Past projects 4
Help Students Find "Just Right"and "Just Like Me" Books!
Funded Oct 20, 2016Thank you for supporting my classroom's reading initiative! Your books have helped me teach close-reading skills to my students to help them on this year's upcoming exams as well as turning them into lifelong readers!
These books also allowed students to see books for the first time that they could relate to and enjoy. My student Nishat was particularly excited about the Muslin Teenager's Handbook. I caught her eying this book from across the room when I put it on my shelf. Nishat is a hopeless romantic who is not allowed to date. She was grateful for a book that told her how to navigate the romantic teenage waters as a modern Muslim girl.
At the beginning of every class, students engage in ten minutes of silent reading then break into small book club groups to discuss what they read. They then write about their books and create recommendation bookmarks to put inside their books to encourage their classmates to give their favorite book a chance!”
With gratitude,
Ms. C.
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 3 other donors.Give Award Winning "Comics" a Place on the ELA Shelf!
Funded Dec 8, 2016Thank you for funding my project! My students were thrilled to know that next year they will be reading the second part of Persepolis! I know these awarding winning graphic novels will fly off my shelves once they arrive.
Thank you again for supporting our reading community. All my students appreciate it!”
With gratitude,
Ms. C.
Back to School Supplies: Bring Equity to 7th grade ELA!
Funded Sep 4, 2015A big thank you goes out to my friends and family who supported my classroom this year! The materials you gave my students allowed me to plan a variety of activities that get kids out of their seats and communicating with each other about texts we read in class. Activities such as gallery walks allowed my students to walk around the room (like a gallery) and pause at each piece of chart paper to analyze the information presented. Chart paper was also used to help students present their comparisons around the sci-fi story "All Summer in A Day" by Ray Bradbury. These activities allow students to engage with the text in a physical way, so ELA class is more enjoyable and different from their other more traditional classes.
Finally, I always explain to my students that the materials they received are from the people of Donorschose.com who care about their education. When they hear this, they always take extra care with markers and other materials. I rarely have to tell them to put the materials away because they understand that these materials are gifts for them. They don't feel the need to throw that marker across the room (but sometimes-- who can resist the urge?) Thank you again for giving this gift.
This year I also spoke to my colleagues about donorschoose.com, and they too are excited about their projects getting funded! Thank you for being part of a community of citizens who support young people's learning!”
With gratitude,
Ms. C.
Welcome Back!:Materials for ELA Back to School Classroom
Funded Jul 8, 2014The beginning of the school year is always an exciting and expensive time for teachers. It is exciting because of all the possibilities that lay ahead, but the expenses required to create those possibilities can feel very daunting for a young teacher. With your support, I was able to do lots of things with my students!
The chart paper was especially helpful! We used this paper to have "paper talks" an activity used to help kids think, write and share their ideas with their classmates. Please see the photos of my students discussing what success meant to them on my project page!
The highlighters helped my students practice what details to focus on when reading. Often students just highlight everything on the page, but these highlighters helped my students practice annotation skills to improve their active reading skills. Thank you!
Finally, another great tool you purchased for my students were the ever expensive dry erase markers. My students love to write their thoughts and answers on dry erase boards! They like to hold the dry erase board and erase their answers. This kinesthetic activity has help me assess what my students know and well as bring a hand-on experience to my ELA classroom.
Thank you again for supporting my student's learning by offering them an array of ways to access their reading a writing skills. I am so grateful and so are my students!”
With gratitude,
Ms. C.