Past projects 11
Fun Engaging Motivating Math Games!
Funded Jan 1, 2023The new math games are so engaging for students! I work with students who are struggling in math and frequently become frustrated when the concepts become too difficult. These math games are helping to keep students engaged and learning, in a fun way!
So many of our students are many grade levels below level. These games are perfect for our centers, for students to work on their math fluencies and also word problem skills.
As students improve their math fluencies in all four operations, they become more confident and can more easily solve problems!
Thank you for helping us to close the math gaps!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
Let's Learn Ukelele!
Funded Dec 30, 2021Students were so excited to see our brand new ukeleles! Due to the fact that we still cannot play recorders (which are always a student favorite!) due to COVID protocols and still cannot be in the music room due to covid capacity regulations, we are always looking for creative ways to take music into the general classrooms.
Students are so excited to learn a new instrument, to learn chords and play different strumming patterns on the ukelele. They say that the feel that the ukelele produces a calming sound. Student enjoy how the ukelele is their size too and say they have wanted to learn how to play the instrument since they were even younger.
We have been hosting recorded virtual concerts still due to COVID and play to have students perform a song on the ukelele for a spring performance! Also, our music club has a focus on percussion instruments, but we hope to combine ukelele as well!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 5 other donors.Fun, Colorful, Engaging Music Visuals!
Funded Dec 1, 2020Students (especially those who are visual learners) need to have clear visuals to understand musical concepts! With magnetic strips which are used to show the staff or can be converted into boxed to represent measures, students can learn to read music easier and be able to keep a steady beat when exploring a new song.
Students also love creating different sounds with their bodies through body percussion! Having the body percussion symbols is so much fun to choose which type of body percussion they want to do and decide what rhythm to create.
We are continuing to make music as engaging as possible in this virtual world!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
This classroom project was brought to life by FamilyAlbum and one other donor.Hands-on Learning Through Art and Science!
Funded Nov 1, 2020My students have been so excited to get their science kits and art supplies! We have been rewarded students for their excellent work especially during this very different time of remote learning.
Students spend so much of each day on a screen now. Even though much of the time is spend engaging in virtual educational platforms, students need to be able to learn through doing, through experimenting and creating. They are enjoying learning through being creative with art and through building their science experiments.
We are working to make their educational experiences hands-on, even in this virtual world!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
This classroom project was brought to life by Con Edison and one other donor.Help My Students Improve their Vocabulary!
Funded Sep 16, 2020Thank you for providing my students with access to Spelling City! The program is very interactive and gives the students many ways to learn new words. There are so many different games to choose from which interest students and keep them motivated! We are able to use lists of grade level vocabulary which students need to know as well as create our own content based vocabulary lists based on the units we are working on in class. Remote learning is challenging for all and it is challenging to find ways to motivate students in fun and engaging ways. This program is a great supplement to what we are doing in school. Thank you!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose 20th Anniversary Fund and one other donor.Adding Puppet Storytelling Fun to Music Lessons!
Funded May 14, 2020Thank you so much for the fun puppets and the storytelling materials! I try to incorporate literacy into my music lessons as much as possible and the puppets make the lessons so much more engaging!
My students love watching videos that I make of favorite stories and songs that we already did in school, or new songs to learn! Through the use of the story kits, they are able to better understand and remember the stories. By seeing characters in the story appear on the felt board, they are better to understand the sequencing of the stories and to later recall the events in the story.
The next students for my students will be to act out their own stories using the puppets!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
This classroom project was brought to life by FamilyAlbum and 3 other donors.A Rich, Literate Music Classroom!
Funded Oct 16, 2019My students were so excited when they saw the new felt board stories! My students absolutely love being involved in the stories and songs using the felt board! They all volunteer to be a part of the story through adding their own characters to the board. Songs that we are learning come to life with addition of the song mitts.
Students are natural composers and love to compose their own songs! They also love working in groups to determine the notes, rhythms, and which instruments to include in their songs. The large wipe-off staffs give them that opportunity!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
Literacy in the Music Classroom!
Funded May 27, 2019Incorporating literacy into the music is so much fun for students! When I presented "Pout Pout Fish" to my students, two of my students screamed out, "I have that book at home." When we began to sing the repetitive verse of the book as a chorus, "I'm a pout pout fish, with a pout pout face.." students were so engaged. Then we added barred percussion to our chorus, adding a borden and melody to the lyrics. Because the book is so repetitive, students were able to have a lot of practice playing instruments as we read/ sang the book.
We play a lot of singing games in class. One game is called Tittlemouse where students are chosen to be mice and solo-sing while another student needs to guess who is singing. Using the mouse finger puppet, students dance/ sing around the person and sing a so-mi rhythm, and the other student needs to guess which students are singing. Having the puppets makes activities such as these more engaging!
Using the felt board, puppets, and new texts, we will continue to incorporate rich literacy experiences daily into music lessons!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
Help My Students Make it To Carnegie Hall!
Funded Aug 7, 2017I just attended the Professional Development workshops at Carnegie Hall where I met the amazing artists my students will be learning about this semester and learned the songs which students will be learning on recorders. The artists who students in Kindergarten through 2nd grade will be learning about include Illusha who performs Georgian folk music, Imani who performs Freedom Songs, and Emeline who sings Haitian music. Students in 3rd-5th grades will be playing "Come to Play," "Ode to Joy," "Simple Gifts," "New World" Symphony, "Bought Me a Cat," and "Oye." Although the concerts are not until December and May, based on the previous years I know that the students will be fully engaged in the program and will love the variety of songs that Carnegie Hall offers!
Carnegie Hall is also implementing a yearlong learning project called "A Time Like This: Music for Change." In the 1960s, young people started movements focused on equal rights, peace, and their own place in the world. In our classes this year, students will have the opportunity to create their own songs of peace.
Thank you so much for helping to keep the music program going in our school, with the help of the Carnegie Hall curriculums. My students and I really appreciate it!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez
It's A Vole! The Joy of Owl Pellet Dissection!
Funded Dec 15, 2014Thank you so much for your donation for the owl pellets. My students were thrilled to be able to dissect owl pellets and figure out what animal the owl ate. As fifth graders, they often ask about dissecting worms/ frogs/ etc; however those dissections are more appropriate at a higher level. Dissecting owl pellets gives them insight into dissecting and allows them to have a hands-on experience which they love and greatly benefit from.
We took a few days to dissect the owl pellets and put the skeletons of the animals together. Then students answered questions about their owl pellets, which lead to further discussions about other animal adaptations. The charts which students used to help identify their animal will be used for years to come.
This project boosted student learning because students had to play the role of scientists and work hands on. Through doing, students are able to internalize the concept being taught and then apply it to other lessons.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Bojorquez