Past projects 23
Charge My Laptops, Please
Funded Mar 27, 2018Thank you so much for investing in our children's future. Having the charging station in the classroom is sigh of relief. Our school has several after school programs, and they utilize the classrooms. There has been many times that I have walked into my classroom and they destroyed several of my student's belongs. I had to take pictures of what they did and send it to the principal. My "babies" are so overjoyed with the arrival of the charging station, that they are so overprotective. I have a technology helper and he makes sure the lock is locked every afternoon. Also, my students that are in the after school program, tell the other students not to touch something or they come to me the next day and "report" what the other students were doing in my classroom.
Having this charging station will protect my 5 laptops that the students use everyday to help them close their learning gap.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viera
This classroom project was brought to life by Ripple.Listening Pleasure for You Alone!
Funded Mar 7, 2018Let's begin with, I don't have the children put the volume down anymore!
Every day, a group of children go on a very limited amount of computers I have in the classroom and they work on their learning program. The main purpose of this learning program is to have the students listen to a program teach the material to help catch them up to 5th-grade concepts. And, I was ALWAYS telling them to put the volume down, so they wouldn't disturb the people around them. Oh, I felt so bad telling them to do that! They would get real close to the screen so they were closer to the speaker (I'll include a picture of them trying to listen to the program) in order to listen to the tutorial.
Now, "my babies" are free to listen to the program at the level that is most comfortable to them and there's NO need to come to me and say, "I can't hear it, Mrs. Viera."
Thank you so much again! I can't express the joy and excitement you have brought into my student's academic learning lives.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viera
This classroom project was brought to life by Verizon and one other donor.With a Laptop at Hand, My Learning Gap Goes Away
Funded Mar 7, 2018When I read the email that the laptops were on the way, I told my students I had a surprise for them. They started clapping when I told them and one walked over to me and gave me a high-five. Another student said, "This is so exciting that someone thought about us!"
During guided reading, one of my stations is for the students to go on the computer and complete a lesson from their learning program. And, I just didn't have enough computers to have the entire group on at the same time in order to complete their lessons. I was asking another teacher, every day, if I could use her laptops in order for my students to access the program. I started to feel like I was imposing and I knew at that point that my students deserved their own set of laptops.
I-Ready is a program that helps a student close their learning gap. It begins with a diagnostic test and it determines which skills they have mastered and which skills they are missing in order to function on grade level. Through a systematic approach, there is a tutorial that teaches them the skills at the level they are on (some are on a 1st-grade reading/math level), then it's followed by lessons that are kid friendly and finally they are quizzed on the material. The children enjoy this program a lot and if the child completes 45 minutes of math lessons and 45 minutes of reading lessons a week, you start seeing a difference in their understanding.
Knowing that these laptops are theirs, they grab a laptop when they finish their classwork and start another lesson. Besides using them as an Early Finisher, they also want to come up at lunchtime and work on their lessons. Now, half the class is asking if they can come upstairs. It's so exciting seeing children excited about learning.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viera
This classroom project was brought to life by Verizon and one other donor.Guided Reading Books
Funded Jul 28, 2016I have begun reading the books with the students, and I can already see interest sparking. To give you a peek into our classroom, I wanted to share some plans I have for these books. Some of the strategies I have planned with Marvin Redpost: Class President, will be finding connections in the story to events they have experienced in real life, seen or heard about it via TV or radio, or read about it in another book. This would help the children understand and connect to the story for a deeper understanding of the story. Another skill will be learning how to ask questions in order to make sense of the story. Some open ended questions I have for the children to answer to practice these strategies are:
1.) What actions did Mrs. North make that helped you understand her as a character in this story?
2.) Did you make any connections with any of the characters in this chapter? 3.) How does making connections help you understand the story
When I prepare for reading in my classroom, I must utilize the time very wisely. With so many children coming into my class with a reading level lower than grade level, I give them time to read. After much consideration for the chosen books, I wanted the children to spend the time reading "just right" books. This way there was no major challenges with vocabulary just understanding the explicit teaching of the reading strategies and skills followed by meaningful tasks. I also provide time for my students to engage in authentic talk about their books. Finally, I test the students to guide my instruction so that I can help their reading grow.
I can tell that the children are enjoying the books. There's a group of children that have begun reading Hatchet in a Literature Circle and they find themselves reading the book when they're not supposed to be reading. The main character is from a big city- just like them- and his pilot has a heart attack and crashes into an Alaskan wilderness. He must survive in the wild until he gets rescued. So, needless to say, the plot is very interesting and they tell me, "Please, Mrs. Viera one more chapter."”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viera