Past projects 19
Box Us In, Please!
Funded Oct 23, 2018Well, we've done it, you and I and the students. We got through the big, annual Holiday show and the Thanksgiving Feast Spectacular. Now it's time to put away the dance shoes for a short break. Putting everything away used to be my nemesis. Now, it is a joy! You, dear donors, have truly made my life so much easier. You have made my dance room look great. It Is neat and uncluttered. There are no boxes falling apart in my hands. No disintegrated pieces of cardboard to be swept up. Every pair of shoes has it's own box. Each box has it's own place. The boxes are arranged in size order with the size of the tap shoes inside neatly labeled and easily seen. Therefore, every child knows where his tap shoes belong. I wish the rest of my life was this organized. (But that would be another project all together). When we begin again in the new year, everything will be ready to go. No more trying to figure out which shoes are where. The ballet slippers also have their own special place. Thanks to the generosity of my donors, coming to work in my dance room every day now brings a huge smile to my face and the faces of all my students. Somehow, having the room organized makes the dancing better, the steps easier, to learn, and the structure of the class easier to accept. For all these reasons, I am deeply thankful to each of you for thinking enough of me and my kids to donate to this project.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
Tapping The Future
Funded Mar 26, 2016Dear Donors,
I said it before, and I'll say it again. What amazing friends and family I have!
My students were so excited as I opened each new box. All the items came separately, and at different times. I hadn't told the kids about the things I had asked for, in case I didn't get the donations I didn't want them to be disappointed. So, as each item came in, it was like Christmas. It was, for me as if I had given a list to Santa and he (you) fulfilled my every wish.
You gave my kids everything they needed. When we needed tap shoes, not only for class but for a tap performance dealing with the history of Blues and Swing in America for the parents, there was your gift of new tap shoes, right on time! When we needed phones to make our production of Annie more realistic and period correct, there were two different types of phones. You bought us a "modern", 1930s style phone for the rich Oliver Warbucks. He would have every new technology of the time. The orphanage, on the other hand, would have a very old style candlestick phone from a previous decade or so. You bought us both. And then there was Drake, the butler, so handsome in his brand new tuxedo. Very sharp! And then, at end of the show, comes the time to clean up and put everything away. This year, for the first time, I have new closets to store all the costumes. That made my life a lot easier. It is much better to hang clothes that to try to fold everything and fit suits and dresses into boxes.
The new tap and ballet shoes will be worn by many, many students for years to come. The Annie props will also be used again and again if they are appropriate for another show. If not, we will be doing Annie again in a few years. The closets are already almost full of costumes. They are perfect because they have wheels and can be moved wherever we need to store them.
I have a hard time thinking of words to thank you for caring about me and my kids. You are very, very special people.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
Monitor Us!
Funded Mar 10, 2016Dear Donors,
Your generous gift has given my kids the ability and more importantly, the confidence to go on stage and shine!
Just as we were heavily into rehearsals, about the time when everything seemed to be bogging down, when nothing seemed to be going right, our new speaker arrived. There was much excitement as I opened the box. (I hadn't told the students about my quest for something to help their performances. I didn't want to hurt already shaky egos.)
This year I had kids that I really think will and should go on and continue singing and acting. This speaker that you have so generously given to us has shown them that they do truly have the talent to sing in front of an audience.
You probably do not realize it, but you not only gave some money to help some kids, but you also gave some kids a new possibility, perhaps a new direction for their future. This cannot be taken lightly. This simple speaker could be the opening of a new beginning for a child that never understood what performing meant. This child could now realize a potential he never even knew he had. All because he could now hear the music that he is supposed to be singing to clearly. After our production of Annie, that speaker has already been used for a kindergarten show, and for 5th grade graduation. PS 310 will get many, many years of constant use of that little speaker. I thank you very, very much.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
This classroom project was brought to life by #BestSchoolDay and 5 other donors.Scenery Is the Thing, You See!
Funded Feb 29, 2016In these times of economic struggle, where every cent counts and every organization is counting everyone of those cents, I was so very lucky to have generous donors like you. You made my life just a small bit easier. I used your donation of foam boards to create scenery for our production of Annie. PS 310 does not have an art teacher. My art skills are limited at best. And yet, there I was creating a mansion, an orphanage and a radio station; all by gluing, one by one, 8"x10"papers that the computer teacher had printed out for me. This created scenery that was actually good enough to be seen by the most critical of audiences - little kids. The scenery actually was quite realistic looking since we took pictures from the Internet that exactly matched the look we were going for. This made the kids feel as if they were in a professional production. I also used the drop cloths that you so generously bought as covers for the orphans' beds. Those beds were made by strapping milk crates together. Three milk crates make one orphan bed very nicely. Unfortunately, milk crates hurt your back when you lie on them. in order for my orphans not to complain, or be hurt, I covered each bed with the drop cloths and made them into bed covers. That worked. The beds looked good and were comfortable enough for the girls to lie on them. Now that the show is over, The scenery boards will be reused next year, and for many years to come. All we have to do is glue new pictures over the old ones. We will do that until the boards are too warped to be used any more. Then, we will open the box since we still have a bunch of boards left!!! I therefore thank for this year's show and for helping me with many future shows as well!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
No Glass Slippers, But...
Funded Apr 12, 2014In these times of economic struggle, where every cent counts and every organization is counting everyone of those cents, I was so very lucky to have a generous donor like you. You made my life just a small bit easier. I used your donation to supplement my stock of ballet slippers. Over the years, I have collected or bought ballet slippers in many sizes to accommodate all the kids in my school. I truly thought I had enough for every child, both boys and girls, in the cast of our production of Cinderella. Imagine my shock when, during dress rehearsal, about 10 kids came on stage barefoot. Apparently from the time I had tried on the shoes until the time of the show, many feet had grown so much that they no longer fit into the shoes that had been assigned to them. I was in a panic. How could I get shoes to fit and in a hurry? I simply did not have the budget for this at this late time in the rehearsal schedule. When I posted this on my Donor's Choose site, I really didn't think I would get any response so quickly. But, almost before I was done, there you were. You were the savior who said you dealt with shoes. Amazing! We fitted and refitted all 10 students with new ballet slippers, and even added 2 more that also had an issue. I also remembered, as I was writing my request, that I had always been short one pair of boy's tap shoes. I added that as part of my request, and you even bought those.
Your generosity towards the students of PS 310 will have very lasting effects. Of course the shoes were a completion of the costumes for Cinderella, but now they are a completion of my stock of dance shoes. I truly believe every child deserves a chance to try things he/she might never get the chance to try. Therefore, every child I teach learns at least some basic ballet and some basic tap. Your shoes will be worn over and over by many students to come.
You have filled some empty holes in my collection I didn't even realize I had and I cannot thank you enough.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
The Magic of the Theatre
Funded Mar 23, 2014In these times of economic struggle, where every cent counts and every organization is counting everyone of those cents, I was so very lucky to have generous donors like you. You made my life just a small bit easier. I used your donation of yards and yards of orange fabric and glue to create a coach. As you probably know, Cinderella arrives at the ball to meet the prince in a coach that her fairy godmother magically created from a pumpkin. PS 310 does not have an art teacher. My art skills are limited at best. And yet, there I was creating not only art, but a magical coach that was good enough to be seen by the most critical of audiences - little kids. After months of rehearsals with the cast pushing a cart that was falling apart, I stayed late for about a week to create a coach. The reaction of the cast to the coach when it was finally finished, was delight. At least this coach stayed upright and looked fairly round. Then I glued on gold bows and we were all set! With a flashing strobe light, a "floating" fairy godmother and 4 dancing white "horses", the effect was perfect as the coach came onstage. When it was time for the coach to exit with Cinderella sitting inside, she was able to lean her head out of the window and wave to the fairy godmother as she set off to the palace. Perfect, and all because of you!!!! Now that the show is over and we no longer need the coach, the magic will continue. I plan on taking the fabric off the coach and saving it. Next year something else will be made of orange fabric. Your donation will have a lasting affect on the theatrical lives of the students at PS 310 for many years to come and I thank you very much.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
This classroom project was brought to life by 100 Women in Hedge Funds and 4 other donors.We've Got the Rhythm...
Funded Sep 24, 2013I had not told my students of my efforts to get them a drum set. I didn't want them to be disappointed if I could not get it. Therefore when the boxes arrived at the school there was much excitement and curiosity. Of course, I knew what was in the boxes and what was in store for the kids. A small problem; the drum set came to the school in a few boxes and it needed to be put together, hopefully by someone who knew what he was doing. To the rescue, a former student who now works as a custodian. This was turning out to truly be a "whole school" project. The students were not allowed into the room until the entire set was put together and placed where it needed to be. Then, the big reveal! "oohs" and "aahs", and screams and cheers!
The drum set is a beautiful, striking red. It really attracts the eye. Everyone that comes into the room is drawn directly to it. Drums, by nature seem to attract everyone to beat them. No one can walk past a set of drums without, at the very least, giving them a little tap. These are no different. But, some of the kids have begun to really "get down to business". Already we have some kids that are really getting the hang of keeping a steady beat. They are all finding it is much harder then it looks and much harder than they thought it would be.
We will be using these drums in our annual Spring Concert. This year the theme will be "The Rhythm's Gonna Get You". The drum set will be the backbone of the show. The singers, tap dancers and the saxophonists have always had to be able to meld together to make a pleasing performance. Now we have to add a set of drums. Not only drums, but the "heartbeat" of the show. It is a real challenge for the students and for me. But, I, no we are all LOVING IT! They are all learning how not to perform as individuals, but rather as a unified group all working toward the same goal - a fabulous performance set to music of their own making.
I think the addition of the drum set to our music and dance classes has given a new energy and excitement to the program. In this year of testing, the children need diversions more and more. With our saxophones, our tap dancers, and our new drums, we are well on the way to a fun, successful, albeit loud year.
My students and I all are extremely grateful to all of you for your generosity and support. Thank you very much.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
Time to Join the 21st Century
Funded May 16, 2012I am sure each of you has read of the difficulties every teacher must face in the classroom today. It is so refreshing to know that somewhere out there, are people who care so deeply about the children of NYC, that they have selflessly donated to my project. You have no idea the excitement that your gift has aroused in my dance room. Although I received the IPod and speaker at the end of last year, I did not use, or even open it until the beginning of this school year. With a flourish, I began the year stating that "Something new has been added to our dance class". All the "Oohs and ahs" made my day! During the summer, I downloaded hundreds of songs on to my new little gadget, so I was ready for the first day of school! No longer must I search through all my Cds, or worse my old vinyl records to find just the right song to dance to. It is right there, stored and ready to go. What a pleasure. Of course, I will still drag out the old records every once in a while. The older kids love them, and the younger kids have absolutely no idea what they are. When we listen to vinyl records, the kids are constantly asking me what is that noise during the music. It is, of course, scratches on the records. No more! Now, only beautiful clear music emanates from the new speaker. If you set out to make a teacher's life a bit easier, you certainly succeeded. For this and simply the fact that you care as much as you do, I am so very thankful.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
Sweltering in The Dance Room
Funded Mar 14, 2012Your generous donation to my dance room of a portable air conditioner has simply made my life and the lives of all my students more bearable. I have already seen a marked change in the energy levels of my students as they enter my room.
In the Fall and Winter my room is always a place that everyone wants to be. But, as the warm weather begins we all wilt. No one actually wants to dance. No one wants to even move more than they have to.
Wait, did I say no one wants to move, I meant to say no one wanted to move.
You have changed everything! Now dancing is the rage! Movement is a go. We plan and choreograph, we sing and we frolic. My place is the fun place again!
I have been teaching dance in my school for, literally decades. In all that time, the heat has dictated the activities of the end of the year. This year I have students planning their own talent show, the Student Council meets in my room and the band sets up there as well. All of these groups have you to thank for making my room a pleasant place to be.
It is inspiring to me that even in this economy there are people out there who care for kids that they will never meet. I have made sure that they understand your selflessness. This is a wonderful lesson for them.
To those of you that I know/knew so many years ago, I am especially grateful and touched.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
A Holey Parachute Just Won't Hold Air
Funded Sep 10, 2011I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude at your generosity. It is so heartening to know that there are caring people out there who still value the education of our city's poorest children.
Your gift of a new parachute has gone a long way to making school a more enjoyable place to be. I work in a school that is overcrowded. My room is, at times, the only place for the students to be able to move about freely. I have already used the new parachute with every grade that I teach (from PreK to 5th). The exercises that I do with the parachute help increase the balance, rhythm and spatial awareness of each child. They don't realize that that are learning because they are having so much fun. I believe this is one of the best ways to educate children.
The fact that you care enough about the children of NY to donate to my project is overwhelming to me. Without people like you, my job as a teacher would be infinitely more difficult, and the job of being a student would be much less fun!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Morganstern
This classroom project was brought to life by Seth Sprague Foundation and 4 other donors.