The Return of Peter Redwood (Mark Hermano)

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Thank you so very much again for your generosity! As mentioned before, I teach two grade levels at once and so differentiation is key. These math center activities have engaged and challenged my students at their specific math level for countless hours and I will continue to use them next year. I was able to pull small groups with a much greater ease, knowing that they were so invested in the center activities. Students love them so much they ask to use them during indoor recess and free-choice time. They not only were excited for the hands-on centers time, they strengthened their mathematical skills in a way that far exceeds the traditional paper and pencil approach. Your generosity has had an enormous positive impact on my students and me - thanks again and have a wonderful summer!”

With gratitude,

Ms. Parker

A few weeks ago we received the camera that your donation helped to purchase. There was a slight delay in receiving the camera; it was backordered from the distributor for about a month. Once we received it I was able to put it to immediate use in digital photography class I was teaching.

The photos posted on the Thanks part of this webpage are stills taken from videos we made using the camera. I think they convey the spirit of my students and some fantastic images they were able to capture. Having a moving video camera was a wonderful addition to this class: it opens the world of photography up exponentially! It provides so much diversity on what my students could do and experience, going back and forth from moving images to still ones. As expected, it generated a lot of enthusiasm for learning.

Having a new camera levels the playing field for my students who do not have access to the latest technology. For all my students it motivates them and validates the importance of their work to receive a beautiful new camera.. Thanks again for your generous donation in support of young artists.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Keir

How excited my class was when the rug arrived! I told them that we had something new in our class that was bigger than this (my arms stretched out as far as I could to my sides, then up and down). We have had the beautiful rug for about three months now!! It makes our library area inviting and has been a great addition to our classroom -- many visitors have told us so!

My students have a colorful, comfortable, personal place to listen to read alouds at least two times everyday. They also use it to read with their friends, build, play games, and put together puzzles. They love being on this rug! Even when everyone is on it, they still have plenty of room.

One thing my class especially enjoys is being dismissed from the rug by its many characteristics, "You may go to your table if you are sitting on: a vowel, a letter that has a curve, an animal with two legs, an animal that can be loud, an animal with stripes, an animal that can live in the zoo, a square that has brown on it..." We LOVE it!!

It definitely helps with classroom management, as I can tell a student to sit on a certain square/letter if they need to be moved. Each student has their own space and is able to listen and participate without others touching them, bothering them, and being in their way.

My students think you all (these people we don't even know, "strangers") are simply wonderful! Thank you for supporting public education!”

With gratitude,

Ms. Connie

Thank you so much for your generous contribution to the youth of our country. The phonics phones have done just what I had hoped, increased my students' skills and motivation for reading. They are able to read aloud into their phone and hear themselves. This helps their pronunciation and often times helps kids to focus better when reading. Since they are reading into their phone, the noise level is minimized which allows me to work with small groups while the others are reading independently. The students who are not motivated to read independently have been much more excited about it because they think its fun to read into the phone. The use of the phonics phones has made a big difference in our daily routine. Other teachers are seeing how much my students love them and are wanting to purchase some of their own. Thank you!

I also want to thank you for the projector we received. I have been able to project different multi media presentations onto the board. My students are completely engaged when technology is involved. It has been very fun for all of us to have the use of the projector. It has aided in making my lessons more exciting and fresh for my students. Furthermore, my students are learning how to use a projector which helps them become more technological literate, which is a necessity in our technological age.

Your support has definitely made a great impact on my classroom environment and on individual students. They are excited about our new tools, as am I. We appreciate your giving tremendously. The impact you made will keep on giving as each year I get new students who will benefit from your generosity. ”

With gratitude,

Teacher

I am in the middle of my project with my students who are SO excited to be working with clay! We had a practice day and they are forming all the parts, learning how to slip and score (scratch and wet) to join their bird together. They are quite inspired by the pictures. I have been unable to complete the project yet due to be called to sub. We have 4 teachers out in the hospital, and that means I get called in. We will be finished soon! You can tell by their letters that they love this project. With our severe budget crisis, we really appreciate your support of the arts. Pictures will be on the way soon. What I am loving about this project is their enthusiasm to teach each other what they are discovering about working with clay.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Hiering

I would like to take this time to thank all of you for your generous donation to my 7h grade classroom. The book, The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer is a totally engaging novel that my students loved reading!

I currently teach 7th grade science and was able to integrate this novel into our unit on genetics. Students were able to learn about genes, traits, and cloning while also enjoying a novel that had them engaged from chapter one.

This novel also intrigued my students as it's setting takes place close to the border of Mexico in the future. The book includes many sayings and phrases in Spanish in which my students were able to translate for me. They loved being able to identify with the characters and the language!

Again, thank you for allowing me to share this awesome experience with my students. Your generosity has inspired thirty seventh graders who can't wait for the sequel.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Hoffman

I can't fully express my joy, excitement, and thanks for your donation to my project. It is great to see that you share my vision for encouraging literacy in young children.

The tools that you have funded will enable students to build vocabulary and increase their excitement in reference to their favorite read-aloud books. The preschoolers love books and the kits will allow them to be the teacher and retell the stories to their peers. I can't wait to see the look of pride on their face when the sit in the teacher chair and read to their class.

I hope to share with my colleagues a new technique in learning. Thank you so much. I can't wait to introduce these tools to the children.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Ari

Thank you so much for helping us create an inviting classroom library. Building a love for books is easier to develop in a cozy environment. The kids love the sofa and the bean bags. The library has become the most popular area of the classroom.

Most of the children come from families struggling to make ends meet, working two jobs or more. None of them have the time to go to the library, so it is integral to this community that the little ones have a place to develop a love of books.

We appreciate your generosity. Thanks for investing in the future.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Ari