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This teacher needs your help!

Mrs. Ryckman from Tenino, WA is requesting books through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mrs. Ryckman is requesting

Racial Equity on the Bookshelf for Equity in the Future

Help me give my students a future where their lives are equally cherished, protected and valued regardless of the color of their skin through books that reflect these values.

  • $521 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

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

Help Mrs. Ryckman

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

My Students

Many of my second graders in our small, rural town come to school with challenges in their lives, and low expectations for their future.

We are a small budget, small town school, that is trying to think big.

Our district is not a wealthy one. The PTAs of some schools in the county raise more money in a year than our annual building budget! They bring in Chinese acrobats for assemblies - we power wash our chairs to make them look newer. Though many of my kids don't have a lot, they have big hearts and love making a difference by making Valentine's for Veterans, donating their stuffed animals to kids in Guatemala, or sending cards to kids at the Shoe4Africa Children’s Hospital.

At our school, we work hard to break the cycle of poverty and level the playing field for these kids, since all kids deserve the same chance at success. To do this, we must get creative with our funding sources. Thanks for considering a donation to help us!

My Project

Usually, I spend time crafting a thoughtfully edited mini-essay to support the aims of my project. This is not going to be one of them. It's 2:41am. I can't sleep. Each day I am wracking my brains to come up with novel ways to motivate my students to keep learning during shutdown, to support their parents in the role they have been thrust into, and to help my colleagues do the same for their own classes. Then I stop and look into the future of these beautiful kids as they become adults, and see that some of them will encounter greater hardship, some of them will be at greater risk of having their lives taken away senselessly because of the color of their skin. It breaks... my... heart. So what can I do about it as a teacher?

I can use children's books to talk about inequity, and model a future of racial equity I would like to see for my class as they go forward.

Over recent years, I have been working to bring better racial representation to my bookshelf. I can't emphasize how powerful it is to see yourself reflected in the books you read... and how subtle the erosion of the self is when you are not. I appreciate so much the beautiful people who have funded my other projects. The nobility of donors reaching out to fund strangers is an uplifting part of human nature. From my small corner of influence, I thank you in advance for your support of the aims of my project.

Mrs. Ryckman Parkside Elementary School Grades PreK-2

More about Mrs. Ryckman

Tenino, WA View local requests

More than half 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

23 students impacted 10donors

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

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X • Amazon Business $17.09 1 $17.09
Every Month Is a New Year: Celebrations Around the World • Amazon Business $14.99 1 $14.99
Rainbow Weaver/Tejedora del Arcoiris • Amazon Business $14.53 1 $14.53
Little Melba and Her Big Trombone • Amazon Business $14.19 1 $14.19
Viola Desmond Won't Be Budged /fxl • Amazon Business $14.05 1 $14.05
Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match / Marisol McDonald no combina • Amazon Business $13.90 1 $13.90
Sparkle Boy • Amazon Business $13.88 1 $13.88
Benji, the Bad Day, and Me • Amazon Business $13.88 1 $13.88
Call Me Tree / Llamame arbol (English and Spanish Edition) • Amazon Business $13.88 1 $13.88
The Other Side • Amazon Business $13.59 1 $13.59
Calling the Water Drum • Amazon Business $13.55 1 $13.55
Young Water Protectors: A Story About Standing Rock • Amazon Business $13.49 1 $13.49
We Are Water Protectors • Amazon Business $12.47 1 $12.47
My Hair is a Garden • Amazon Business $12.23 1 $12.23
Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History (Vashti Harrison) • Amazon Business $12.11 1 $12.11
Preaching to the Chickens: The Story of Young John Lewis • Amazon Business $11.69 1 $11.69
The Can Man • Amazon Business $10.95 1 $10.95
My Colors, My World/Mis Colores, Mi Mundo (English and Spanish Edition) • Amazon Business $10.95 1 $10.95
The Undefeated (Caldecott Medal Book) • Amazon Business $10.74 1 $10.74
Bird • Amazon Business $10.54 1 $10.54
When Grandma Gives You a Lemon Tree • Amazon Business $10.39 1 $10.39
Lend a Hand: Poems About Giving • Amazon Business $9.95 1 $9.95
Bringing Asha Home • Amazon Business $9.95 1 $9.95
Tan to Tamarind: Poems About the Color Brown • Amazon Business $9.95 1 $9.95
Sam and the Lucky Money • Amazon Business $9.83 1 $9.83
My Very Own Room/Mi propio cuartito • Amazon Business $9.19 1 $9.19
From North to South / Del Norte al Sur • Amazon Business $9.18 1 $9.18
Featherless: Desplumado (English and Spanish Edition) • Amazon Business $8.95 1 $8.95
When I Was Eight • Amazon Business $7.99 1 $7.99
King for a Day • Amazon Business $7.98 1 $7.98
Sojourner Truth's Step-Stomp Stride: CANCELED ([Not part of a series]) • Amazon Business $6.99 1 $6.99

Materials cost

$363.05

Vendor shipping charges

 $11.97

Sales tax

 $31.77

3rd party payment processing fee

$5.45

Fulfillment labor & materials

$30.00

Total project cost

$442.24

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$78.04

Total project goal

$520.28

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $520.28

8 Donors

-$369.11

Donations toward project cost

-$345.24

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$23.87

match offer

-$114.12

Match offer toward project cost

-$97.00

Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$17.12

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$37.05

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. Ryckman and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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