Past projects 6
Comfortable Rug For Mrs. Olson’s Students
Funded Jan 5, 2024I want to express my deepest gratitude for your generous support in helping us purchase a new rug for our classroom. This thoughtful contribution has transformed our learning environment, providing a welcoming space where my students can gather for lessons, storytime, and collaborative activities. The rug has quickly become the heart of our classroom, fostering a sense of community and belonging among the children. Every day, they eagerly sit together on the colorful, cozy rug, excited to learn and share with one another.
Your donation has made a significant difference in the educational experience of my students. The rug not only serves as a comfortable spot for them to sit but also as an engaging tool for learning. Whether we're using it for counting exercises, reading together, or discussing the day's lessons, it has enhanced their participation and enthusiasm. I am truly grateful for your kindness and for investing in the growth and development of these young learners. Thank you for making our classroom a more vibrant and inspiring place to learn.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Olson
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 9 other donors.Headphones for Math and Literacy!
Funded Sep 20, 2024Wow! My project was fully funded in a little over 36 hours! My classroom thrives thanks to your support. I know many of you are 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 10th time donors. Thank you for showing up for me and my students time after time. I truly cannot put my gratitude into words. Thank you so so much for your support.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Olson
This classroom project was brought to life by The Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation and 7 other donors.Flexible Seating for Mrs. O's Classroom
Funded Dec 2, 2020We are so excited for our flexible seating in our classroom. When students found our that we were going to have cushions, bouncy ball seats, and wobble stools they were over the moon! They were so amazed that people like you cared enough to send them their new seating options. I wish I could send you pictures of all the smiles we had that first day and every day since!
In our classroom we start every Monday by picking out our seat for the week. At the beginning students experimented with all of the different options and now most of them have their go to seat that they know works best for them. I love this because it gives them a sense of control and confidence about their ability to have a successful day in the classroom.
Next up in our classroom flexible seating options is that student will be able to pick the floor as a seating option too. I have found that some students do better when they can sprawl out on the ground or lay on their tummies. With the crazy year this has been its all about trying out different options to help our students be as successful as they can. Your donation of flexible seating has truly made this possible.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Olson
This classroom project was brought to life by FamilyAlbum and 6 other donors.Give Supplies to Mrs. Olson's Classroom
Funded Dec 4, 2019Thank you again for donating to our classroom. Your donation to our supplies has greatly increased our classroom organization. Each table in our classroom is assigned a color, and our supplies are color coded. Having more skinny markers helped me to color code our markers! All the green caps were placed on one of each marker color, so students know that they belong in the green bin! I hope to upload a photo soon so you can see how it looks! (We're a little limited to classroom access right now)
Our dry-erase pockets serve as what we call "early finishers." When a student finishes their work early, instead of coming to me to say "I'm done, now what?" They *silently* out their work away and grab an early finisher. This has helped decrease unnecessary distractions, but also motivates students to finish their work because they all want to use dry-erase! Win-Win!
Finally, the mechanical pencils! Wow, they have been a great motivator for some of my tougher kiddos. They use a token chart to earn "special supplies," and one of the supplies they really like to work for is the mechanical pencil. It has a unique shape that is really good for kiddos who need help with their grip and the colors are bright and cheerful! The kids can't get enough of them!
Thank you so much for your support. I hope to have some photos for you soon when I can get back to my classroom!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Olson
Build Mrs. Olson's Library!
Funded Oct 13, 2019Thank you again for donating to my classroom library!
We have a daily read aloud in our class and early on my read alouds were centered around appropriate classroom behavior. Many of the books in this donation helped me teach lessons about behavior. For example, we used Mo Willems' book "Should I Share My Ice Cream," to talk about sharing in the classroom and how to share. This is an engaging way to teach a skill like sharing because the book uses characters that the students are excited about. Teaching sharing by itself can be a pretty boring subject, but when you add some funny animals with silly voices, it becomes a little more interesting.
At the kindergarten level, reading is mostly about getting familiar with books and what we call "reading pictures." Our class spent time looking through these books and using the pictures in them to tell a story on their own. Now, with COVID, these books have been a vital resource for keeping my students engaged! Every day I post a read aloud on YouTube for my students to watch so I can make sure they are being read to daily. While I have recently posted LOTS of videos to YouTube, these read alouds continue to be the most watched of all!
Thank you so much for your support early this year, that has lasted all school year and will for many years to come.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Olson
Wobble Stools for Busy Bodies
Funded Oct 28, 2019Thank you again for donating to our classroom and providing our students with wobble stools. The minute the wobble stools arrived they were a HUGE hit! We spent the first month rotating through each student getting chances to use a wobble stool for the day. Unexpectedly, the wobble stools became a great way to teach following rules and directions. Students were highly motivated to keep their wobble stool for the day, but in order to do so, they had to follow the Wobble Stool Expectations! It was a great learning tool!
The wobble stools eventually transitioned to my small group table, where students would meet with me to work on something a little more specific to them. These stools are great in the small group setting, because small groups require much more sustained attention than other classroom tasks. While I worked them, many of them wobbled side to side the whole time, helping them release all the energy while remaining focused!
Finally, I'd like to share that I have one specific student who has a behavior plan and really struggles to stay involved in any classroom activity for more than a minute. He always used a wobble stool in our classroom. With many breaks, lots of incentives AND the use of a wobble stool, we were at times able to keep his attention for 3-5 minutes! The wobble stool was a huge part of his success in the classroom.
I am so grateful for your contribution to our classroom and my kiddos were too!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Olson