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This teacher needs your help!

Ms. Gelfand from Chicago, IL is requesting books through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Ms. Gelfand is requesting

Hey! That Character Looks Like Me!

Help me give my students books that represent themselves and others in their community.

  • $1,076 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month

Celebrate Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month

This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.

My Students

I am a special education resource teacher and I co-teach in a first and second-grade classroom. Each class has about 29 students consisting of diverse learners, ELL students, and a range of learning styles.

Of all the students in our school, 97% are from low-income households and 95% of them are minorities.

We are an inner-city Chicago school that every year has the privilege to serve many refugee students who are first coming to the United States to escape hardships and danger in their home countries.

Despite the range of backgrounds our students come from, they are excited and eager to learn when they come to school every day!

My Project

Every year we work to provide our students with the skills to become capable readers. But we also want them to be excited about reading and develop a love of reading. One of the best ways to do this is to have books with characters that look like the students in our class.

The books on this list include characters that are African, African American, Muslim, Middle Eastern, Hispanic, and Asian.

Many of our students are from these backgrounds and it will foster a love of reading to see characters that look like them portrayed in a positive light.

I would love to add these books to my classroom library and also be able to share them with other teachers in the primary grades to continue to foster a love of reading. I know our students will be very excited to see books with characters that look like themselves, their friends and family as well as their community.

Ms. Gelfand
Grades PreK-2

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
The Day You Begin • AKJ Education $13.86 2 $27.72
What We'll Build: Plans For Our Together Future • Amazon Business $16.26 1 $16.26
The Girl With A Mind for Math • AKJ Education $16.19 1 $16.19
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood: The Poetry of Mister Rogers (Mister Rogers Poetry Books) • Amazon Business $15.75 1 $15.75
Sofia Valdez, Future Prez (The Questioneers) • Amazon Business $15.28 1 $15.28
She Persisted in Sports: American Olympians Who Changed the Game • Amazon Business $14.89 1 $14.89
Who Will You Be? • Amazon Business $14.70 1 $14.70
Flying High: The Story of Gymnastics Champion Simone Biles (Who Did It First?) • Amazon Business $14.61 1 $14.61
Here We Are • AKJ Education $14.59 1 $14.59
Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat • Amazon Business $14.59 1 $14.59
We Are Water Protectors • Amazon Business $14.39 1 $14.39
Pink Is for Boys • Amazon Business $14.39 1 $14.39
I Believe I Can • Amazon Business $14.13 1 $14.13
Speak Up • Amazon Business $13.97 1 $13.97
Black Is a Rainbow Color • Amazon Business $13.89 1 $13.89
All Because You Matter • Amazon Business $13.87 1 $13.87
I Am Enough • AKJ Education $13.86 1 $13.86
Testing the Ice • AKJ Education $13.86 1 $13.86
Shaking Things Up • AKJ Education $13.86 1 $13.86
Under My Hijab • AKJ Education $13.83 1 $13.83
Bunheads • Amazon Business $13.53 1 $13.53
Ambitious Girl • Amazon Business $13.50 1 $13.50
Joey: The Story of Joe Biden • Amazon Business $13.33 1 $13.33
Separate Is Never Equal • AKJ Education $13.27 1 $13.27
I Walk with Vanessa: A Story About a Simple Act of Kindness • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
My Brother Charlie • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
My Abuelita • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Maybe Something Beautiful • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Wangari's Trees of Peace • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Where Are You From? • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Harvesting Hope • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Peaceful Fights for Equal Rights • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Sulwe • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Hair Love • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
The Youngest Marcher • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
I Am Every Good Thing • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Hidden Figures • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Cece Loves Science • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Islandborn • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Just Ask! • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Mae Among the Stars • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
The Proudest Blue • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
Alma and How She Got Her Name • AKJ Education $13.13 1 $13.13
I Promise • Amazon Business $12.98 1 $12.98
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind Picture Book Edition • AKJ Education $12.59 1 $12.59
My Friend! • Amazon Business $12.56 1 $12.56
I Am Perfectly Designed • Amazon Business $12.50 1 $12.50
Little Leaders • AKJ Education $12.40 1 $12.40
She Persisted Around the World: 13 Women Who Changed History • Amazon Business $11.92 1 $11.92
Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment (A Parker Curry Book) • Amazon Business $11.79 1 $11.79
Superheroes Are Everywhere • Amazon Business $11.74 1 $11.74
Eyes That Kiss in the Corners • Amazon Business $11.33 1 $11.33
Because • Amazon Business $11.12 1 $11.12
Mixed Me! • Amazon Business $10.99 1 $10.99
Ada Twist's Big Project Book for Stellar Scientists • AKJ Education $10.94 1 $10.94
Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: The Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement • Amazon Business $10.59 1 $10.59
She's Got This • Amazon Business $10.53 1 $10.53
The Seed of Compassion: Lessons from the Life and Teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama • Amazon Business $10.07 1 $10.07
What will I be?: There are no limits on the greatness we can achieve! A positive & powerful picture book showing Black boys planning for their futures. • Amazon Business $9.99 1 $9.99
Hair Like Mine (1) (Kids Like Mine) • Amazon Business $9.89 1 $9.89
Freedom in Congo Square (Charlotte Zolotow Award) • Amazon Business $9.74 1 $9.74
Skin Like Mine (2) (Kids Like Mine) • Amazon Business $8.95 1 $8.95
Happy Hair • Amazon Business $7.99 1 $7.99
Don't Touch My Hair! • Amazon Business $7.99 1 $7.99
Something Beautiful • AKJ Education $5.83 1 $5.83
Buffalo Woman • AKJ Education $5.83 1 $5.83
My Best Friend • AKJ Education $5.83 1 $5.83
Dancing in the Wings • AKJ Education $5.83 1 $5.83
The Name Jar • AKJ Education $5.59 1 $5.59

Materials cost

$865.24

Vendor shipping charges

 $6.00

Sales tax

 $0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$12.98

Fulfillment labor & materials

$30.00

Total project cost

$914.22

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$161.33

Total project goal

$1,075.55

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $1,075.55

3 Donors

-$717.03

Donations toward project cost

-$609.48

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$107.55

match offer

-$358.52

Match offer toward project cost

-$304.74

Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$53.78

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$0.01

Still needed View calculationHide calculation

 $0.00

Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.

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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Gelfand and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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