Mrs. Marquart's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 114

• Standing Desk for a Healthy Lifestyle (Part 3)

  Funded Dec 13, 2015

  Thank you for providing the funds to purchase a third standing desk for my classroom. My goal is to obtain five standing desks before the end of the school year.

  I want to encourage students to live a healthy lifestyle by making small changes. One small change we can all make is to choose to stand a little more and sit a little less. The students were intimidated by the standing desks at first, but now they are warming up to the idea. Students have come to me privately to ask if they can work at the standing desk instead of sitting during class. My study hall students take advantage of the standing desks the most. They have discovered that they are more productive and focused when they stand.

  Thank you for your generous donation. My students and I appreciate your commitment to public education.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

• Life Essentials: Fill our Bellies!

  Funded Dec 29, 2015

  Thank you for providing the snacks, beverages, and hand sanitizing materials for my students. I must say, you quickly helped me become one of the most popular teachers in the school.

  One of the biggest challenges I face is engaging my students and encouraging them to care about a work of literature that was written long before they, or even their grandparents, were born. This is a difficult task when some of my students are more concerned with the grumbling coming from their stomachs. Having snacks available for my students during midterm and Regents exam review proved to make a dramatic impact. I was astounded by my students' exam scores. I attribute part of this success to their ability to focus and pay attention during days that we reviewed for their midterm and Regents exams. Those granola bars, fruit snacks, trail mix and juices played a part in their ability to concentrate.

  Thank you for supporting public education in New York State.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

  This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose.org Team and 5 other donors.

• Standing Desks for a Healthy Lifestyle (Part I)

  Funded Aug 23, 2015

  Thank you for providing the funds to purchase the first standing desk for my classroom. My students and I have been using the standing desk for about two weeks now, and word has spread. I am the envy of many other teachers in my building who come to examine how I am using the standing desk in my classroom. Because the desk is on wheels, it is easy to move around the room. A different pair of students uses the desk each day. Because the sides fold up and lock in place, there is ample room for partners to work cooperatively. The standing desk has also been used as a podium for student presentations. This gives them practice speaking in front of a room of their peers.

  I cannot express how pleased I am with this addition to my classroom. Students who use the standing desk during class are more attentive and focused. It has become an asset for managing classroom behavior.

  Thank you for contributing this first standing desk to my classroom. My students and I are grateful for your commitment to education.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

• Dystopian Films For Analysis (Part II)

  Funded Dec 8, 2013

  Film analysis is a task we rarely have a chance to carry out, but thanks to your generous donation, we now have many new titles to add to our classroom library.

  Students have already had the opportunity to analyze movies for literary elements like conflict, characterization, and theme. We have also been able to compare the themes of some of these titles to literature read in class. For example, students studied Ayn Rand's Anthem, about a futuristic society with a controlling government, and then compared it to The Village, which depicts a society with a similarly controlling group of leaders. Students enjoyed watching I Am Legend after reading Richard Matheson's short story of the same title. They wrote about the major differences between the two works of literature and if the changes the director made impacted the message. Most recently, they watched clips from World War Z and discussed what it means to be human.

  Your gift has given me priceless resources to help my students learn film analysis, in addition to identifying changes in characterization in theme. These films have also given way to classroom discussions and critical thinking that would not have happened otherwise.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

• The Great Gatsby and The Roaring Twenties

  Funded Jan 29, 2014

  The Great Gatsby and the Roaring Twenties unit was the bee's knees! I have to admit that I was hesitant to introduce such a difficult text to my students, but their enthusiasm continued throughout the novel. Their favorite background activity was definitely learning 1920s slang. They were surprised to learn that words commonly used today, like crush and scram, were slang words from almost a century ago.

  The students greatly appreciated being given copies of the novel to keep. They were able to annotate directly in the text, something that we don't normally get the chance to do at a public high school. Many students told me that this was their favorite book of the school year and were happy to keep a copy. Three students even read the book a second time!

  Thank you for making this generous donation to my students. Being able to keep a classic novel, after studying its author and time period, will make a significant impact on a young person's education.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

• Know Any Good True Stories?

  Funded Nov 1, 2013

  Thank you for adding more than 20 new books and audio books to my classroom library. The students are very excited to have some audio books that they can listen to at home and during study hall. The Other Wes Moore and 127 Hours are titles that are quickly becoming favorites with my students, but the most popular title is Six-Word Memoirs.

  I only have two copies, and they are always being read. I didn't realize they would be such a hit, but the students are writing their own six-word memoirs and plan to publish them in the school newspaper. Here are some of my favorites: Made it to States: 100 Butterfly; Not ready for college, still going; Fluent in Spanish comes in handy; and She looked, he looked, they smiled.

  Your gift is already impacting the lives of my students. Students who normally don't read and write are writing their own six-word memoirs and reading the other popular titles like Tuesdays with Morrie and Looking for Alaska. Thank you again for your selfless act.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

  This classroom project was brought to life by NEA Foundation and 8 other donors.

• Dystopian Films for Analysis

  Funded Sep 10, 2013

  Thank you for your thoughtful donations, making it possible to can add nine post-apocalypse and dystopian films to our classroom library. Using films to teach analysis, along with elements of literature, is a great motivator for high school students.

  Some of these titles are new to my students, like Nineteen Eighty Four and The Road, and others are favorites they have seen multiple times, like Wall-E. Even though they have seen some of the titles in the past, they are looking at them through different eyes. Some of the students have mentioned that they cannot watch movies for fun anymore; every time they watch a move, they unintentionally end up analyzing it.

  Thank you for your generous donation and for your commitment to public education. My students and I appreciate your thoughtfulness.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

• Empty

  Funded May 24, 2013

  Being able to read Empty by Suzanne Weyn has opened the door to priceless classroom discuss of the novel's major themes and issues. We have used the ideas in Weyn's novel to research the change in oil prices and its impact on our society. Students quickly realized that the impact is greater than just not being able to drive to the mall or to a friend's house. The result of running out of fossil fuels is much greater. Like many dystopian novels and movies, this one offers hope to the reader. In small groups, we were able to brainstorm and write about ways this tragedy could be prevented from actually happening.

  Thank you for contributing this piece of literature to my classroom. My students and I are grateful for your consideration.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

• American Chillers For Nightmare Lit

  Funded Oct 17, 2013

  Thank you for helping my classroom receive the American Chillers Series. Johnathan Rand plans to write one for each state. Some of my students' favorite titles are Virtual Vampires of Vermont, Creepy Condors from California, and Ogres of Ohio. In New York Ninjas, a boy and his friends find a mask on Halloween and get involved in a war between ninjas.

  Because there are so many titles, each of my students was able to choose a different book to use for the research project. They loved sharing their stories with each other and presenting their projects to the class. By the end of class, every student wanted to read every book in the series.

  Thank you for your generous donation and for your commitment to public education. My students and I appreciate your thoughtfulness.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart

  This classroom project was brought to life by Elsa and David and 7 other donors.

• Reading In And About The Real World: Part Two

  Funded May 24, 2013

  Words cannot express how grateful I am that you purchased a class set of The New York Times Upfront Magazine for my students. We have received three issues so far, and the students and I have read them cover-to-cover. The entire class has been humbled by your kindness and some have mentioned that it is refreshing to know that adults in the community care about their learning.

  My students and I are looking forward to continuing our use of the magazines throughout the school year. We have been reading them on Fridays and using the accompanying reading comprehension and writing activities. Upfront Magazine is full of interesting, motivating articles that spark meaningful classroom discussions. One of the most popular articles came from the first issue and is about privacy laws. The students learned about Edward Snowden and were surprised to learn what their rights are when it comes to privacy in the United States. I even have students in study hall who request to read the magazine.

  Again, thank you for your generous donation. I am convinced that having these resources will make a difference in the lives of my students.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Marquart