Look! We Are Independent Learners

Funded Mar 24, 2012

It was so heartwarming to see my students utilize the centers you provided to further their learning. From the minute I showed them the box full of centers that came in the mail, they couldn't wait to start using them.

As you can imagine, they had their favorites. Amongst them were the Rhyming Sorting Houses and the Rhyming Cookie Jars. Rhyming was an area that my students were really struggling with, and these two centers allowed them to practice this skill in a fun manner. When I assessed them at the end of the school year, they were able to rhyme, not only in English, but also in Spanish, since this is a transferable skill. They also loved all the Science centers, especially since some of them included art, and hands-on-activities. One of my students, who has ADHD, would choose The Plants Science Center almost daily. It seemed to soothe him to make art work with the different parts of the plant. During our Open House he took his mom and his brother directly to the area where his art work was posted. I was amazed at how he was able to not only identify the parts of the plants, but also their functions. Another area that my students were struggling with was sequencing. I used the Life Cycles Science Center to help them with this concept. We had already studied the life cycle of the butterfly. This center helped them transfer what they already knew about butterflies and apply it to other creatures and their life cycles.

The first thing I told my students when we received the centers was that someone who did not know them cared enough about their learning to buy them all of these amazing centers. Since then, they were very careful to not misplace any pieces or damage the centers in any way. They were as grateful as I am. They were also very excited to know that if we took care of the centers, their little brothers and sisters would get to use them when they came to my class next year, or the year after that. So you see Mr. Duncan, you have helped many children and will continue to help them for years to come. Thank you very much for your generosity and kindness. ”

With gratitude,

Ms. Tagle