Past projects 6
Board Books for the Youngest Learners
Funded Jan 7, 2022The board books for our young children contain sturdy "boards" as pages, allowing young children to easily grasp and turn the pages without damaging the book. These books can hold up to lots of little hands looking at them every day. The books are also smaller in size and fit perfectly into our students small hands.
We use our board books throughout our school day. When children arrive in the morning, those who have already had breakfast take a book and sit on the carpet to look through it. The topics of our board books relate to our themes of study as well as other high-interest topics, such as animals, colors and children.
There are also times we use the board books to read to one or two children at a time. We model practices such as carefully turning pages, finding the front and back cover, where to start reading, what a word is and more. These books allow our children the perfect opportunity to build their pre-reading skills.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Powell
Everyone Is Welcome At Our Center!
Funded Nov 15, 2021Our young students and their families were welcomed into a colorful, vibrant lobby area that welcomes and affirms all people. The signage in our lobby celebrates the power of education as well as the diversity of our community.
Families took pictures in front of our carefully decorated bulletin boards in the lobby area. They were excited to see their cultures and languages represented and smiling eyes peeking over masks were visible all around.
We will continue this important, affirming work by increasing the visibility of multiple languages throughout our lobby and school. We also plan to fortify messaging that we are supportive of students and family members wherever they fall on the LGBTQ spectrum so that all children know their families are welcome here”
With gratitude,
Ms. Powell
This classroom project was brought to life by Valhalla Foundation.3K and Pre-K Students Learn to Manage Emotions
Funded Nov 23, 2020Our young learners love exploring their new SEL resources. The Eggspression items are very appealing and hands on and the children love to interact with them in multiple ways. The Mood Memo puzzles can also be picked up and held, allowing the children to get a closer look.
The first day we took them out, the children were so enthusiastic and rushed to excitedly name the emotions shown on their new materials. They laughed and smiled looking at the Eggspressions and were waiting happily to try out the Mood Memo puzzles.
We are currently working on expanding our emotional vocabulary using our new toys. For example, if an Eggspression material shows a discontent face, we try to think of all the words we know that might name that feeling (angry, mad, frustrated, etc). The children love this activity. We also use our interactions with the Mood Memo puzzles as a model for parents, allowing them to see just how much their Pre-K learner can do.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Powell
This classroom project was brought to life by Allstate Foundation and 2 other donors.Youngest Learners Need Hands-On!
Funded Aug 11, 2020Our students were so excited to have new hands-on manipulatives to help them learn in developmentally appropriate ways! Watching them build and create has been so meaningful, especially given the current situation when many first hand experiences are limited.
Our children love the bright colors and different textures of these brand new manipulatives. We have allowed children who are coming in person to play with the materials as well as created kits for use at home when remote learning is in effect.
These hands-on materials promote language and math skills in a significant way. Children naturally talk, evaluate and compare as they build. They love to recreate aspects of their world such as familiar buildings and experiences. One of our next steps is to ask children to describe their creations using full sentences and to formulate questions to ask their peers about what they have created. Thank you for making this learning possible!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Powell
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and one other donor.Young Children Experiencing Homelessness Need the Basics
Funded Sep 17, 2018This project has helped our young students and their families living in transitional housing, by providing them with much-needed items. One of our students, RB, is so excited about her drawing pad that she brings it back to school to show her teacher the drawings she is doing at home.
Our three and four year-old students were very excited to have their own blankets and sheets for use at rest time. They were obviously more comfy and cozy than they would be lying directly on a cot. Our students were more than thrilled to be able to take home the tools they need in order to color, cut, write and glue. These materials will allow them to make deeper connections to what they are learning in Pre-Kindergarten.
Our students love spending time in our STEAM Lab. Here, they interact with materials such as sand and water, observe newts and slugs, plus sort and classify seeds, pinecones, rocks, shells and other natural items. We are currently exploring weather patterns, such as the sun coming up every morning, and early in 2019 we will learn about the moon. Thank you again for enriching the lives of our enthusiastic, deserving Pre-K students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Powell
This classroom project was brought to life by The Home Shows Coalition and 6 other donors.Pre-K Photographs Bring the World to Life!
Funded Jan 29, 2016Dear BJ's Wholesale Club,
We have been so thrilled to print countless photographs taken in our Pre-K Center, thanks to your generosity! Photographs allow our children to see accurate depictions of themselves and the activities in which they participate.
In addition, our young students are able to take photographs home to share, allowing parents to be more involved in classroom learning. Families are better able to imagine how children learn through exploration and play, by looking at photos of daily learning and ongoing projects.
One exciting event took place on school picture day, when professional photographers came in to our school to take keepsake pictures of all our students. One student, Steven, was terrified and repeatedly refused to go into the room where pictures were being taken. His mom, who was present to help out, was devastated, having dressed him up for the occasion.
Thanks to our photo printer and supplies, we were able to take a quick picture of Steven, all dressed up, and print copies for his family. The comfort of being in a familiar environment made the difference and being able to print pictures allowed his mother to have a special memento, just like the other parents did.
Thank you, again, for vastly enhancing the learning experience of our young students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Powell