You're on track to get doubled donations (and unlock a reward for the colleague who referred you). Keep up the great work!
Take credit for your charitable giving! Check out your tax receipts
Donate
To use your $50 gift card credits, find a project to fund and we'll automatically apply your credits at checkout. Find a classroom project
Skip to main content

Help teachers & students in your hometown this season!
Use code HOME at checkout and your donation will be matched up to $100.

See this teacher's page

This teacher needs your help!

Mrs. Milianta-Laffin from Houston, TX is requesting technology through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mrs. Milianta-Laffin is requesting

Newsweek: Brain's Super-food is Learning New Languages!

My students need access to Rosetta Stone's Latin American Spanish Program to develop better communication, focus, and critical thinking skills.

  • $638 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mrs. Milianta-Laffin for her next project!

Help Mrs. Milianta-Laffin

Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mrs. Milianta-Laffin for her next project!

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

An article titled, "Why It's Smart to Be Bilingual" in the August 7, 2011 issue of Newsweek, stopped me in my tracks. The tagline said it all, " The brain's real "super food" may be learning new languages." My students are hungry for new knowledge, and with your help, we can serve it up!

I have served nearly 900 Title-1 elementary students in our nation's 4th largest city since arriving with the Teach for America program in 2006.

After completing my 2 year commitment, I was not prepared to leave my campus because I felt, above all, that my mission was not complete. Our campus is a mix of African-American, African, Latino, and Pacific and Southeast Asian students. Over 80% of our students receive free lunch, and in our district, over 60 languages are spoken at home. Our students are normal kids on the surface, who often face tremendous challenges during non-school hours. As teachers, we often have to fight the realities of our students' low-socioeconomic status in tandem with giving them the education they need. We focus all of our effort towards plugging the gaps in their academic knowledge, and sometimes programs to foster development and creativity lag behind, especially with recent funding cuts.

My Project

The article explained that students who are truly bilingual have greater, "ability to focus in the face of distraction, decide between competing alternatives, and disregard irrelevant information." So learning a language can be a ticket to better, more focused little brains in our classrooms, with the added benefit of future multilingual college students and job applicants. Also, recently on campus we have seen an increase in "bullying" that centers around cultural misconceptions and lack of mutual understanding. The use of this program will help our students better understand each other verbally and socially, working to stem the tides of intolerance. We have an older computer lab on campus where I have recently been able to upgrade the memory on many machines. They are not the fastest, newest machines but they will run the program. Classes can check out the lab for use, and teachers can also use the program to learn to better communicate with our students and families.

Our students are little sponges, hungry to learn.

The Rosetta Stone program teaches students one of the most spoken languages on the planet, and helps develop their brains to focus and think critically. The icing on the cake is that this program will also help students better understand a different culture, and bridge language divides in our community. One little program can do all of these things, and you can help. Please give if you can! Thank you for reading and supporting Donorschoose!

Mrs. Milianta-Laffin Alexander Elementary 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 Mrs. Milianta-Laffin

Houston, TX 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

800 students impacted 2donors

Boost your odds

Add a profile photo in addition to your classroom photo. If you add a photo, it'll show up right here on your project page.

You are more likely to receive funding if you put a face to your name.

Upload a photo

Top rated for efficiency and transparency.

You donate directly to the teacher or project you care about and see where every dollar you give goes.

Expand the "Where your donation goes" section below to see exactly what Mrs. Milianta-Laffin is requesting.

See our finances

Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
TOTALe Spanish (Latin America) Level 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5 • Rosetta Stone $499.00 1 $499.00

Materials cost

$499.00

Vendor shipping charges

 FREE

Sales tax

 $0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$7.48

Fulfillment labor & materials

$35.00

Total project cost

$541.48

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$95.56

Total project goal

$637.04

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $637.04

1 Donor

-$318.52

Donations toward project cost

-$270.74

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$47.78

match offer

-$318.52

Match offer toward project cost

-$270.74

Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$47.78

Still needed View calculationHide calculation

 $0.00

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

View complete list Show less

Give the most requested basic supplies

See teacher requests

Give back to your community

Find opportunities to impact local needs by exploring a map of classroom projects near you.

See local area

Project Activity

Project Activity
Back to top

DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

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 Mrs. Milianta-Laffin and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

See how DonorsChoose works
{"pmaHash":"","showProjectRecommendations":true,"leadGenEnabled":true,"hideTeacherDetails":false,"schoolState":"TX","teacherPossessivePronoun":"her","PMsManager":null,"schoolGradeType":{"id":2,"name":"Elementary School"},"TeacherPMForms":{},"completingDonationAmount":0,"teacherHasClassroomPhoto":true,"proposalURL":"https://www.donorschoose.org/project/newsweek-brains-super-food-is-learnin/681554/","mayHaveReplacements":false,"numStudents":800,"teacherScreenName":"Mrs. Milianta-Laffin","isEquityFocus":true,"proposalHash":"1600426380","isApplePayMobileOnly":true,"progressBarPercentage":100.00,"photosPublished":true,"queryString":"","DonorPMForm":null,"schoolCity":"Houston","teachersOnPage":[124880],"isTeacherViewingTheirOwnProject":false,"minimizedLeadGenEnabled":false,"proposalId":681554,"proposalMessageFormModel":null,"numActiveProjects":0,"verifyShowPhotos":"","eligibleToBeCopied":false,"authorIds":{"124880":{"owner":"Mrs. Milianta-Laffin","donationSalutations":{}}},"displayedPercentFunded":1.0,"proposalsOnPage":[681554],"pmaId":"","teacherProfilePhotoURL":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp124880_272x272.jpg?width=136&height=136&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1501359911826","teacherHasProfilePhoto":true,"currentWorkflowStatusCode":21,"teacherChallengeId":59257,"isApplePayEnabled":true,"fundedByTarget":false,"activeProject":null,"donorIdsForImpactPhotoCheck":["NTA4MzI4","MTA1ODMwNA=="],"teacherId":124880,"schoolCounty":"Harris","fullyFunded":true,"isStudentLed":false,"isExpired":true,"schoolStateObj":{"code":"TX","name":"Texas"}}