Past projects 30
Dig Dug
Funded Feb 12, 2024It may be Spring but here in Alaska, we still have mountains of snow. Our kids may not be able to play on the swings but they can build snow forts thanks to your generous gift of recess shovels for our school.
Girdwood Elementary students can't wait to get outside work with their classmates to dig forts and create tunnels in the snowbanks. Laughter and smiles abound as our industrious little snow engineers transform our wintery landscape into a playground to match their young imaginations.
With longer sunlit days our snow will eventually go but the shovels will still be used to revitalize, plant, and harvest our school garden. Know that you have made a positive difference in the lives of many young adventurers.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
COVID-19 Recovery Resources
Funded Aug 2, 2023iPads are like a pocket on a shirt. We are finding so many academic uses for this versatile learning tool. It has become a key component of our classroom communication and organization; enabling all to interact with material in a more mobile and hands on way.
An iPad has brought learning and engagement to new and exciting levels. The Apple Pencil encourages students to not only draw or take notes but also investigate objects deeper. The ability to pair with other devices and interact with innovative apps like the 3D Virtual Reality Merge Cubes helps excite learners and bring hands on learning to life.
Thank you for making all of this possible with your generous support.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
This classroom project was brought to life by Alaska Department of Education & Early Development.Can Touch This
Funded Aug 15, 2023Object Inquiry investigations abound in our classroom. Thanks to your generosity, students can now literally hold the world in their hands, move tectonic plates, dissect frogs, and peer inside the human body with the power of virtual reality 3D Merge Cubes.
I wish you cold have been there to experience the joy, curiosity, and imaginations sparked by this innovative investigative tool. 3D Merge cubes allow our class the ability to investigate deeper and explore farther than ever before.
Thank you for making this hands on learning possible.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 4 other donors.Show What You Know
Funded Apr 22, 2023Thanks to your generosity, our class is able to "Show What They Know" with the aide of our new document camera. Engaging, easy to use, and able to go anywhere in the room, this new iPevo wireless document camera is a great asset to any student-led presentation.
We look forward to incorporating this unique display technology into our Science, Math and Language Arts lessons. Any time you can empower students by letting them demonstrate their learning and showcase their work, it is a great day. Learning comes alive and students are inspired by their peers.
This valuable tool will be a regular asset to help build communication and deepen understanding of our learners.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
Scaffolded Math Success
Funded Aug 1, 2023Thank you for your generous support for our scaffolded math needs. The addition of these engaging Math Giraffe resources from Teachers Pay Teachers is making a big difference engaging students and helping them achieve mastery learning.
Students gain a lot from the doodle notes because they help tap into students visual learning abilities and make learning math fun. The math "adventure" games and cooperative learning activities have helped to both build mastery skills and increase comprehension of challenging math subjects.
Thank you for making our scaffolded math program a success.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
PocketLab G-Force Racers
Funded Apr 8, 2023Wish you could have joined us today in 6th Grade for our Pocket Lab G-Force Showdown. Students loved designing and testing their new 5 Pocket Lab G-Force racers on their Hot-wheels rollercoaster rides. Teams competed to see who could design "The most power G-Force," "Most Family Friendly," "Most Dangerous," and "Most Creative" rollercoaster ride.
Thank you for helping make this engaging Science filled day possible. We look forward to Pocket Lab G-Force Showdown becoming a new annual tradition for the final day of our Forces and Energy Unit.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
Want to Become a Millionaire?
Funded Dec 5, 2022Thank you for your generous support for financial literacy. We appreciate the new class set of books "How to Turn $100 into $1 Million Dollars."
Our Socratic Seminars have been engaging and sparked great discussions about how to think like a millionaire by focusing on saving rather than spending our money. Setting financial goals, making a budget, starting our own business, and investing early and often will help us benefit from compound interest to reach our million-dollar dreams.
Today we took our final exam by playing a BINGO game we made based on the terms in the glossary from our book. Each student made their own BINGO card with 24 key terms. To cross off a term, we then had to prove to a friend "three things this term is, and one thing it is not." After a BINGO was called, the class voted if the answers were correct. If we had the same term on our card, we could also cross off that term. We had to be strategic because, this way, the first person who called BINGO was not necessarily the person who had the most BINGOs to win the game.
Next week we will all present our Million $ Projects. Some chose to make board games based on the book, others are creating a How-To Guide, and some are making TikTok-style videos. It promises to be a great day of learning to summarize all the personal finance lessons we have learned.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
Kindle Love of Reading
Funded Sep 23, 2022Thank you for your generosity in helping "Kindle" our love of reading. The addition of six Kindle readers to our classroom has helped us meet the needs of our English Language Learners and struggling readers by providing instant translations and definitions of difficult words. They have also encouraged our reluctant readers to persevere and sparked a renewed interest in reading.
The first book we read with our new Kindles was Morgan Housel's book "The Psychology of Money." This companion text is the basis of our Socratic Seminars and NGPF Personal Finance lessons. Written for adults, this text is a reach for most of our 6th Graders. The Kindles you helped provided supported our learning needs and enriched our class discussions.
Inspired and encouraged, we look forward to incorporating a Kindle reader option for all our required texts and free-choice reading. Thank you for making all this learning possible.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
Multiplication Masters
Funded Sep 22, 2022Let the games begin! Mastering multiplication facts have never been so much fun. Thanks to your generous support, we now have several engaging multiplication mastery materials our entire class can enjoy.
It was an exciting day today in 6th grade as we beta tested and evaluated each of our new games. First we warmed up with our versatile triangle multiplication and division cards to review our math facts. Then we played competitive rounds of "Multiplication War." Next we ran several rounds of the BINGO style card game "Multiplication Splat." Finally we raced to see who could find answers the fastest using fly swatters in the game "Multiplication Swat."
We can't wait to team up to try our "Multiplication by Heart" game tomorrow and play more encore rounds of our other new games in our quest to master our multiplication facts.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford
3-2-1 Blast Off!
Funded Apr 19, 2022The countdown has begun! Thanks to you, our students will soon be building and launching their PocketLabs in Estes Green Eggs rockets to measure altitude, air pressure, and temperature.
I wish you could have been there to see the genuine excitement on their faces and the joy for learning you have helped to inspire. This hands-on science project is a great compliment to our discussions, celebrations, and studies about space exploration, physics, and rocketry.
We appreciate your generosity in helping make this learning opportunity possible.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Rutherford