Helping The Future of America! (Andrew's Giving Page)

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The students were thrilled when the large boxes appeared in their classroom. The excitement grew as we unpacked the boxes and the contents were explored and explained. The most popular items were the glue sticks and the clay. Several students wanted to know who gave us "this stuff" and why. When they were told that the items were given by people who believe in them and their abilties they smiled with appreciation.

The glue sticks have been used to complete alphabet books along with other cut and paste activities. The glue helped hold our Mayan temple together, the clay became Aztec sun stones, the burlap was used to make beautiful serapes and the art journals gave them a place to draw jaguars. We may go back to Mexico to learn more but we are now in China. The materials are turning into pandas, bamboo, soldiers and a great wall. Our travels will continue and pictures will be posted soon.

Students have learned how to problem solve together, how to share ideas and have been able to apply their knowledge in new ways. One student who had not figured out patterns yet became the class expert in making striped patterns on the serapes. His pride was evident as he eagerly shared his discovery. Another student demonstrated to his classmates how to add details to the Aztec sun stones using a pencil. This caused other students to be willing to take risks. These eager risk takers are continuing to learn from their explorations with the materials you generously provided.”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Logan-Earhart

Thank you so very much for helping to fund my project, "Literature Sets to Increase Interest." My students were excited to start reading the books and several kept asking, "Are these really for us to use?" It was a joy to see my students excited about using books!

These books have already helped to capture the attention of my struggling and reluctant readers. One student has said, "This was a really good book, I can't wait to read another!"

These books will continue to inspire my students to read and to increase their knowledge about history. I'm so excited to be able to hand a student a book that is on their reading level and they are actually happy to read it.

Thank you again for your generosity and giving spirits!”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Spencer

The students are so excited with the new laptop computer we received with your help. During their extra time or during recess they sign up to come into the computer lab to read, to work on classroom activities that they need help with or just come to do some research. Some students are going to EOG reading and math prep sites. This is another source of technology that is flexible. We also use our laptops in the school for presentations in small and large group settings.

The excitement is contagious. It's makes learning fun. The students have another resource which can help them as they move into the 21st Century. Technology is so important to the school, students, teachers and the parents. We will continue to grow our computer lab with new technology.

Thank you again for all you do for students not just here but everywhere.”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Mayhand

Thank you for the new supplies for the early childhood classrooms! Our new rugs help our classrooms look bright and colorful. Each student has their own letter to sit on during circle time. Our students absolutely love the rugs! Also, the students love having their own tub in the back of the classroom to hold all of their items in. The tubs help the students keep their items together in hopes that they will not loss anything.

Thank you for believing in the importance of early childhood learning! We learn through hands-on exploring. The lacing letters and colored paper gives us new ways to explore.

I am so happy to be able to tell my students that people donate to help us have new items for our classrooms!!!”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Rogers

I wanted to take a moment to say thank you for all the wonderful books that you helped my classroom get. It is really amazing to know that there are people that are supportive of hooking kids on reading at an early age.

When the books first arrived the kids demanded that I open the box immediately. They spent the next hour reading the summaries and talking about what they thought the books would be about. Most of the books were checked out immediately and the kids requested that they have silent reading time to get started on their new books. How can I say no to that? The kids were completely in the zone with their reading. When I told them to wrap it up because the bell was going to ring. They complained and asked if they could stay for next period too.

With video games, cell phones, text messaging, facebook, iPhones, and mp3 players, there is so much out there that it is sometimes a struggle to get kids to pick up a book. The books that you provided my students made them forget about all that other "stuff" and choose books over all else. Actually, a parent called me the other day to tell me that they can't believe that their child is reading again. Their child actually chose to stay home and read over going to the movie theater. None of this would have been possible without YOU. Our school is unable to provide these resources for our students. Without people that support education and encourage a love of reading, it would have been impossible for us to have these new books. Thank you again.”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Garcia-Sweeney

Thank you so much for your generous donation for paper, ink and printer maintenance kits. Teaching in a school/district that struggles for funding is difficult, but you have really lessened the burden.

I panicked when I found out the school had run out of copy paper, printer ink, and printer maintenance kits! I was not sure how we would be able to print literature circle sheets, talent show flyers, student of the month awards, or my student's promotion certificates.

Thankfully, I have amazing people that surround me. We were able to finish our projects and print everything we needed. I was even able to share paper and printer ink with the rest of the teachers in the building. Everyone is grateful and I still have items left for next school year.

You are very much appreciated! Thanks for making a difference.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Kozlen

On behalf of 104 science students, their parents, and myself, thank you for your very generous gift of a 1/2 year's subscription to Scholastic's Science-World magazine. Due to your generous contribution, my students received a wealth of pertinent, exciting, and up-to-date scientific and technological information and learning for the last half of the 2012-2013 school year.

For example, the Science World subscription provided students' with stimulating and interactive hands-on activities, games, and Internet related resources, which made instruction and student learning fun while at the same time promoted scientific literacy. Furthermore, topics covered by the various articles served as springboards that led to deep and thoughtful classroom discussions.

Overall, the Science World articles sparked student motivation and led many young learners to investigate various science related concepts that surpassed state mandated curriculum requirements. I feel confident that together we provided the raw materials needed to help this year's scholars step into the role of critical thinkers and thoughtful citizens.

Your endowment was a godsend, and I can't thank you enough for selecting my project to fund.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Pettiford

I am overjoyed and overwhelmed by your kindness! Thank you for helping to bring my class into the world of modern technology! Your generosity will reach hundreds of kids over the next few years!

With this technology my students and I will be able to once again engage in interactive lessons, use multiple teaching entry points to reach all students, play review games, center work and much more! Experience with technology one of the major keys to success in our modern society. The ability to create and present information using projectors and computers is a necessary part of business and college. This projector will allow my students to experience these things first hand. I will be able to teach my students technological skills that they will use for the rest of their lives.

This letter is a small token of my appreciate and gratitude. Your donations will greatly support me in closing the achievement gap!!”

With gratitude,

Ms. Zvizdic

Thank you so much for helping to fund my project! Children need lots of hands on experiences to understand abstract concepts. The materials provided in this project will not only give my students that hands on experiences they need but will make it fun and engaging to learn math concepts.

A total of 5 classes will have use of these materials and will benefit from the learning activities provided. Your contribution to the enrichment of these students and their education is more than appreciated.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Setzer