Past projects 14
Basic Needs
Funded Oct 12, 2023Thank you for your generosity. The school supplies you donated helped my students be prepared for school. Having the basic school necessities has helped build their confidence. Second graders learn more when they are using hands-on, concrete materials like paper and pencils, crayons, and markers. Second grade is where students begin to form paragraph writing, including narrative and informational writing. During their instruction, they use LOTS of paper and pencils.
Because of your donations, I was able to provide all of my students with the necessary tools to be prepared for school. Due to the new protocols in schools, students are not allowed to share materials. Because of the large amount of donations, I have enough supplies for them to take home to use when doing their homework.
Again, we truly thank you for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
Crazy for Crayola
Funded Oct 12, 2022Thank you for your kindness. The art supplies you donated to us have helped my students practice their artistic talents and creativity. Art is cross-curricular. For example, in math, the students draw arrays using dot art and in social studies/ELA, they created autobiographical poems and painted self-portraits. My struggling writers are able to create and retell stories through drawings.
Out of all of the art supplies, the scented markers are their favorite. There's nothing like drawing a rainbow that smells like cherries and grapes (lol). Because of your donations, I was able to provide my students with supplies they can use to make learning fun.
Again, we truly thank you for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
Meaningful Math
Funded Apr 13, 2022Thank you for your generosity. The math tools you donated to us make learning place value and double-digit addition more tangible and they help students become strategic at solving math problems. Learning place value is not an easy skill for 2nd graders. They are able to construct the problem first before they solve it. Second graders learn more when they are using hands-on materials like magnetic place value pieces. My students love doing hands-on tasks because they get to use STEM and work at their own pace.
Because of your donations, I was able to provide my students with math tools to help them become mathematically proficient. Due to the new protocols in schools, students are not allowed to share materials. So, now I have enough materials to continue to add to each child's math tool kit! They use them daily during math class and they are able to take them home to use when doing homework.
Again, we truly thank you for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
Writing Center for 2nd Graders
Funded Jun 1, 2022Thank you so much for caring about my students. The writing center activities are so helpful to my second graders. This year my students are being required to complete narrative writing stories with a minimum of three paragraphs. At this moment my class is below-level in reading and writing. To scaffold their learning, we use lots of sentence starters and story stems. The sequence story tiles have been a blessing for my students who are just learning how to write sentences.
My students love the silly story stems because they are versatile, funny, and super-easy to use. There are over 100 prompts to choose from. The story starters help them brainstorm and they get them writing! The story starters also have headings labeled settings, characters, and plot. This helps my students to remember to include the story elements like a beginning, a middle, and an end which are the requirements of a narrative writing piece. We use these materials as a "mobile writing center" where students who are struggling can use the materials at their seats or on the rug.
These writing materials are such a blessing to my class. Again, thank you for your generosity. You are truly appreciated.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
Busy Breakfast for 2nd Graders
Funded Feb 18, 2022Thank you so much for your donation. Your generosity has been so helpful to my second graders in more ways than one. School has not been easy since the pandemic. One major issue my class has been having is poor attendance and tardiness. One main reason is because of the staggered times with admission and social distancing. During pre-covid times, all students could receive breakfast at 7:45 a.m. The change in arrival times has made it hard for parents to feed their children in the morning.
So, I decided to create a breakfast program so that my students could get a quick, healthy snack before we begin instruction. We use the first 15 minutes of the morning to eat and clean up before we begin our day. For latecomers, we keep a bin with packaged muffins by the door. They can unpack quickly and eat. This way, no one is left to be hungry for three hours before lunch.
Breakfast is essential to student performance. Breakfast gives them energy and helps boost their brain power. Increased frequency of breakfast is consistently associated with increased academic performance. My students are much happier and they have shown increased focus and participation. Thank you again for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
"Books About Me" for 2nd Graders
Funded Feb 11, 2022Thank you so much for your donation. This project is very special to me and my class. Having a collection of books that represent my students and their culture is vital to their learning and development. I requested these books in February during Black History Month, but we are still using them today. The biggest lesson my students have learned is the joy of reading. Each book that was chosen is of high interest and engaging. Each story also has a theme and moral. For example, "Jabari Jumps" is a story that teaches courage and overcoming fear as a child. "The Proudest Blue" is a story that has taught my students about identity, courage, and the importance of family. My Muslim students really enjoyed it. Each book is amazing at showing children of color that "representation matters."
I shared a few of the stories as read-alouds with the class, but for the most part, my students read the books on their own. They have independent reading time after lunch and during center time. After one student finishes reading a book, they share it with their classmates. My students couldn't wait to get their hands on these books.
These books are such a blessing to my class. Again, thank you for your generosity. You are truly appreciated.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
This classroom project was brought to life by Munchkin and 5 other donors.Fun Phonics for 2nd Graders
Funded Feb 9, 2022Thank you so much for your donation. These games have been a lifesaver this year. This year my students are learning the new Saxon Phonics program. They are required to know all of the vowels and consonant sounds, blends, syllables, diphthongs, and digraphs. They also have to know how to code their vowels and combinations. At the end of the program, they have to complete two assessments independently to show mastery. These games have definitely helped my students practice their phonics skills.
My students love the games because they are fun, engaging, and super-easy to use.
The directions are child-friendly, so my students can play on their own or with a small group of classmates. Some of the games help students develop reading and decoding skills while others have them practice asking and answering questions. All of the games provide hands-on reinforcement with letter sounds and are perfect for independent learning.
Thank you for your donation. I am so grateful for these wonderful gifts. My students have really enjoyed being able to practice and compete against each other. This is a great way to end the year.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
This classroom project was brought to life by Black History Month Partners and one other donor.Ear-Resistible Reading
Funded Nov 30, 2021Thank you so much for your donation. These headphones are so helpful to my second graders in more ways than one. This year my students have to complete multiple online assessments like the quarterly iReady diagnostic tests and the STAR reading and math assessments. These assessments are completed independently and require the students to listen to the audio for directions on how to complete each section. Imagine the insanity of having twenty laptops talking at the same time! These headphones definitely help me to assess my entire class at the same time without having students disrupt each other.
My students love the headphones because they are versatile, comfortable, and super-easy to use. The headphones have a handy volume control on the cord that students can scroll up and down, so they don't have to use the volume buttons on the laptop's keyboard. They also have an adjustable headband to ensure that they fit every student. The headphones are used during independent intervention, phonics time, and for spelling. My younger students created a"mobile listening center" where they use their laptops and headphones to listen to books online. On Fridays, my students use the headphones to play math games to challenge each other. My students have also learned how to use the microphone icon on Google to research using "search by voice."
These headphones are such a blessing to my class. Again, thank you for your generosity. You are truly appreciated.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 2 other donors.Math Manipulatives for Young Minds
Funded Oct 26, 2021Thank you for your generosity. The math tools you donated to us make learning math more tangible and they help students become strategic at solving math problems. Second graders learn more when they are using hands-on materials like ten frames and counters. They are able to construct the problem first before they solve it. Using multiple math tools simultaneously, like a hundred chart and ten frames, helps them to check their work and detect possible errors using a different strategy.
Because of your donations, I was able to provide my students with math tools to help them become mathematically proficient. Due to the new protocols in schools, students are not allowed to share materials. So, for the first time, I have enough materials to make each child their own math tool kit! They use them daily during math class and they are able to take them home to use when doing homework. Another great thing is that each student has the tool kit to use at home if we ever have to switch to virtual learning again.
Again, we truly thank you for your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy
This classroom project was brought to life by General Motors and 3 other donors.STEMulating Fun!
Funded Oct 5, 2021Last year my students spent the entire year doing virtual learning. Due to this, they missed out on the opportunity to engage in cooperative learning and project-based learning. This year has also created some challenges due to quarantining and school closures. So, while we are back to in-person learning, we are going to use this second half of the school year to focus more on hands-on learning. The goal is to encourage the students to problem solve as they explore.
I didn't tell my students about the materials until they arrived. I did the "materials reveal" on a Friday during "free time." Most of my students were super excited to use the materials immediately because they are familiar with building with Legos. A few were a little hesitant to participate, but after seeing the other students begin to free-style build, they began to join in.
My students love playing games. They are also avid video gamers which gives them a competitive nature. So it was only right to have them compete against each other. My students will be completing the "25 2nd Grade STEM Challenges" to have fun exploring science, technology, engineering, and math while helping them think creatively. Some of the challenges include building a house, building a tower, creating a rocket, and building a small robot. These materials will help each student complete at least five of the challenges. Thank you. We truly appreciate your generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. McCoy