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This teacher needs your help!

Mrs. Marini from Hamden, CT is requesting books through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mrs. Marini is requesting

Project Lit. Expand Our Library

Help me give my students culturally relevant books, like Dear Justyce to feel more connected to themselves and each other.

  • $385 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mrs. Marini for her next project!

Help Mrs. Marini

Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mrs. Marini for her next project!

My Students

"We read to know we're not alone." Students in my classroom crave books that are relevant to them and show that their stories have a place in this world. As a new chapter of the Project LIT Community, my students are eager to find books that get them excited about reading

In a time when we must social distance, its imperative that my students have access to engaging, culturally relevant literature to connect with each other and the world around them.

My students represent diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds. They bring a special blend of linguistic diversity, background knowledge, prior experiences and culture to our Title I school. While many of my students are reading below grade level, these high-taste readers are quite adept at discussing current issues that are relevant to their day-to-day lives. They deserve the opportunity to get books into their hands which create the foundation for engaging and important conversations.

My Project

This upcoming school year brings a plethora of uncertainty regarding how often my students and I will be physically together. Many of my students do not have access to books at home. I would LOVE to give each of my students physical copies of these books that match their hobbies and interests so they can read at them home, analyze them during our Zoom meetings, and discuss in partners and small group book clubs.

The books requested will not only build excitement in readers, but they are stories that will encourage empathy and understanding and help build a better world.

Project Lit is a national, grassroots LITeracy movement. It is a network of dedicated teachers and students who are committed to increasing access to culturally relevant books and promoting a love of reading in our schools and communities. By providing a group of students with engaging, culturally-relevant books, letting them lead the discussion of these books, and providing opportunities to interact with these books outside of the school, we hope to create a positive energy that will increase students’ interest in reading, and, as a result, improve their capacity to read more complex texts. Due to their subject matter, these books provide opportunities for staff, parents, and community members to engage in conversations with students on serious social issues and increase the community’s cultural proficiency. My students deserve access to books that spark difficult, necessary conversations and affect change; books that help promote empathy and kindness and invite us to look at the world through a different lens; and books that inspire them to fall in love with reading again or for the first time.

Mrs. Marini Hamden High School Grades 9-12

More about Mrs. Marini

Hamden, CT View local requests

More than a third 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

40 students impacted 8donors

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
Wings of Ebony • Amazon Business $16.74 2 $33.48
Dear Justyce • Amazon Business $15.19 2 $30.38
Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel • Amazon Business $19.99 1 $19.99
Concrete Rose • Amazon Business $19.99 1 $19.99
The Forest of Stolen Girls • Amazon Business $18.99 1 $18.99
Written in Starlight • Amazon Business $18.99 1 $18.99
The Cost of Knowing • Amazon Business $18.99 1 $18.99
Like Home • Amazon Business $17.99 1 $17.99
Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet • Amazon Business $17.99 1 $17.99
Once Upon a Quinceañera • Amazon Business $17.99 1 $17.99
Don't Ask Me Where I'm From • Amazon Business $16.99 1 $16.99
I Killed Zoe Spanos • Amazon Business $16.99 1 $16.99
Before the Ever After • Amazon Business $16.19 1 $16.19
You Should See Me in a Crown • Amazon Business $14.39 1 $14.39
Woven in Moonlight • Amazon Business $13.39 1 $13.39

Materials cost

$292.73

Vendor shipping charges

 FREE

Sales tax

 $0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$4.39

Fulfillment labor & materials

$30.00

Total project cost

$327.12

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$57.73

Total project goal

$384.85

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $384.85

5 Donors

-$298.96

Donations toward project cost

-$257.87

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$41.09

match offer

-$81.48

Match offer toward project cost

-$69.26

Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$12.22

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$4.42

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 Mrs. Marini and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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