Ms. Vasquez's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 3

• Classroom Environment Essentials for 24-25

  Funded Oct 28, 2024

  My students have been LOVING all the new materials you have helped provide my classroom. We have used them so much already!

  Our regular favorites are the giant post-it posters and their accompanying markers. People often forget that even high schoolers need to get up and move around the room. We love to do group station activities that help us brainstorm before a whole class discussion and an independent essay. For example, today students took time analyzing how specific literary devices (setting, symbolism, characterization, etc.) were used in Oscar Wilde's play, The Importance of Being Earnest on each poster. By having low-stakes opportunities to brainstorm collaboratively before speaking in front of the whole class or writing an argumentative essay, this activity builds their confidence and even their social skills. Thank you for helping us make exercises like this happen. Not to mention, It is funny how having new markers instead of dried out ones can make a kid's day.

  The multi-colored pens and highlighters make our revision workshops so much more meaningful. By having a color coded system with targeted skills, they can offer each other feedback specific to the AP rubric. They can visualize separate skills and understand more deeply all the steps of the revision process. Ultimately, peer revisions went from students writing vague comments like "good job" on each other's papers to hyper-specific comments that demonstrate deeper understanding of each component in the writing process.

  Manipulative tools have also been a big hit for students-- particularly those who would rather play with play-doh while actively listening to a lecture on the Victorian era; I much prefer them holding it than their cell phones! Students with special needs often benefit the most from sensory tools that help them focus. The timer has also been a great tool. One student in particular has had so much more success completing assignments on time when he can visualize how much time is left.

  All this to say, your contributions make a difference. We appreciate you deeply.”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Vasquez

• The Importance of Being Earnest in the Classroom

  Funded Feb 9, 2019

  Thank you so much for helping me bring The Importance of Being Earnest into the classroom. My students loved the play, and we had a lot of fun reading it! We read the text in reader's theatre, and I brought in costumes (top hats, tea hats, etc.), so the students were able to perform the text in character.

  For my favorite project, I had students create modern adaptations of the text using modern language and a modern setting. It was hilarious to have students change the arguments over cucumber sandwiches and muffins to Flaming Hot Cheetos! One group even changed the title from The Importance of Being Earnest to The Importance of Being Ernesto.

  Most importantly, I am confident my students will be better prepared for the AP literature exam. Not only do they have a greater understanding and appreciation for satire, they have truly stepped up their critical analysis skills. Their final essays, which examined the use of meta references to literature and the conventions of a happy ending, included some of their strongest work! Lasty, they were able to apply critiques of Victorian conventions to issues in our own society. One student in particular, was incredibly inspired and made a hilarious satirical poster about the school's dress code.

  I absolutely love this play and, thanks to you, I was able to teach it! I know this text will be a fan favorite for years to come! It is engaging, hilarious, and challenging. Thank you so much!”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Vasquez

• Friends, Romans, Countrymen, Lend Me Your $$$

  Funded Nov 13, 2018

  To all my gracious donors:

  Thank you for your generous donation to my classroom. Julius Caesar is no longer in the sophomore textbook, and I am thrilled I have the opportunity to continue teaching this unit. Because we had a class set of plays, we were able to have a more communal and performative experience in class. In reader's theatre, students were cast as roles in the play and read the lines in front of their peers.

  In one of my favorite activities, students incorporated familiar social media forms of communication in order to make the text more relatable. First, they outlined mock facebook pages for the characters in the text. They also created blogs and vlogs from their character's perspectives. I was blown away by their cleverness and creativity.

  They are currently working on essays comparing Brutus' funeral speech to Antony's. Through a close reading and analysis of rhetorical strategies, students are able to determine who they feel is the superior orator. After examining how politicians speak to the common man, students listen more actively to tools of persuasion used everyday.

  I feel my students have become more critical thinkers throughout this unit. I am pleased to send them into the world as more active listeners to politicians, advertisements, and the world at large.

  Thank you so much for helping my students enjoy Shakespeare and Julius Caesar. After examining one of the most famous betrayals in history and literature, my students now have a deeper understanding of politics, rhetoric, and theatre.

  Thanks again,

  Maggie Vasquez”

  With gratitude,

  Ms. Vasquez