Past projects 4
Lend Me Your Ears: The Power of Public Speaking
Funded Sep 23, 2019Thank you so much for your donation of the podium and microphone with speaker! When my students saw the box they were so excited and asked questions about what it was for. I happily shared that it was for them to practice their public speaking skills.
Some of them were a bit nervous about the prospect of standing in front of their peers and speaking, but after some initial practice they've gotten better and better! Now, they can't wait for their turn to speak. I am so proud to say that every student will have a chance to have their voices heard. I am especially proud to see my shyest students get up and speak in front of their peers.
Not only are my students gaining more confidence, but I've noticed that they are becoming better readers. Their voices are projecting more and they are more comfortable reading aloud in class.
We are finishing our unit on Julius Caesar and I can honestly say that my students have a better understanding on the importance of effective public speaking.
I am looking forward to having students present throughout the year! Thank you so very much!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Vargas-Catucci
This classroom project was brought to life by Yellow Chair Foundation and 2 other donors.Chromebooks for College Readiness: Enhancing Literacy Through Technology
Funded Dec 20, 2016I would like to thank you for your kind donation to our school. My students were excited when I told them we were getting Chromebooks for the classroom - especially since many of them do not have access to computers at home. The Chromebooks have revolutionized the way I teach. I use them in the classroom to provide my students with interactive lessons, supplemental materials, and visual support. My students enjoy watching the lesson unfold as a series of Power Point slides, especially with regard to annotating. From the screen they can watch me model the skills that they need to become stronger readers. During small group sessions students also use the Chromebooks to work on differentiated tasks. They log online to various reading programs and track their growth over time. The Chromebooks have been a tremendous asset to my instruction!
After school I have students who consistently sign up for tutoring. The Chromebooks help them to complete homework assignments, projects, and conduct research. One student in particular has improved her grades for all of her classes because she has regular access to the Chromebooks after school. Her average has improved tremendously because now she has the resources she needs to complete the required work. After watching her succeed three more students have been attending more tutoring sessions - and using the Chromebooks as well.
I am so happy to see that more and more students are engaged in the classroom and they are eager to complete their work because they have the technology to help support them along the way. Once again, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness. You have helped to change the lives of many students!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Vargas-Catucci
Next Stop, College! Close Reading for College Readiness
Funded Feb 27, 2015Thank you so much for your help in funding "Next Stop College! Close Reading for College Readiness." This project has helped my students tremendously. With the document camera my students are now able to see what annotating looks like. They can watch as I annotate a poem, an article, an excerpt from a novel or even a photo. They feel more confident about annotating on their own because they've seen it done with the help of the document camera.
The most exciting thing about the document camera is seeing how excited the students are to share their own work with the whole class. As we work on the writing process I continuously ask for volunteers who would like to share their work for a class feedback session - and I am never short of volunteers! Students appreciate the feedback they are receiving from the class and they can't wait to see their work projected onto the screen. Now, because of our class feedback sessions students are better able to provide feedback to one another during the peer-review stage of the writing process. As a result, their writing has gotten better in just a few short weeks!
I am especially happy to see how the document camera and the CD player have helped my special education and English language learners. We use the document every single day to go over the daily objectives, answer the do now, learn a new vocabulary word, practice our sentences, learn new material, and practice our skills. As a result, their notes are better organized and complete. It has become a part of our classroom routine and I could not be happier with the results. Thank you so much for making this possible!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Vargas-Catucci
Visual Literacy: Teaching Literature Through Visualization
Funded Jan 16, 2014On behalf of my ninth grade students I would like to extend each of you a heartfelt thank you. I wish that I could fully express the impact that your donation has made for each of my students. Many of them are struggling readers, English language learners, or are struggling to overcome severe learning disabilities.
In spite of their challenges I still believe that they are fully capable of doing what is expected of any high school student. My challenge is to scaffold these materials for them in a way to help them understand it better. One of the best ways is to make use of their strongest learning style.
Many of my students are visual learners. They can understand material better when it is presented with any type of visual aid (videos, charts, graphs, colored chalk, a presentation, a performance, or posters). The projector has been a valuable resource to help my students learn material that is typically reserved for a 10th grade level classroom.
Since using the projector I noticed many kinds of improvements in my students. They take better notes, they are more focused and attentive, they score higher on assessments, and they are better able to annotate a text and write an argument essay response. I attribute these improvements to the examples they were given on the projector. I was able to use color codes for annotations, I was able to provide videos to accompany the texts, and I was able to engage them with interesting photos, maps, or artwork in relation to the texts. This would not have been easy to accomplish without a projector. Students would have had to rely on listening to me telling them about Jane Austen, or listening to me describe the sublime experience of being on Mont Blanc. Seeing the visual enhanced their understanding in ways that I could not do otherwise.
My students are supremely happy with the projector. They ask me if we are going to use it every single day because they look forward to learning the material in a more visual way. They only wish that more teachers had access to a projector, and I share their wish.
Our school year has come to an end, but I am already thinking of ways that I can use the projector during the next school year. The Common Core Standards place a great emphasis on non-fiction text and I can already foresee myself implementing graph reading, analyzing artwork, and teaching my students how to annotate a text with highlighters, colored pens, and notes in the margins.
Once again, thank you for your kind donation. You have made a lasting impact on 100 ninth graders this past year and your donation will continue to make an impact on incoming ninth graders at our school.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Vargas-Catucci