Ms. Castillo's Classroom Edit display name

Current requests

Past projects 9

• The Wonderful World of Reading!

  Funded Dec 30, 2022

  My students and I, are very grateful for your kind donation. My students are young leaners who enjoys read-aloud and looking at books independently. In our current unit of study, children have been learning about how to care for themselves and others. They have been exploring different text titles and creating art projects using different art materials.

  These books supports some of the lessons and activities about this unit, to promote language development, vocabulary, and spark children's curiosity. I also displayed some of the books in each center of the classroom, so the children can read during center time. For example, the book "Mouse Shapes," is displayed in the math center.

  One of my student love the alphabet and counting. He has been enjoying reading the books, "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom", "The Alpabet Book", and "Mouse Count." When he reads the book, "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom", he takes the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree, and puts the letters on the tree as he looks at the book.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

• Little Explorers

  Funded Sep 29, 2022

  We are very grateful for your kind donations to our project. The children were very happy with these new addition to our classroom. The children loved the doll house and the accessories, it is one of our learning centers. The storage containers are being used to store legos and blocks.

  In our current Exploration unit of study, the children are investigating different buildings in our community, the doll house will be use to supplement lessons and activities because houses are part of buildings in our community.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

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

• The Places You'll Go in Center Time!

  Funded Sep 29, 2022

  Thank you for your kind donations to this project! The children were very happy with these new materials for the learning centers. My first microwave play set, the newborn baby doll, the school bus, the fire truck, and the career hats were a great addition to the block and dramatic play centers to support the children's imaginary play.

  The lullaby favorites CD is used in the classroom to provide soothing music as a background for rest time and slow-motion activities.

  The caterpillar to butterfly plush will be used in the spring when we introduce the unit about the Life Cycle of a Butterfly. The healthy teeth books and the super smile play set will be used in February to celebrate National Children's Dental Health Month and to teach and promote the benefits of good oral health to children.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

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

• Our Future Leaders

  Funded Sep 29, 2022

  Thank you for the resources! The children were very excited about the new materials for our learning centers. These resources are being used to support our 3K Exploration Curriculum.

  The dentist's play set will be used during our "Care" unit of study to teach the children about the importance of oral health, in celebration of National Children's Dental Health Month. The alphabet tree and letter props were used to introduce the alphabet letters to the students. The potato head was a great resource during the five senses unit of study, and The Snowy Day board book was read to the children to supplement our current lessons and activities about winter.

  The butterfly life specimen set will be used in the spring when we introduce to the students the unit about the Life Cycle of a Butterfly.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

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

• Learning Is Fun!

  Funded Sep 7, 2022

  Thank you for the contributions made to our 3K classroom. My students were so happy when they saw all the new materials, they helped us unpacked. The potato heads were used as a supplement to support our Exploration unit lessons about the five senses. Children used the potato heads to explore, identify, and name the five senses.

  The Animals and Nature from Around the World Posters, the Creature Peeper, the Six Mighty Magnets, and the Desert Hothouse were a great addition to our growing science center. After we introduced the science center to the children, we added these science materials for the children to explore. We also had a science mini lesson on plating to create the Desert Hothouse, so the children can watch it grow over time.

  We are planning to use the LEGO DUPLO doctor visit, to support our next Exploration unit about care.

  Thank you again for supporting all the wonderful activities that we plan for our young learners each day.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

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

• From Caterpillar to Butterfly

  Funded Jul 6, 2022

  These resources gave my 3K classroom a head start this school year. When my students saw the new toys, they were curious about exploring the oval xylophone, the rhythm sticks, and the maracas. During music and movement, they take turns playing these musical instruments because they all want to use it.

  In our current unit of study "Our Community," the children are learning about the different learning centers and how to play appropriately with the toys in each center. We are using the "Nuts and Bolts," "Tube Construction," and "Connecting Balls," to teach them about some of the things that they can create with these manipulative.

  We are going to introduce the science center with a lesson title, "Scientist Tools." We are going to display the magnetic wands, the butterfly life cycle specimen, the crystal prism scopes, and the jumbo eye droppers, for them to explore while learning about the different tools that scientists use.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

  This classroom project was brought to life by General Motors and 3 other donors.

• Learning Adventure in 3K

  Funded Mar 4, 2022

  My students and I are very grateful for your donations to our project. My 3K classroom is not just the first 3K classroom in my school, but also, it was our first year. When this 3K classroom was opened in September 2021, we didn't have a lot of materials to start the school year. When I gave the great news to the children about the new toys that were coming, they shouted in excitement.

  The newborn baby doll and the stroller was a great addition to the dramatic play center during the exploration unit of study about "Care." Children were learning about how to care for self and others. We turned the dramatic play center into a pediatrician's office. The children were pretending to be doctors checking the newborn baby doll. The used the stroller to carry the baby dolls around.

  In our current exploration unit of study, the children are learning about our classroom community. To support this unit, we are using the materials donated to teach the children how to share and play with the toys appropriately.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

  This classroom project was brought to life by American Federation of Teachers.

• Happy New School Year!!

  Funded Dec 15, 2019

  As part of our first grade curriculum, every month we introduce to students an author of the month, so students can get a feel for their favorite authors, explore different writing style, and celebrate the work of a writer. We first read their biography to learn more about them, and then as a class, we create a chart to capture the most important things we learned about the author, including their inspiration for writing their stories.

  Over the course of the weeks, we read and talk about the author's books, share students responses, encourage students to think about the characters, setting, illustrations, writing style, and similarities and differences among all their books.

  Students engaged in shared reading (Interactive reading in which students join in reading a book, guided and supported by the teacher), independent reading, and buddy reading throughout the week. These reading strategies focus on building reading skills, vocabulary, and fluency. It allows students to develop a love for reading by enjoying books that they might not be able to read on their own, and support struggling readers.

  Students enjoy these books not only in the classroom, but also at home. They carry these books in their book baggies to continue reading at home, and then draw and write about the characters, setting, and events. My students enjoy reading, especially in the classroom because they get to use pillows and stuff animals while reading their favorite titles.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

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

• Magical Learning Adventure!

  Funded Dec 30, 2019

  Thank you very much for your kind donation to our classroom. My students are going to be very happy when I share with them that we are getting a new rug, just as much as I am. Thank you for making this item from our wish list a reality. We are going to have so much fun using it.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Castillo

  This classroom project was brought to life by Kaplan Early Learning Company and 2 other donors.