Mrs. Hein's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 8

• Let’s Get Engaged!

  Funded Sep 2, 2022

  Thanks so much for donating these awesome items to my class! My kids are begging for small group time now, because it is so engaging and so much fun. 😀

  Small group time is such an important time for me as a teacher. I am able to meet one-on-one with kids, or meet with a small group, while the rest of the class works independently with the items and activities that were donated. This is when I can really assess and help each individual child build on the skills they need to reach the next level.

  Thanks again for your generosity! ❤️”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

  This classroom project was brought to life by Big O Tires and 11 other donors.

• Chromebooks for Kinder

  Funded Dec 18, 2015

  Dear Donors,

  Thank you so much for your generous and caring contributions towards our Chromebooks for Kinder project! These computers were a GREAT addition to our classroom and our curriculum this year. Before receiving the computers, our Kindergarten class had very little access to computers. While our school does have two carts of computers, they were reserved, understandably, for the upper-grade classes, who must use them to prepare for and take statewide exams. As Kinders, we were last on the list for computer priority. Now, having a set of 6 in my room, I am able to do computers each week with the students. We have mostly been working on keyboarding skills. It is great that students not only get practice using the computer, but they are practicing recognizing and naming their alphabet letters too. It is a win-win! Thanks again for your support!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

  This classroom project was brought to life by Disney and 3 other donors.

• Writing Success Begins with Letters

  Funded Jan 22, 2016

  Dear Donors,

  Our class LOVES the Magnaboards! We have been using the boards in small groups and the kids actually request them when they get a choice. The boards are great for fine motor skills and for learning the correct formation of the letters. The magnets on the board are great for young tactile learners. The feel the pull of the magnets when forming the letters then they get to push the magnets back in when "erasing" their boards. These boards have been a great addition to our classroom this year. They are also very durable so I am sure I will be able to use them with many classes to come. I am proud of what great writers, both in form and in content, that we have nurtured this year. Thank you again for your generous and caring donation!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

• Ipad for Interactive Reading

  Funded May 7, 2013

  Thank you so much for your generous donations to our project! I received the items in time to enjoy them with my class last year and have already started using them this year. We love listening to our stories and songs on the CD player and, of course, are enjoying having another ipad to use.

  We use the ipads for individualized reading instruction, centers, demonstrations, and also rewards. Having access to technology is becoming increasingly important these days to keep our students up to date. I have found many apps that are improving my students learning in all academic areas - math, reading, writing, typing, handwriting, science, etc.

  With 31 students in my room, working in small groups to meet students' needs, is essential, but also difficult to manage. With the ipod/ipad station, I have a whole group of students that are quiet and engaged in meaningful learning. This means one less group that will require my intervention. When I am freed up, I can work with a small group without interruption. This is so helpful for our small group instruction and learning.

  Thanks again for donating to my project! The students in Room 11 are growing and learning by leaps and bounds, thanks to your help!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

• iPad for Independent Practice

  Funded Oct 16, 2012

  Thank you, thank you, thank you, to all of our donors! Our class is SOOOO excited to have an ipad in our room!

  Having the ipad will help our center time really get the learning going. Currently we have a small-group set of ipods. With the ipad, one additional student can now join the group. Plus, I can now demo the apps we are using to further our learning, on a bigger screen for the whole group to see. This will really help kids access the important features of the learning apps we have downloaded.

  We are using several different kinds of apps. I have downloaded apps for all areas of language arts - spelling, reading, grammar, writing, reading, and reading fluency. I also downloaded several games for math. I am especially excited for a coin game and a telling time game that I have added to our list. These are two areas where my students always need additional practice. These games will provide just that. My students are having fun getting to use the ipad and learning while they are "playing".

  Technology is the future for our students these days. It is so important that they become fluent in using it. In our class, using technology as a learning tool for language arts and math, will accomplish both tasks - fluency in our first grade standards and fluency in using technology tools.

  Thank you again for your generosity and for bringing this amazing tool to our classroom! My 31 students and I really appreciate your support!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

• First Grade Spirit Shirts

  Funded Sep 13, 2012

  Thank you so much for donating to our First Grade Spirit Shirt Project! The shirts are already making our class feel more like a community.

  My class had so much fun making the shirts last week. The materials came in just in time so that our 4 new students could participate too! It worked out great to welcome them to our team with a project that everyone could do together.

  The kids learned three different kinds of folds for the shirts and each child got to choose the one they wanted or could make up their own. After a quick lesson on primary colors and how to make the secondary colors, we got to work folding and banding. There were several color choices and the kids got creative making their designs. The shirts were all different and unique and they all turned out amazing!

  I surprised the class Monday morning by having their shirts on their desks when they walked into the room! Everyone was so excited! We wore our shirts all day and received many complements from other people on campus.

  My students and I will wear our shirts to special school events and also we will wear them on Fun Fridays in our class. One student was so excited about her shirt, that she asked if she could wear it to bed. My class is so proud of their work and every one of them loves these shirts!

  Thank you so much for donating to our project and for making a difference in the lives of my students. Our little community is on the road to a great year! And, boy, do we look good in our new Spirit Shirts!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

  This classroom project was brought to life by NEA Foundation and 4 other donors.

• I-Pods For Independent-Practice!

  Funded Apr 24, 2012

  Wow! Thank you for making this amazing project come to life! The i-pods arrived so fast and my class could not wait to get their hands on them! I had to hurry and call the tech team for our school so I could get them up and running right away. I was lucky our tech was available to come within two days of getting the i-pods in the mail and we have been working away on them ever since!

  We have 26 students in our class and differentiating for everyone is our goal. I try to do a small group center time at least 3-4 times a week so that I can work with students one-on-one or in small groups. Our new i-pods are always one of the stations now, where students are working independently, so that I can be available to work with other students, targeting specific skills where they need help.

  The i-pods can help me further differentiate with a second group in a fun way. Students who need help mastering money for example, can play an app called Amazing Coins, where they get repeated practice recognizing coins, identifying their values to purchase items, and spending them. They think they are playing but really they are learning! If you are a student who has mastered coins, maybe you are playing a mad lib game where you must generate words of a specific category to create a silly story and then read the story. Another fun one is the spelling test game. You can record the list of words so it "reads" it to the students and they can practice typing the words, spelling them correctly. One group is working with me practicing skills they need and a second group is working on the i-pods doing the same.

  We are so happy that we now have technology that works in our room! Before we had 4 outdated computers that not only took forever to turn on and be ready to go, but then were so slow that I had to constantly help the students at this station with troubleshooting. What was supposed to be an independent station for the students, was actually more work for me! I could hardly work with groups or individuals because I was getting pulled away so often to help solve a problem on the computer. Now with our i-pod station, the kids are self-sufficient. The i-pods are easy for the students to use and they are super engaging and fun too. My only technology problem now is students asking for more center time, and what teacher would complain about that!

  Thanks again for your generosity and your vision to help my students have more access to technology and more independent time working on the skills they need to master. Thank you too, for helping me better differentiate for my students' needs.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein

• Spirit Shirts

  Funded Sep 24, 2011

  Please accept this letter as a small token of my gratitude for your generosity in donating to my classroom project - Spirit Shirts. The materials I ordered were amazing and even kid-friendly to use! The students in my class had so much fun choosing a design, banding the shirts, and then choosing the colors to use to create their masterpieces. Our tie-dyed Spirit Shirts turned out great and the kids are so proud of them! Each one is a work of art!

  We have been wearing our Spirit Shirts everywhere at school and even out in the community. These shirts make our class feel very special and they really help reinforce the sense of community we have built in our classroom. To date we have not only worn them to the Annual First Grade Boat Float Challenge, at the Jump for Heart school-wide event, and on our field trip to the local nursing home to sing and pass out valentines to the residents, but we have worn them every Friday as well, for our weekly Fun Friday celebration of learning that takes place at the end of the day on Fridays.

  Having done a similar project last year at the end of the year, I knew that this project would have much more of an impact if I did it earlier in the year, and it has. Because of your donations, my students see and feel that we are a classroom community. They feel special. They feel unique. And they feel included.

  Thank you for making a difference in the lives of 26 urban first graders and one happy teacher.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Hein