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This teacher needs your help!

Mr. Engelman from Van Nuys, CA is requesting books through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mr. Engelman is requesting

How Do You Spell Thesaurus?

My students need 36 thesauri because we don't have any.

  • $883 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

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Help Mr. Engelman

My Students

My fourth graders need to realize there are words in the English language besides, "good," "sad," and "stuff." This year, I hope to move beyond periods and capital letters, and focus on the content of their writing. Teaching them how to use thesauri is integral to meeting this goal.

My students are a motivated groups of fourth graders.

They attend our unique K-12 school in Southern California, with a total population of about 600 kids. Our school motto is: Never Give Up on a Dream. Our school focuses on developing the whole child, teaching not only academics, but also conflict resolution, confidence building, and social awareness. The teachers strive to make our school a place where kids want to be, and are inspired to be self-motivated, life-long learners. Our test scores are on the rise, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. About 50% of my class is on the free or reduced-fee lunch program, and 24% of my students speak English as their second or third language.

My Project

This is the age when students begin to understand the nuance of language. They know that "nice" is not the same thing as "fantastic." However, the words they use to improve upon monosyllabic adjectives are getting a little stale. It's time to start broadening their language skills even more. I remember being a kid and writing paragraphs and book reports. I thought it was fun to use "Roget's Thesaurus" or "Bartlett's Book of Quotations," in hopes of impressing my teacher. Of course, I remember making a lot of mistakes because I had not yet learned the subtlety of the language. I also remember taking pride in giving big words a try. I want my students to develop a sense of fun with language, and give them the same opportunity I had to broaden their vocabularies.

Let's face it, with our current budget, it would be a very tough sell to get my school to spend $700 on books.

However I truly believe my students are operating at a loss without having these tools available to them. The argument could be made that it would be a greater benefit to them to teach them how to find a thesaurus on the Internet. To that argument I would say that fourth graders are more tactile than that, and having the book in their hands would be far more meaningful to them.

Mr. Engelman Lake Balboa College Preparatory Magnet K-12 School Grades 3-5

Equity Focus

At this school, more than 50% of students are Black, Latino, and/or Native American, and more than 50% come from low-income households. Learn how your donation to this school supports a more equitable education.

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

More about Mr. Engelman

Van Nuys, CA View local requests

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

36 students impacted 14donors

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
Merriam-Webster's Intermediate Thesaurus in Hardcover • Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc. $17.95 36 $646.20

Materials cost

$646.20

Vendor shipping charges

 FREE

Sales tax

 $59.13

3rd party payment processing fee

$9.69

Fulfillment labor & materials

$35.00

Total project cost

$750.02

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$132.36

Total project goal

$882.38

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $882.38

11 Donors

-$882.38

Donations toward project cost

-$750.02

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$132.36

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 Mr. Engelman and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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