Past projects 4
Unplugging from Gadgets and Plugging into Books!
Funded Oct 4, 2014Believe it or not, we are half way through our school year! There is no doubt that working with "tweenagers" on a daily basis makes the days and weeks go by quickly and slowly all at the same time! Regardless, I continue to love helping students develop their literacy skills so that they can succeed in any and all reading and writing tasks required of them to achieve their goals beyond middle and high school.
Your generosity a few months ago supported my work and helped supply my students with nearly 75 new books of high interest that have been very popular! "The Maze Runner" series by James Dashner has piqued the interest of many of my students who had already mastered the Hunger Games and Divergent books and were ready for a new 'dystopian society' series, while the "What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions" book by Randall Monroe is regularly found in the hands of my engineers and scientists (you know, the students who already question and think of things even I haven't thought of before as an adult!) Right now, I have two students who are on a waiting list for the book "Wonder" which was also purchased through our Donorschoose project. The rounded page corners and covers of many of the books are proof they are handled and read regularly. It. Is. AWESOME.
One of the reading assessments we do at the beginning of the year is called the Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI). It's a computer-based test that asks students to read paragraphs and answer a variety of questions to test their comprehension and inferring skills. It also computes each student's reading level in number form. In September, my students averaged a score of 902 (goal = 1100). In January, students took the SRI again, to help me identify students' mid-year achievement/reading level. This time around, my students' average score was 991, an increase of 89 points. Sure, school helps :), but students having access to multiple high-interest books promotes students' literate lives and makes a difference in their overall confidence which, in turn, often transfers to their reading achievement.
In a world that is increasingly digital, reading a book (like, with two covers and paper pages that get turned with your fingers) has become less and less popular. Thank you for donating to our project to ensure our kids "unplug" every now and then with books they are eager to read! My heart is so appreciative of people who support public education and the literacy skills of the future generation!
P.S. - I typically propose one project a year, but if you are looking to donate again before this school year is over, my colleague, Mrs. Ault, has a great project posted that she is hoping to get funded: http://www.donorschoose.org/project/swaying-our-way-through-the-school-day/1462422/”
With gratitude,
Ms. Bongers
Hoping to Get Doc'd - in a Good Way!
Funded Oct 8, 2013Our principal hand-delivered the cardboard box with our beautiful new document camera during 7th hour just days after our project was funded. I couldn't believe how quickly we received the goods! I had already told my students that we'd be getting a new doc cam because amazing donors like you funded it. When our principal arrived, my students knew exactly what it was and they were like, "Look! Miss B! It's the document camera! Can we open the box? Can we see it? Can we set it up?" They were very, very excited, and so was I. It was like Christmas in October.
With a document camera like the one we got, I needed to have our district technology administrators download software onto my computer before it would work. This process took two long days, and each day my students asked, "Is it ready? Is it set up yet? Can we use it today?" All I could do at this point was show them what it looked like and how it adjusted and moved in ways our old doc camera never could. You would have thought they were watching a fireworks show with the sounds of amazement that came out of their mouths.
Finally the day arrived, and it was all set up and ready. I showed students many of the updated features, like the light, the zoom features, the rotation capabilities... The clarity of the picture is phenomenal. In my 7th graders' words, "Whoooaa... that's like, so clear now." We use the doc cam every day. I highlight text to support my thinking to model for students my thinking process. Students come up to share different sections of their writing and identify strengths and areas for growth with one another. The greatest thing is that we learn together - instantly - all because of our new doc cam. It is an essential tool in our learning process that just got easier and clearer because of your donation.
We are more grateful than words in this letter can explain. Thank you for your generosity, for supporting education, and for believing that all kids (and teachers) deserve quality resources in their classrooms.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Bongers
Bookin' It With Bucky!
Funded Mar 13, 2012I cannot thank you enough for your generous donation towards our Bookin' It With Bucky project. Because of your generosity, the number of lower leveled books available to my fourth graders who are reading below grade level was doubled! Students used these books during independent reading and during guided reading. The look on their eyes when they saw all the new titles was simply awesome!
At a time when the economy is struggling, I appreciate you valuing education and investing your own money into the literacy of our kids. I smiled extra wide every time one of my kiddos said, "Miss B, can I pick a Bucky book?" High-interest books about animals, careers, space, extreme sports, and famous people that are written at a lower level make my lowest readers WANT to pick up books because they can actually read them!
Now that it's the end of the school year and many of my reading assessments are done, I'm happy to report that 87% of ALL the students in my classroom increased at least one grade level (if not more) from the beginning of the year to the end. Even my lowest reader, who started fourth-grade at a first-grade reading level is now exiting fourth-grade reading at a mid-second grade level. One of the reasons he was able to make such great gains is because he was always able to find books in our room that he could read 24/7. Thank you again!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Bongers
It's TIME - Now We Just Need the Clocks!
Funded Jan 3, 2012This is just a note of my appreciation for your donation that contributed to the purchase of 3 new sets of clocks for our fourth- and fifth-grade classrooms. The clocks have been used within our classrooms and in our computer lab when we do activities related to finding elapsed time. Since our math block is at the same time for both classrooms at each grade level, we never really had enough clocks for students in different classes to be using the clocks at the same time. Now, with the multiple sets of clocks, we have clocks for all students to use 100% of the time!
As you know, education faces budget cuts year after year. Money and resources are tight. With your help, our students now have a resource to use to assist them in solving elapsed time problems if they need one!
From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your generosity!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Bongers
This classroom project was brought to life by NEA Foundation and 2 other donors.