My school is an urban public middle school in Oakland, California. Along with a diverse middle school population, we also have a specialized program to meet the needs of recently arrived immigrant and refugee students with a pilot 9th grade program. The majority of our students left their home country to find safety seeking refuge from war or gang violence. Our Newcomer Program serves students from around the world. They are thirsty to learn more about their new country and the language spoken in this new country. These students are strong, brave, and smart and have witnessed and endured more than many of us can imagine in their journey to the United States.
As a Newcomer team, we aim to design high-interest curriculum that engages and inspires our students and creates a positive classroom and school community, all while improving their English and academic skills.
Our students become active participants in our community while learning in small groups through hands-on activities, interdisciplinary projects, and collaboration.
My Project
I work with students who have been in the U.S., on average, six months or less. They are eager to learn the language, acculturate, and find their place in our school. Everyday, they do a dictionary activity, but we don't have enough dictionaries for every student, and they are a bit outdated. Currently, my classroom is the only class that has any bilingual picture dictionaries.
Our Newcomer program wants to provide our students with bilingual picture dictionaries that are available to them in each class.
We have approximately 225 Newcomer students in our school, so this order of dictionaries would be a great start to helping them experience academic success.
More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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