Past projects 6
Help Me Build a New Class Library!
Funded Sep 23, 2021Thank you again for your generous donations that purchased new library books for my classroom. When the boxes arrived and my students saw that they were NEW books that were recent titles, they were extremely excited and began to pick out which ones they wanted to read almost immediately. It was amazing to see 8th grade students so excited about reading something that they found in school.
With a switch to all online materials outside of my classroom library, many students have been struggling completing independent reading time because an e-book does not offer the same tactile experience that they get from a paperback book. Our new library additions have re-engaged my student readers and it is just awesome! THANK YOU!”
With gratitude,
Dr. Hart
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and one other donor.Headphones for Books on Tape
Funded Nov 21, 2019This year our school implemented an intervention period within the school day and supplied us with access to programs such as Lexia to better support developing readers. My intervention class helps a variety of students including newly immigrated non-English speakers, special educations students who are reading below grade level and students who while reading on grade level were not showing growth. Lexia requires listening and responding, but I did not have headphones for my students. They were sitting with their heads stuck to laptops trying to hear without disrupting other students. These headphones allow them to work comfortably and independently on building foundational reading skills that they need. They are so appreciative of the head phones and are excited for Lexia now, they no longer whine when they come in, but they get right to work. Their reading scores are improving and some students are beginning to hit grade level skill-sets!”
With gratitude,
Dr. Hart
Help Us Go Digital!
Funded Oct 29, 2019This laptop has afforded me a way to link my SMART Board and document reader so that I can model work for my students before I allow them to work independently. This makes teaching so much easier because students need guided practice in order to grasp new concepts and techniques. While my school was able to purchase the SMART Board and chrome books for students, they did not have the funding to update computers for teachers so I struggled with being able to use what my school was able to give me.
Students are excited to come in and see the SMART Board in action as well as the use of the document reader to project work from handouts and paper so that we can work together to learn new strategies. This laptop has been a game changer, thank you again--so much-- for your generosity. There is no way this could have happened for my kids without you.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Hart
Help Us Start Off With a Supplied and Clean Classroom!
Funded Aug 13, 2019This year my students were able to walk into a clean, organized classroom that promoted a safe learning environment. The changes in behavior were almost immediate. My students are able to come into my classroom and learn as well value the space that they are working in. It is amazing to see students take responsibility for keeping our space neat and orderly. We are now almost into November and our room looks like it did when I worked hard at the end of the summer to get it in order for my students to arrive. I see students that come in every day and work and have a good attitude toward being here. I firmly believe a large part of it is because they have supplies and a clean, welcoming environment to learn in. Thank you again!”
With gratitude,
Dr. Hart
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and one other donor.Guided Reading Corner for Struggling Middle School Readers
Funded Mar 27, 2018By funding this project, it allowed for my students to have a designated guided reading center. This greatly improved my literacy classroom because now my students have designated centers for all types of reading. My student section love having this space just for them. Pictured here are my students after they used the space for a group project that went on to win second place in the district wide humanities fair. This year my students now fight over this space and are so excited when they are invited over to read. This is an invaluable resource for my classroom!”
With gratitude,
Dr. Hart
This classroom project was brought to life by Ripple and one other donor.New Novels for 8th Grade
Funded Mar 29, 2016The books arrived Monday morning following our spring break. My students were stunned to see two large Amazon boxes being brought into the room. They quickly wanted to know what was inside them. When I told them that we had gotten new books, I had several volunteers that were more than excited to help me unbox, label and number each one.
These texts will be used in our nonfiction units where students read memoirs. I chose these texts because I've shown "Freedom Writers" and "From Homeless to Harvard" for several years at the end of each year. Each year, my kids get SO into those stories because they see themselves in them. Once you make that connection with students it is very easy to then teach skills like citing textual evidence, point of view, summarizing, etc.
I plan to use these novels for whole-class instruction. I then break my kids into literature circles and guided reading groups where they are exposed to similar materials that have the same central theme or idea. When successful, students are able to take ideas from each text and synthesize them into higher order thinking which is the skill I hope that all of my 8th graders reach by the end of their time with me.
Thank you again for this amazing gift!”
With gratitude,
Dr. Hart