. They flipped through the pages and all that could be heard was oohs and aahs! All my students were excited to begin reading the articles. They were even more elated when they learned that they could take the magazines home in order to read with their parents and caregivers.

  Receiving your generous gift of Scholastic Magazine arrived at the perfect time! Many students entered this school year with a reading deficiency and lack of interest in reading. However, all that has changed because of Scholastic Magazine. The high interest articles have enabled me to teach important reading strategies that build fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. As I display the articles on the Promethean Board, the students are able to interact with the text at their desk and be fully engaged in the reading process.

  Thank you for bringing the joy of reading to my students! We are forever grateful!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

  This classroom project was brought to life by Bill Gates and one other donor.

• Our First Chapter Book

  Funded Jan 27, 2022

  Your generous gift of providing each of my students with his/her very own chapter books has created a beautiful and vibrant reading community! The beautiful engagement began the moment the children enthusiastically put their reading skills to practice. The students eagerly surveyed, predicted and annotated the text.

  Furthermore, since the chapter books are of high interest and appropriate reading level, students are taking ownership of their reading and learning! In fact, students are spurring one another to reread and give evidence for their responses.

  This vibrant reading community is flowing from the classroom into each household. Parents are taking notice of their child's new love of reading! Their once reluctant reader is now reading to them and siblings! Thank you for fostering a life long love of reading in children!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

• Resilient Readers

  Funded Jul 26, 2021

  The moment I gave each student their very own magazine, their faces brightened like rays of sunshine and laughter roared in the class! My students had never seen or held anything like it and asked what it was called. They also asked why the pages were so soft and smooth to the touch. They commented how beautiful the pictures were and wanted to begin reading right away!

  Receiving your generous gift of StoryWorks 3 magazine came at the perfect time! Many students entered this school year with a reading deficiency and lack of interest in reading. However, all that has changed because of StoryWorks 3. The high interest articles have enabled me to teach important reading strategies that build fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. As I display the articles on the Promethean Board, the students are able to interact with the text at their desk and be fully engaged in the reading process.

  Thank you for bringing the joy of reading to my students! We are forever grateful!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina

• Resilience and Enthusiasm with StoryWorks, Jr.

  Funded Nov 10, 2020

  I wish you could have heard the shouts of joy and see the smiles behind the masks of my students when I first handed each student their very own magazine! Most had never been exposed to a magazine, so with great delight, their eyes were glued to each colorful article and learning began to blossom!

  StoryWorks 3 has created a robust and resilient environment for learning during these difficult COVID months. The digital resources have been instrumental in maintaining the students' focus while allowing me to teach fundamental reading skills like identifying main idea, cause and effect, and vocabulary development. As I project the articles on the Promethean Board, the children are safely interacting with the text at their desk or digitally at home.

  Another great impact in using StoryWorks 3 has been in differentiating instruction. The reading kit has been a great tool in accomplishing this through close reading and fluency activities. Learning is blossoming thanks to your generosity. Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Santamarina