Ms. Alvarez's Classroom Edit display name

Current requests

Past projects 15

• Writer’s Workshop - Vibrant Writing Tools Help Burst Our Creativity

  Funded Aug 3, 2024

  Thank you so much for the writing tools that have helped our students in our classroom write, color, and draw like never before! The children are so joyful that they all have tools that help them with their writing assignments as well as creative activities!

  Writing is one of my students favorite subjects and now that we have all these writing tools, they are able to hone into creating all that's inside of them!

  One student commented how lucky our class is for the generosity and everyone agreed! Thank you, DonorsChoose and all that help support our young students here at Casarez in Philadelphia!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

• Managing Our Time and Emotions

  Funded Nov 15, 2021

  The large and mini-timers were visual, life changers in our classroom. I want to thank you for providing my young students the visual support that they benefitted each and every day. The children knew exactly how much time they had to play in centers or when it was time to transition to the bathroom or when it was time to go home due to the visual prompt and alarm from the timers. They heavily relied on these timers every day instead of me giving them verbal reminders or redirection, which helps support their independent learning abilities.

  I've witnessed my 3, 4, and 5-year olds glance at the timer, clean up their learning center, and rush over to another center knowing they have only a few minutes left to play, and accepted the fact that the timer went over opposed to crying, arguing or fussing about the lack of time they needed or wanted to continue playing in centers. I started off the school year with the timers and seats, so they immediately go the benefits of the materials from the get-go, thankfully! I have passed on the timers to the next teachers in the classroom since I will be moving to another school. She witnessed first hand how beneficial and rudimental the timers are for such young learners in their daily lives.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by Valhalla Foundation.

• Building the Foundation: The Love of Learning in Preschool

  Funded May 17, 2019

  Thank you so much for your support.

  My students absolutely love the STEM building toys; they're endless amounts of fun because they can be so creative. They've made cars, houses, bridges and they're able to share and tell their shapes and colors. Their conversations between one another have advanced just by their understanding of size, shapes, colors and similarities and differences. They know how to sort different pieces to the correct bins, some with picture prompts and others just by the toy itself.

  I am so proud and excited that these toys are a success in our classroom!

  Thank you, again and again! We appreciate your support!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by PNC Grow Up Great® and 15 other donors.

• Building Basic People Skills Using Toy People

  Funded Apr 9, 2019

  My students all come from a diverse background; from Puerto Rico, Haiti, Cambodia and Vietnam. These toy family sets of different ethnicities have been helping my students identify themselves with at least one of the toy families and describe similarities and differences with themselves and with their peers, which is more than I could ask for! We've used these family sets for sorting by size, gender and even by characteristics and family roles.

  I love how engaged my students are everyday they use these toys. It makes me proud we are getting great use of them and they are learning so much!

  We thank you for your endless support! Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by PNC Grow Up Great® and 10 other donors.

• Brighten Our Day With a LIGHT Table!

  Funded May 17, 2019

  This is a huge honor to have this project funded. My kids are very hands-on learners and excited about everything. This very, light table will definitely keep them engaged in their conversations, apt to ask more questions, spark more interests, develop many skills including sharing and caring for new materials.

  We cannot thank you enough for making this opportunity possible!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by PNC Grow Up Great® and 6 other donors.

• Beats by Dr. Preschool

  Funded Apr 4, 2019

  We appreciate your donation for our brand, new headphones for our technology in our classroom.we use it for our computer games, phone and tablet, listening to music and read-along books. The children are so excited and so engaged with the activities, appreciating the new technology. They are not only having fun, but learning that sound goes well with visuals, as well.

  We cannot be more appreciative with the new materials in our classroom. Thanks a billion for all of journaling and generous donations! And for making these opportunities real.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by PNC Grow Up Great® and 10 other donors.

• Babies From Around the World

  Funded Apr 4, 2019

  My students are so thrilled to have our new, ethnic baby dolls in our classroom. Many have chosen the one that looks closest to them whether by skin color, eye shape, hair type or just by their perception or preference. There are four different ethnicities and the kids love each and every one of them. The conversations they are having are amazing. It is not only the girls who enjoy playing with the babies, but the boys LOVE them as well. They're demonstrating how to care for smaller and more fragile beings; they're recognizing what it takes to care for others- feeding, clothing, changing, and just being attentive to them.

  We all thank you from the bottom of our hearts to yours, for the gracious donations that made these opportunities possible!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by PNC Grow Up Great® and 4 other donors.

• Picture This. Our Future.

  Funded Nov 19, 2018

  Our students are now able to enjoy seeing pictures of themselves all throughout our classroom with the luxury of our very own classroom printer! The parents view their child at work and play from the wonderfully, colorful printed photos.

  The printer is wireless which allows me to print from my phone or laptop, straight to the printer for the moment of, or following day for the children to see almost immediately. Their excitement gives us great joy.

  We have a Winter Show coming up, Santa came to visit, a Pajama Day, and a brand-new playground set on our school yard this week, and the children were able to see photos of themselves all thanks to our new printer!

  Thank you so very much for your support. Our classroom really appreciates you.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

• Now I Know My ABC’s!

  Funded Nov 13, 2018

  My students are so excited about our new Stand Up Magnetic Whiteboard and magnetic pieces. We have used it to sort pictures by their beginning letter sounds and writing letters by matching magnetic letters. They are recognizing both uppercase and lowercase letters and their sounds with confidence! They are so excited to share with both me and their peers what they are learning.

  With the Candyland Game, I have been able to teach turn-taking, identifying colors and counting skills. The children are enjoying themselves with one another and are demonstrating following 2-3-step directions independently. It is so amazing to see how such simple activities have so much engagement and excitement!

  Thank you to all of the donors who made these dreams possible! We truly appreciate your support!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Alvarez

  This classroom project was brought to life by PNC Grow Up Great® and 3 other donors.