Mr. Aladro's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 27

• The Right Tools for the Job

  Funded Oct 10, 2012

  Thank you very much for your extremely generous donation! The mic stands arrived and they work perfectly. With the proper equipment students have been able to use our technology resources without any disasters happening. The sound on videos made in the Digital Studio are much better. Students can now focus on their notes when recording a podcast in the Discussion Suite. In short, these two great stations work even better now thanks to your generosity. Once again, thank you very much for all of your support!”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• It's All About the Apps

  Funded Feb 22, 2012

  Thank you very much for your extremely generous donation of Apple iTunes gift cards. With these credits we were able to purchase a number of wonderful apps for our class iPad. We purchased the iWork apps which students have used to create design journal of their class projects. Students can now use Keynote to create a presentation on their project as they are working on it using the camera built into the iPad. We also purchased a very interesting app on the presidents. The geography team has benefited since it now can use the awesome stack the states and countries apps as well as the National Geographic geography quiz app. Thank you very much for your very generous donation!”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• The Power of the Press

  Funded Dec 6, 2011

  Thank you very much for your extremely generous donation! I can not express how awesome it was when our large format printer rumbled to life and was actually able to print something. Earlier in the year our students created some wonderful cause and effect comics about different events we cover in our history class. With our newly reborn printer we were able to print out large poster prints that can be hung around the classroom. Now students have the opportunity to learn about important events from their classmates, which leads to much greater learning. Once again, thank you very much for your extremely generous donation!”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• History Goes Hollywood

  Funded Aug 24, 2011

  Thank you very much for your very generous donation. I am happy to say that after a few months of heavy use not a single student project has been lost due to a computer crash. Instead of the technology getting in the way, the new iMac allows students to make their ideas into reality. The digital studio has become a student favorite with its new high-end hardware. Another benefit is that the old iMac can now be used in the gallery for working with static images that it can handle. Once again, thank you very much for your extreme generosity!”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• Dot Dot Dot Dash Dash Dash Dot Dot Dot

  Funded Aug 19, 2011

  Thank you very much for the telegraph supplies. In this age of texting and twitter it can be very difficult to convey to students what a huge impact the invention of the telegraph had on communication. By building their own classroom telegraph and struggling to send even short messages, students gain a real understanding of the difficulties of long distance communication. Students also greatly enjoy learning how to use morse code. Once again, thank you very much for your extremely generous donation.”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• John Henry: Man versus Machine

  Funded Aug 19, 2011

  Thank you very much for your extremely generous donation. The steam engine has been the perfect tool for increasing student engagement. It is loud and looks really cool when it is running, it even seems a bit dangerous (not really though, it is very safe). Rather than have students passively sit and listen about how important steam power was to the transformation of America, they are enraptured by this noisy machine that shoots out steam and can power a lightbulb. Instead of blank stares we have excited questions. In short, thank you very much for such a wonderful tool for starting our unit.”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• Lights! Camera! Action!

  Funded Jun 25, 2010

  Thank you very much for your extremely generous donation! Everything we received from this project has already been put to use. In class we were researching the Laws of the Indies and the colonization of the New World by Spain. Students used the colored pencils and poster boards to create large maps of the colonial cities they created. The security cables allowed us to install an eMac and an iMac in the classroom. Students use the eMac for research while working on projects. The firewire cable allows us to transfer recorded videos from the digital video camera to the iMac and use the green screen. Thank you very much for your help!”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

• Reading! Catch the Fever!

  Funded Feb 19, 2010

  Thank you very much for the class set of Fever 1793! Your generous donation has greatly helped my students learn about early American history. There are many interesting things going on in the young United States of America. However, it was sometimes difficult to engage middle school students in the material. 1790s America is a very different place than what students are familiar with. Without a foundation it was very difficult to get students to make connections. Mattie Cook is a great character which all of the students easily got hooked reading about. The outbreak provides a dramatic event which students found very interesting. This book provided the basis for a number of interesting classes. Thank you very much for your very generous donation! ”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Pershing Square Foundation and 2 other donors.

• Traversing The Digital Realm With An All-in-One HP Printer

  Funded Mar 6, 2010

  Thank you very much for the amazing HP Officejet 6500 printer! Not only does my classroom now have the coolest printer in the school, but the kids absolutely love it. This printer has allowed my students to start creating digital portfolios. It has also allowed my students to print out their best work in color on nice paper.

  My students are a wonderful group of kids who create many great things throughout the year. The main problem is that there is no way to create high quality copies so that the student can have their work and the class can keep a copy. Also, managing literally thousands of papers can become quite a chore. However, these were all worries of the pre-digital classroom. Now my students can easily scan their work and create a digital facsimile of their project. This means decades of student work can be easily stored on a single hard drive. Their work is also easy to index and organize. Furthermore, students can post their work on student blogs and share their work with a larger audience.

  Another great thing about the printer is that now students can print out digital projects in color. While the digital world has many advantages, sometimes a student really enjoys being able to show their work as a physical object. Thank you very much for being so generous and making my classroom an awesome place to learn. ”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

  This classroom project was brought to life by HP and National Lab Day and one other donor.

• Connecting Students With A HP Netbook

  Funded Mar 6, 2010

  Thank you so much for the amazing HP Netbook! It has been incredibly useful. This netbook has allowed my class to better use Web Lessons. The netbook has also greatly changed the classroom environment by supporting student inquiry.

  I recently participated in the Teaching American History program sponsored by the Department of Education. As a reward for completing the program I was granted a lifetime license to use Web Lessons in my classroom. Web Lessons are a great set of online activities designed to teach students about American history through the use of primary and secondary sources found on the Internet. The students love these activities because they include interesting material, movies, and activities. However, one limiting factor to this excellent software has been that it requires hardware. Until your generous donation, this hardware was missing. Now students can easily use these excellent Web Lessons.

  The netbook has also changed the working dynamic of my classroom. My students are extremely curious and often have questions relevant to the material that are not covered in the book. The Internet provides an excellent resource for conducting research. The netbook's small size and long lasting battery make it perfect for allowing students quick and unfettered access to information.

  Once again, thank you very much for your very generous donation! ”

  With gratitude,

  Mr. Aladro

  This classroom project was brought to life by HP and National Lab Day and 2 other donors.