Past projects 7
Multicultural Classroom Library 4 English Language Learners
Funded Dec 13, 2011We thank you for your kind generosity in donating so many wonderful books to our classroom! Now we can read about countries and people all over the world! Many of us in ESL are from different cultures and we love to compare and contrast our traditions. These books will enrich our reading comprehension because we can make so many connections to the texts.
We had a very limited classroom library before. It is so exciting to be able to choose titles that I knew my students would enjoy. This year our school has suffered from drastic cutbacks. We were not able to buy much at all. In past years teachers were given a modest amount to use on new materials and this year we got nothing!
My students and I appreciate the new books and we know that we will enjoy reading them and that ESL students in years to come will also share in the opportunity to access a variety of reading materials in Ms. K's classroom.
We all wish you a very happy and healthy new year! Gun g-Hey-Fat-Chow!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas
ESL Students Slip Sliding Off Our Chairs!
Funded Dec 12, 2011My class and I would like to thank you all for your generous donation of new chairs for our classroom. We are so much more comfortable in chairs that are our size! No more slipping down on adult size folding chairs! The chairs are "just right" now like Golidlocks said! Now we can pay attention and keep our focus on learning.
We also love that they are all bright red and add cheer to our classroom. They are also less heavy so when the end of the day comes and we have to hoist them up on our desks, so the custodians can sweep up, we can do so with ease.
This year our school has suffered from drastic budget cut backs. Our ESL classroom is small and often gets the left over supplies from the larger classrooms. We are so proud now that our room looks and feel comfortable and cozy! Thank you all and we wish you a happy new year!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas
Multicultural Language Learning Through the Arts
Funded Dec 22, 2010My ESL students have been thrilled to have the Arts and Crafts materials you so generously donated. We have been busy studying the various art forms of sculpting, mosaic making, collage, painting, Japanese kite making, and African mask making. In conjunction with these art projects we have read related fiction and nonfiction literature. We studied African folktales and fables, and the history of Greek and Roman mosaic art, in order to better understand these art forms and the cultures that created them. We began our mosaic unit of study by first examining the mosaics in our neighborhood and then more mosaic images that we found on the Internet. We saw that many of the images they represented were scenes from every day life or abstract images that incorporated geometric patterns. Some students chose to do patterns that emulated the Greek key, as well as seasonal images like flowers and butterflies. The students took three forty minute periods to do the first mosaic, which is out of foam pieces. Our next step will be to use ceramic and glass pieces in grout.
My students have enjoyed using such sophisticated and unique materials. Their projects all came out great because the materials were so wonderful. Our classroom is decorated now with colorful projects that will greet their parents on open school night this week.
We all thank you from the bottom of our hearts! ”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas
This classroom project was brought to life by American Express Members Project and 5 other donors.Feed USA Project:Healthy Afterschool Fruit Smoothies
Funded Sep 13, 2010My students and I want to thank for the blender and books on nutrition that you donated. We were excited to make and drink different fruit smoothies and to learn about healthy eating. They are now more aware about how better to make the right food choices and why to avoid snacking on junk food.
They also learned that healthy food can also be delicious and can help them to be more alert and have more energy for learning and for play. They learned you can be as creative as you want with your food and taste combinations and how to follow recipes.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas
This classroom project was brought to life by FEED USA and 3 other donors.We Love Arts and Crafts!!!
Funded Mar 31, 2010My students and I thank you all for your donations! We have been enjoying the wonderful array of arts and crafts materials in our ESL classroom and afterschool program. We have been creating projects such as paintings and cards for Mother's Day, Japanese carp kites, scratch drawings, globes, suncatchers (a favorite!), collages, posters and much more. The children have been very excited to use materials that they had never used before; the glitter paints, dot paints, various paint brushes, craft foam, beads, letter stamps and ink pads. The materials will also be available to our new students next year. ”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas
Now We Can See!
Funded Oct 22, 2009Thank you so much for your generous gift! We have been enjoying using our magnetic/felt board. It is just the right size for all my students to actively use with manipulatives such as magnetic letters, for spelling and phonics, as well as to display our class projects and artwork. We especially enjoyed making the characters from the stories The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly as well as The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Turkey. We cut out pictures of the main characters and added pictures of each of the animals/foods she swallowed into her large stomach. We were able to compare and contrast the stories visually which is a great help to English Language Learning. The class just roared with laughter at the sight!
Our school has suffered deep cutbacks this year and materials are very difficult to come by. With your help each child in my class has been able to reach their learning goals thus far because they were motivated to participate in all the fun!
Wishing you all a happy New Year!
Much gratitude,
Ms. Karas”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas
Now We Can See!
Funded Oct 2, 2009My students and I would like to thank you for your generous donation to our classroom. The white board that you donated is the perfect size and now all the children can see it. It is on wheels and can be moved to either side of the room effortlessly. It's nice and shiny new surface is easily erased and the writing is clear. We use it all day long as well as during after-school activities.
As you probably know this year all NYC schools have faced tremendous budget cuts. We would never have been able to get a new board without your help! Langauge and literacy instruction requires writing, charting and reading as a class. The new board is great for all these activities.
My students were amazed that someone that does not know us personally would be so thoughtful and send us such a generous donation!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Karas