More than half of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education.
Learn more
Support her classroom with a gift that fosters learning.
Monthly
One-time
Support Mrs. Van Kirk's classroom with a gift that fosters learning.
Monthly
One-time
Give to a project to support this classroom.
Your custom url is https://www.donorschoose.org/kel842
Thank you so much for supporting this project! The Crossover and Amulet are both very popular books for choice reading time. Being able to offer book club sets of both books will allow more students to read these amazing books. The Crossover has a bog appeal for boys and basketball players. We also have an audiobook version of it, so students could follow along while they listen to them.
I know these books are going to have a huge impact on students. They are books that stay with readers for a long time!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 2 other donors.
I can't wait to start book clubs with Cardboard Kingdom and Doodleville as options. I have already seen students reading them as their choice book, so I know they are going to be popular book club books! I think students are going to have rich discussions about both of these books!
It means so much to us that people are willing to support our classroom library options. Giving students more options means they have a better chance of finding the just right book for them. These two books are highly likely to help a student fall in love with reading!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and one other donor.
My students are so excited about our audiobook options! Every single one is checked out on a daily basis. I guess I better put in a request for more! Thank you so much for bringing these to our classroom.
I have found that students who are struggling to read grade level text are much more willing to listen to an audiobook. Choice reading time is quieter and students are more focused because those who were struggling before now have an option that keeps them on task for the whole reading time. Thank you again for making this possible.”
Thank you so much for supporting this project! My students were so excited to see these graphic novels on the shelves! The books were checked out so quickly! We spend 15 minutes every class period reading our choice books. I have noticed that students are more engaged with these graphic novels and the negative behaviors have diminished. Thank you for that! One of these books could be the book that helps a student fall in love with reading. I think that is such a cool thing and you made it possible! Thank you again!!”
Thank you so much for supporting this project! My students have been so excited to read more books due to the rewards! We also increased our average reading level by four months and many more students are testing above grade level than before we got these rewards.
It has been awesome to see students so engaged with our new books, even if it is just to receive a reward! Thank you so much for bringing these into our classroom! You just might have helped a student fall in love with reading and that is no small thing!”
This is one of the projects I am most excited about! I know these are for next year, but I have a feeling that students are going to be reading these books because they are prominently displayed in the front of the room. It is going to be so awesome that we are going to be able to participate in the Global Read Aloud again! It is also great that I will be able to offer students a choice so that they can really connect with the book! Thank you for being part of building connections between my students and the rest of the world!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and one other donor.
Thank you so much for supporting this project. These Playaway books are so popular with my students. One class in particular has really taken off with listening to these books. They used to struggle to stay focused during our choice reading time. That is no longer an issue. Often, they beg for more choice reading time. I have also seen an impact on their comprehension. Because they are focused more during choice reading time, they are getting more out of that time. That has caused them to perform much better on their independent assessments.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by an Anonymous Classroom Supporter and 2 other donors.
Thank you so much for supporting this project! My students love graphic novels and the Dragonbreath series has been a big hit. I love that they are hard cover because paperback tend to tear very quickly. These books will last quite some time!
I have asked students what they love most about these books and they told me they love the characters and the colorful illustrations. Students who never enjoyed choice reading time are now begging to read their Dragonbreath books! I can't wait to see what they choose next! Thank you again!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by Seed to Read and one other donor.
Thank you so much for supporting this project. Students love this bench. It is a great spot to sit or put their materials on. I love that it holds my literature sets. The flexibility fits perfectly with the rest of the furniture in my room.
The super sticky post it notes are also fantastic. We used to put sticky notes up and they would immediately fall down. With the super sticky notes, they lasted throughout the entire book we read. Students could refer to the notes without finding any stuck to their shoes! Thank you again!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by The Arizona Department of Education and one other donor.
This cozy place to read is a very popular spot in the classroom! Students love that it can be used in different ways. Just today, a couple of students discovered a new way to use the piece and they were thrilled! They used the footrest as a backrest and had the other piece folded down to keep all of their belongings contained! They come up with something new all the time! I love that it is light enough to move around the room easily. Thank you for helping us add this great couch to our flexible seating!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Van Kirk
This classroom project was brought to life by The Arizona Department of Education and one other donor.
My students are beyond creative. Many of them were unaware of their multiple talents before coming to this school. They are always willing to dive into a new project. I find myself impressed with their products on a daily basis. It is always amazing to watch these young students take over a project and make it their own. I cannot wait to see what they create with access to more resources.
About my class
My students are beyond creative. Many of them were unaware of their multiple talents before coming to this school. They are always willing to dive into a new project. I find myself impressed with their products on a daily basis. It is always amazing to watch these young students take over a project and make it their own. I cannot wait to see what they create with access to more resources.
{"followTeacherId":1748762,"teacherId":1748762,"teacherName":"Mrs. Van Kirk","teacherProfilePhotoURL":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp1748762_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=136&height=136&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1723389458904","teacherHasProfilePhoto":true,"vanityURL":"kel842","teacherChallengeId":281560,"followAbout":"Mrs. Van Kirk's projects","teacherVerify":1014328334,"teacherNameEncoded":"Mrs. Van Kirk","vanityType":"teacher","teacherPageInfo":{"teacherHasClassroomPhoto":true,"teacherHasClassroomDescription":true,"teacherClassroomDescription":"","teacherProfileURL":"https://www.donorschoose.org/classroom/kel842","tafURL":"https://secure.donorschoose.org/donors/share_teacher_profile.html?teacher=1748762","stats":{"numActiveProjects":3,"numFundedProjects":199,"numSupporters":609},"classroomPhotoPendingScreening":false,"showEssentialsListCard":true,"teacherNamePossessive":"Mrs. Van Kirk's","essentialsTopItemSummary":"markers","essentialsTopItemImageUrl":"/images/essentialslist/supplies/markers-dryerase.jpg","essentialsTopItemPrice":12.02,"essentialsListLength":2,"essentialsListUrl":"https://www.donorschoose.org//donors/essentials-list.html?teacherId=1748762","state":"AZ","stateFullName":"Arizona","city":"Dewey"}}