Past projects 70
New Year: New Titles!
Funded Aug 9, 2022This project funded many wonderful fiction texts for our school library. Many teachers checked out these books at the beginning of the year and read them with their classes. Here are just a few examples of how the books were used. Fifth graders learned about the "Whatifs" and how to try to look at a situation from a positive lense instead of focusing on the negative. Fourth graders discussed their classroom rules after reading Don't Read This Book. Kindergarteners loved making connections to characters who were experiencing school for the first time in books like Becoming Vanessa and Kindergarten Queen, just like they were doing that first week! I read That Is Not My Name with the entire school to remind students that their names are important and that we teachers want to learn how to pronounce them correctly! These books truly helped build a school culture around literature, acceptance, and perseverance. Thank you for providing these experiences for our students!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by Bill Gates and 5 other donors.Prairie, Please! We Love to Read!
Funded Feb 22, 2022I have begun to make the lessons for the books requested in this project! Students will get the opportunity to hear all ten books for their grade level as well as interact with the story in a fun way. Some of the lessons include mathematics skills in gathering favorite food data. Other lessons include science topics where we reenact the life cycle of a butterfly.
As the year continues, students will continue to interact with these stories and then vote on their favorite book at the end of March. Thank you for being a part of this project and helping to make literature come to life for my young readers!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
Can You Fill Our Requests?
Funded Dec 13, 2021These readers have been loving that the books they specifically requested are now in our library. I made sure that the students who requested them were the first to check them out; I just didn't capture a picture of everyone in that moment! The power of a reader getting exactly what they want is immeasurable! It has been so fun to see these readers go on to recommend these books to their friends and classmates, building an even deeper community of readers at our school! Thank you for making this possible by believing in my students, knowing that they, too, can succeed!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 8 other donors.Books as Windows and Mirrors: Latinx
Funded Sep 24, 2021Wow! This DonorsChoose community really stepped up for our library this fall! I was so excited that this particular project was funded during Hispanic Heritage Month, a time when we were already celebrating Hispanic culture through the books we were reading.
This year we have had an influx of Latinx students. Thank you for augmenting our library collection so that these students had characters in their picture books and chapter books that reminded my students of themselves.
One particular reader was so excited about a book in this project that she immediately checked it out. A week later I was informed that she was moving to another school in our district. All library books needed to be returned. She sadly returned Sal and Gabby Break the Universe telling me how much she had enjoyed the book so far. Because our district has a wonderful interlibrary loan system, I surprised this student by sending the book to her new school where she saw it in her desk upon her arrival. She was able to continue reading her newest favorite book even though she changed residences and schools! This interconnectedness of readers would not have been possible without your generous support!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 5 other donors.Keep Me in the Series!
Funded Sep 23, 2021When I pulled these books out, with fresh barcodes and spine labels, ready for checkout, you would have thought I pulled out a bag of candy! Readers were so excited to dive into these book and continue the stories they know of their favorite characters.
One book, Rosie Revere Engineer, inspired a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) challenge where 2nd graders learned about the science of parachutes and then designed their own parachute out of everyday items to see if they could create drag to keep their parachutist safe upon landing.
Third graders practically went wild over the newest book in the Dragon Masters series! At the beginning of the year I introduced them to Tracy West's series and many jumped right in, some reading all 18 books that we had. To know that we now had book 19 (and soon book 20) re-sparked interest in this beloved series.
I have so many stories for each of these books, because, as I said in the original project, each book was chosen with a particular reader in mind. Thank you for continuing to help my students become lifelong readers by funding important projects like this one!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 2 other donors.Teach Me to Win and Lose!
Funded Sep 23, 2021We have been busy learning games and playing them cooperatively! The first game we learned to play this month was Snug as a Bug in a Rug. Students are not only practicing their colors, shapes, and number recognition, but they are also practicing being good sports and taking turns. I paired this project with some Cantata Learning read alouds from the Good Sports series. As we practice these games we remind ourselves about the important messages we learned from the books about being a good winner, being a good loser, and always playing by the rules.
Thank you for making this dream come true! My kindergarteners are already asking me when the next game is coming! I can't wait to continue to implement this project monthly!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 7 other donors.Let's Keep Reading!
Funded Mar 16, 2021These books arrived right at the end of the school year. I was able to do some book talks. I was also able to get some of them in the hands of students before the final checkout -- especially those that are part of a series that readers were begging for! They will be the first books in our "Look New Books" display in a few short weeks when we start back at school.
Others from this project I have been using to develop lessons, units, and stations for our younger readers. For example, after reading I Only Draw Worms, students will be reflecting on what they are really good at and an area they would like to improve. It will be a jumping off point for talking about goal setting and how we can use the library to help with those goals.
I cannot wait for the school year to start and to have excited readers engaging in their favorite books again! Thank you for supporting our library!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 3 other donors.Prairie Please, We Love to Read!
Funded Feb 19, 2021I am so excited to have received this school year's nominees for the Prairie Bud, Prairie Bloom, and Prairie Pasque awards. I have been reading them throughout the summer and developing highly engaging lessons for students to participate in throughout the school year. Your donation of these books allow my students to read rich, modern literature selected by SD librarians and teachers. It also allows for them to be a part of the voting process, like all other students in South Dakota. Thank you for making it an equal playing field form them in this regard! I am so thankful for supportive donors such as yourselves in helping make this project come to life!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by SONIC Drive-In and 3 other donors.Reading Up a Storm
Funded Dec 1, 2020"You have the NEW Pete the Cat book? I LOVE Pete the Cat!"
"You like Diary of Wimpy Kid, right? You should REALLY try the new Pigeon series."
"Yes! There's a new book in the Last Firehawk series! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
There are just some of the things I overhear my students saying about these wonderful new books. My students have truly been reading up a storm with all of these new books.
The most popular title from this project: Guinness Book of World Records 2021. I believe one person who donated to this project said that title was always a popular one with her students too. I simply cannot keep that book on the shelf -- and that is a great problem to have!
Thank you for continually helping our students develop a love of reading. The earlier we can instill that the better off they will be!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway
This classroom project was brought to life by FamilyAlbum and one other donor.Continue the Series to Amp Up Reading!
Funded Nov 20, 2020My students have been reading up a storm this quarter, continuing series with wonderful characters that they met in previous books. Thank you for providing the opportunity for my student to keep building their love of reading through new books, and especially through these books in a series. Following a beloved character through another adventure really hooks students into reading. What has been fun to see lately is for students to be talking to their friends during checkout time about the books they have read, recommending that others read them too.
Without you our library would not have the rich literature that my students really love. Thank you for believing in my readers and believing in the power of reading!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Radway