Past projects 4
Bring Power to the Classroom
Funded Dec 16, 2021This year was our first school year in person since the pandemic hit. It was both a scary and eye-opening first few weeks, our students had completely turned their studies from in-person to digital. With that in mind, our staff switched to online platforms and continued that at the start of the school year. Upon our return, however, we realized that if we are requiring our students to switch over digitally on assignments, their Chromebooks would only last a total of 5 hours on a full charge. If students were using multiple apps or constantly on it, that number would go down. Students are in school for 7 hours or more, and yet we had no ports in our classrooms. In my class, the wall outlets were nowhere near students, and we could not use extension cords as it was a fire hazard. I needed to find a solution to this problem and the charging ports at each group table was exactly what my student needed.
All my seniors are grateful for each charging station at their tables. They are able to charge their computers, phones, airpods and anything else they need so they are productive through out the day. The stations have allowed them to use their electronic devices freely without fear of it dying miduse.
They really have changed how we interact and have allowed my classes to become digital only, saving on a lot of paper and other resources.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Castro
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 8 other donors.Materials that Promote Discussion!
Funded Aug 24, 2014With Common Core very much embedded in our classrooms, reading has become a fundamental activity in our lessons. Many students are coming in reading far below grade level and this year we have purchased books to spark interest in our students. The books chosen are all around common topics we encounter in our studies, immigration, loosing a family member, gang violence, and living the American dream. Students have gone through all the books that were purchased and many want more books with similar stories. The SAT flash cards came in handy this year with seniors taking the SAT on two separate occasions. Every item purchased with your donation has made a significant impact on all my students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Castro
This classroom project was brought to life by Gates Foundation Back To School and 4 other donors.Wifi But Nothing to Search With!?
Funded Dec 16, 2013Dear Donors,
First I would like to take the time to thank each and every one of you who donated to this project. As you may be aware with the changes to Common Core our students will be writing a great deal more. That means for us Social Studies teachers that we need the students to have access to more primary source documents. With budget cuts and limited amounts of paper the tablets have been useful in providing the students a digital platform to accomplish their work. It has also helped my seniors write essays and create projects. The tablets have boosted the students learning and my teaching in ways that only a fully functional 21st century classroom would look like.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Castro
Enriching our Vocabulary
Funded Oct 3, 2012The dictionaries arrived right before Winter Break and the students didn't realize it was an early gift to the class until we opened the boxes. To refresh our memories we looked at our old, outdated, small dictionaries to compare the two. The students were so surprised that people, family, friends and strangers took the time to donate money for them!
We began using the dictionaries when we returned from break. My 9th graders have been reading a lot and words have arisen to which they don't know the definition. My seniors use them every Monday and Tuesday to help with their Economics vocabulary list. My sophomores have one each day to help with their notes and essays. I never knew how much we would use these dictionaries until now. I am so grateful that these dictionaries have been able to allow students the same resources that other schools offer. Thank you once again for allowing my students the opportunity to succeed!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Castro