Ms. Grimes' Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 12

• Colorful Charts and Devices

  Funded Sep 25, 2017

  Thank you so much for your support of this project. Having theses new materials (a color printer, ink, and card stock paper) has made a big difference in how I am able to present materials to students. I have been able to demonstrate concepts such as the decimal's importance in multiplying large numbers, special tricks for remembering multiplication facts, and the meaning behind each of the four mathematical operations. I have been able to print out and share these learning tools with students, and have received good feedback from them about the usefulness of the materials. Your generosity will go a long way in helping my upper elementary and middle school students grasp concepts visually. Thank you again for your help and support. We really appreciate it!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

• Brilliant Behavior

  Funded Mar 16, 2017

  Thank you so much for your generosity. My students love the new brilliant behavior books. They enjoy hearing stories about typical problems, along with the strategies for solutions that are given in each book. We have been able to discuss the lessons learned, and how to apply it these lessons in daily life. Whether we are learning about taking responsibility, exercising self control, or being a good friend, each and every lesson has applicability for my students. The colorful illustrations are also helpful in understanding behavioral objectives, such as having a "filter" between our thoughts and what it said aloud. You have made a huge difference in the lives of little learners, as they navigate their way through growing up right. We are so appreciative.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

• Lending Library Gems!

  Funded Dec 31, 2016

  Thank you so much for your generosity. The books you helped us purchase are going to be very well loved as they journey home each evening with a new student. The resources you helped purchase teach about all kinds of interesting concepts for my students. The biographies about famous Americans, like Rosa Parks, are very motivational. Students are also enjoying the rhymes in stories about the Gingerbread Man, as well as holiday books. They love the classic fables and fairy tales, and can't get enough of the science books about dinosaurs, sharks, and our solar system. There is a wealth of knowledge, and excitement, in this project, and you helped bring it to life for so many students. We simply cannot thank you enough. We love these books to the moon and back.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and one other donor.

• A Hunger for Reading

  Funded Oct 17, 2016

  My students and I are so grateful for your help in building a classroom lending library. We are having so much success with recreational reading, and it's been a joy to see. My young readers are really motivated and inspired by this big influx of new books. Pairs of students have checked out matching titles so that they can read together in their free time. I had a parent tell me that she simply doesn't see her third grader without a book in hand, ever! Students are reading Dr. Seuss titles fluently, and they're amazed by how much fun it is. When I asked students to reflect on Thanksgiving, several wrote about how grateful they are to be taking books home from our lending library. It's been said that reading opens doors to the world, and your donation has truly helped my students broaden their experiences. We are all so grateful. Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

• Lending Library

  Funded Mar 18, 2016

  Thank you so much for your generous support of our classroom lending library. There were so many books that it took almost ten deliveries for us to receive everything. The Disney books with audio CDs have been really popular with my third graders, and the emerging reader books with words to match every picture, such as, "apple," "hospital," and "artist," have been dazzling my kinder students. The first and second graders have been so excited to check out books about bunnies, bears, and different cartoons. It's a wonderful gift that each child gets to pick his or her own favorite book each day. It's been transformative.

  In addition to the joy of students, I have received wonderfully positive feedback from our community in Hollywood. We had Open House last week, and parents were extremely impressed to see all of the books you donated on display. Visually, it was really impressive. The books led to meaningful conversations about how to use our lending library to support struggling readers, and how to use the books to encourage a love for reading and learning.

  My students and I can't thank you enough for helping us develop a new, modern, and motivating lending library. I wish you could see the joy in my students' faces as they take home a new book each day. Your donation means the world to these little readers, thank you again.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

  This classroom project was brought to life by #BestSchoolDay and 7 other donors.

• Collaboration for Lessons and More

  Funded May 25, 2015

  Thank you so much for your generosity and support. My students and I are very grateful for your help. Using this iPad mini to plan lessons and collaborate with my colleagues will help our school team make a big difference for students. We have started the year off with meaningful and purposeful math activities, planned using the iPad mini. We are setting the stage for a great year in Hollywood.

  This iPad mini will enable our team to plan and implement specialized lessons to support our special needs students, who are also included in the general education classroom. Students will be able to visualize and practice with number concepts in a meaningful way, throughout the year. Lesson planning using the iPad mini will increase my ability to challenge my students to think and experience math concepts deeply.

  I have received very positive feedback from my colleagues regarding the iPad mini and its usefulness. When we work in our weekly lesson planning sessions, we use the iPad mini to access math teaching websites, to reference our curriculum standards, and more. Thank you again for helping my school team and me provide purposeful and essential lessons for my students.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

  This classroom project was brought to life by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 4 other donors.

• Help Us Publishing Our Writing

  Funded May 2, 2015

  Thank you so much for your generosity in helping to fund this project. My students were so excited when the keyboards arrived. We opened them together and easily connected them to the iPads. These keyboards are going to make a big difference for my Resource students as they learn and sharpen their writing skills.

  We will use these keyboards so much! We are working hard to solidify writing skills such as basic sentence structure, punctuation, and grammar. It's really motivating for my students to have accessible technology, which is literally at their fingertips! Typing paragraphs and reports makes the final drafts look impressive.

  Thank you so much for helping our classroom. It's fun to talk about Donors Choose with my students, and explain to them that donors have selected our class. It's motivating to know that donors believe in us, and are willing to support our efforts. Thank you again!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

• Learning Spanish to Support Students

  Funded Mar 3, 2015

  Thank you so much for your support of my project, "Learning Spanish to Support Students." The Rosetta Stone on line Spanish program is wonderful. I have been wanting to purchase this program forever, and your donations made this a reality.

  The program is a great addition to my Spanish studies at this time. In the evenings, I am conjugating verbs, speaking Spanish with other students, and practicing my Spanish writing skills at the local community college. During my free time, I use Rosetta Stone to play on line vocabulary games, practice pronunciation, and hone my listening skills. There's even a feature where I can access lessons on my mobile phone! I love listening to stories, such as, "El Gato y el Cielo" (The Cat and the Sky), where pictures support my understanding. I love being a student!

  I have been able to share the program (and my Spanish skills) with my school community, and the response has been great. When I gave a demonstration of the program to my students, they were delighted to see that their teacher is a learner too! One little girl said, "Wow, those are just like the games we have in class!" Also, I was able to hold a conference today with a parent, where I used Spanish for a portion of our conversation. "Poco a poco," little by little, I see that my skills are improving. The Rosetta Stone program is a powerful reinforcer for a beginning language learner like me. Thanks for helping me improve my communication skills in order to support the students and families I work with. I am very grateful.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

  This classroom project was brought to life by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 8 other donors.

• Tools to Understand Numbers to 1,000

  Funded Nov 5, 2014

  Thank you so much for your generosity in helping to fund my project. My students were so excited when the boxes arrived. We spent a little time immediately looking through the boxes full of blocks, number lines, and game cards. Our math discussions were great. The materials you helped us purchase are of high quality and will last for many years, and for many students.

  We will use these materials almost every day this year! We are working hard to solidify number concepts such as "how many," "how many more," and "how many fewer." You can tell from the pictures I've posted that the tools purchased as part of this project will demonstrate these ideas concretely. Working with blocks, number lines, and flash cards using visual representations makes these number concepts come alive for my students.

  Thank you so much for helping our classroom. It's fun to talk about Donors Choose with my students, and explain to them that people think our class is so special, that they are willing to donate and help us with projects. We are just thrilled, and this project has added a lot of energy to our days in Hollywood. Thank you again!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes

• Fun With Word Study

  Funded Oct 4, 2014

  Thank you so much for your generosity in helping to fund my project. My students were so excited when the boxes arrived. We spent a little time immediately looking through the cards with homophones, idioms, and multiple meaning words. The discussions were great. We found aunt/ant, mine/mine, "butterflies in my stomach," "don't let the cat out of the bag," and many more. Additionally, the flash cards which were part of this project are just awesome. They are playing card quality, and they're perfect for me to use and customize for all kinds of lessons.

  We will use these materials almost every day this year! Each week, I teach three new tricky words or phrases, and students journal about them. We have already started, as we used "Don't let the cat out of the bag," this week. My students pay close attention to these lessons, and there's nothing like it when they use these phrases spontaneously after a lesson we've done. Additionally, I have already been able to use the flash cards for several games of Go Fish, Memory Match, and Who Has It? this week. These games are fast paced and motivating, and can be custom made for the lessons each day. Kinderg�rtners, for example, are learning to match words to pictures, while my third graders are learning their multiplication facts. My school has lots of felt, and we even found that we can lay felt out on the table to add to the ambiance of our games. The students absolutely love these games!!!

  Thank you so much for helping our classroom. It's fun to talk about Donors Choose with my students, and explain to them that people think our class is so special, that they are willing to donate and help us with projects. We are just thrilled, and this project has added a lot of energy to our days in Hollywood. Thank you again!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Grimes