Past projects 4
Books to Honor Home Languages and Learn English
Funded Feb 13, 2025I can hardly believe we have these needed tools to help our multilingual learners, thanks to you!! Willow Glen continues to grow as a multilingual community, and all levels of English proficiency are present in our students. These books will not only help students take pride in their home language, they will introduce their classmates to the beauty and power of being multilingual. A million thanks!!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Boening
This classroom project was brought to life by Herb Kohl Philanthropies and 2 other donors.Stability Balls to Improve Learning
Funded Mar 10, 2016Hello all our wonderful donors,
I can't believe we have been using the stability balls for almost three months now. What a difference they have made for the children! Many of them had never seen a stability ball before. They were ALL excited to try them right away. Since I have a class of 18 students, children have the opportunity to use a stability ball every three days. Students ALWAYS want to use them! By using a stability ball, the children are allowed just a bit of movement while working, as opposed to sitting in a chair.
One of the photos I sent was a graph of a mini action research project I did using the stability balls. I targeted four of my most challenging students (those who need to take a break the most often within my classroom). I tallied the amount of breaks they took in three weeks while they were using a stability ball for the day and the amount of breaks they took while using a chair for the day. All four targeted children had a decrease in the amount of breaks they needed to take while using a stability ball for the day! They truly have helped improve behavior and focus in my classroom.
Again, thank you so very much for your generosity. You have made a HUGE difference in the lives of 18 very grateful children!!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Boening
This classroom project was brought to life by #BestSchoolDay and 5 other donors.Help First Graders With BOARDom
Funded Feb 28, 2012I wanted to take time once again to thank you for your donation to my project. The project you donated to enabled me to purchase several classic board games for my first grade classroom. Through playing these board games, the first graders are developing crucial skills such as cooperation, fair play and counting. In addition, board games are a positive alternative to the multitude of screen based entertainment most children are engaged with.
The board games couldn't have arrived at a better time. At this point in the year, the first graders are well accustomed to working with partners and groups, and playing the games has increased their ability to work cooperatively. This is a skill that they will need for future school and life success.
Not only will the board games benefit the first graders in my room this year, they will benefit first graders in years to come. Since children acquire a plethora of skills through playing board games, there is no telling where the positive influence of playing these games will end. ”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Boening
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
Funded Feb 19, 2011Warmer weather, green grass, blue skies....all of these can only mean one thing - baseball season is here! Thanks to your generous donation, I am able to teach my first graders how to play America's game.
When the baseball equipment arrived, the first graders were elated. They could hardly wait to pick out their own gloves, swing the bats and run the bases. But first we had to wait for the snow to melt!
Seeing our baseball equipment daily made us anxious for the first days of spring. Finally, they came! We had a blast playing catch. Soon we'll begin to practice hitting and base running. Every day, the first graders look forward to playing baseball.
I can't tell you how much your donation means to us, and to future first graders that I will teach. Lou Gehrig said that baseball is a game for all - you have been a part of making that true!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Boening