Past projects 11
Getting Ready for the Fall!
Funded Jun 15, 2017THANK YOU! Thank you for allowing my babies to come back to school and have one less worry in their lives. By allowing me to provide supplies for them, they don't have to worry about telling me they don't have a pen or pencil, or their mom couldn't afford to buy the supplies on the supply list. Having a stocked classroom allows my students to get right to learning!
Everyone can play a part in helping close the achievement gap. I am so blessed you decided to choose my classroom for your effort! Thank you!!
Educationally yours,
Carrie”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
Wellness in the Classroom!
Funded Aug 1, 2017Thank you for your contribution to my classroom! Often times students don't come to school because they have a simple need, a cut that needs to be covered, or a need for feminine products that prevents them from coming to school. By having wellness supplies my students don't have to worry about small accidents or needs in the classroom related to health or personal hygiene! They are able to focus on learning, which is why they are here!
We are are so grateful for your interest and support!
Educationally yours,
Carrie”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
Fresh, Clean and Safe!
Funded Feb 8, 2017Thank you for your generous donation to my classroom! I write a lot of grants but this one is different because it's truly for necessities we shouldn't have to ask for in a public school. My babies come to school healthy or sick, rain or shine! They come to school when they have cuts and bruises, hungry and tired. So having simple things like Tissue, band-aids, and cereal bars allows them to not focus on the bare necessities and focus on school!
Having deodorant for my young scholars may also seem silly. But many of my students don't have parents who can purchase hygiene products for them. It is this age when they begin to notice the changes with their bodies the most! Having to mask natural body odor with jokes and name-calling is a lot more difficult than just preemptively putting on some deodorant.
I have been trying to find a way to ask my students to write thank you letters for these items. I know it is a requirement for the grant and for school supplies and computers...etc I completely understand the need for students to engage and be grateful. But for tissue to wipe their nose and band-aids to cover open wounds and cuts and deodorant, which should be a basic necessity at home, I am struggling.
I will definitely have letters sent, but please excuse the vagueness of the letter as I don't want my babies to feel like they should be "thankful" they have these basic necessities. Frankly, Governor Rauner and Mayor Emanuel should write a thank-you to you for providing the funding they cannot seem to find...
I AM however,... So very grateful!!! Most of us do not teach so we can receive a thank you verbally from the children we serve. The reward is in the smiles and grade promotions, and the selective enrollment schools they apply and get accepted into. It's in knowing we are laying the foundation for a better future for you and me. I hope the pictures I provide along with the open invitation for any donor to reach out and visit my school and my students is reward in itself. You made a difference in a students life, please know that.
Educationally yours,
Carrie Ohannes”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
This classroom project was brought to life by Life Essentials Supporters and 4 other donors.Organized Readers are Better Readers!
Funded Oct 18, 2016Hello donors!!
Thank you again for your generous donation to my classroom! There are so many life skills we take for granted that need to be taught. One of which is organization! Organization is the key to success! By providing boxes for my students to keep their belongings in, their shared desk space with another student becomes manageable and easy to access belongings they need for class!
The best part of helping students get organized in class is I know it will bleed into their personal and professional lives!
Thank you again from the bottom of my heart. I am forever grateful for donors such as yourselves!
Educationally yours,
Ms. Ohannes”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
Setting up for Success!
Funded Jul 4, 2016Hello all,
THANK YOU for your amazing gift of supplies for my students! As you can see, from the moments of opening the backpacks with supplies to using them in class, they allowed us to be ready to learn from day 1! They were so excited to see we had plenty! For many students, bringing supplies is not an option and so this made them able to focus on learning and not what they were not able to bring to the table. Children shouldn't be penalized for not having tools for learning THEY cannot purchase!
I set the class up with supply bins and students have everything at their finger tips. By giving a call of "10 in" and the students replying "10 out" we keep track of our pencils and our bins to make sure we do not waste the supplies.
I am so excited and appreciate your support of my babies learning.
Educationally yours,
Carrie Ohannes”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
Technology for All!
Funded Aug 24, 2015Hello! I am so excited to share news of my technology project! We received the chromebooks right away, but the cart took a couple weeks. Then it took me a moment to set it all up...thus the delay in my writing. Two of my students were able to set up the computers and the cart in a single afternoon. I went through and labeled and tagged all the computers. The students were SO eager to start using them. They also were thrilled once they hear they would be sharing a single computer with only ONE other student from another class (my afternoon class).
We were able to get them started by obtaining all their CPS email addresses and passwords. I set these up at home from a laptop so they were able to login right away. Then, I introduced them to google classroom! They were super excited. We discussed and practiced proper online etiquette. The students have been extremely respectful to these technology "rules".
Once they were able to navigate the classroom, I was able to upload exit tickets and do nows on the computer. This is a great way for students to be on the computer, at least for a bit each day. They are excited to be perfecting their computer and typing skills!
Last, it has been a wonderful resource as assistive technology for a diverse learner who cannot read. He is able to listen to books online spoken to him during our silent reading time.
I am truly grateful and invite any of you to visit and watch your generosity in action!
Educationally yours,
Ms. Ohannes”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
Supply us With a Strong Finish!
Funded May 21, 2015thank you for providing me with supplies to get my school year started! While I didn't receive them at the end of the year, (because of cut offs) they were a blessing for me to have at the beginning! Having supplies sounds so basic, but unfortunately in a community where we have a 100% free and reduced lunch population, supplies are not the most important thing to my babies parents. We use a large project-based learning framework and everything I received will be and is being utilized to allow students the opportunity to participate in the curriculum the way it was intended.
Thank you for your generosity and concern for our kids!
Educationally yours,
Carrie Ohannes”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
21st Century Classroom Wanted!
Funded Dec 18, 2014Thank you for your generous donations. I can't begin to express my gratitude and appreciation. My students have already begun to reap the benefits of having computers readily available in the classroom. The students were extremely excited when I told them about the project getting funded. They asked if the computers were really just for our class! I was so excited to tell them, "yes!"
My students use these chromebook computers in many different ways. First, my diverse learners are able to sign out a computer when they are done with their regular work. Here, they may go onto our school online intervention programming where they can work on either math or literacy. Second, many students stay in at lunch and after school to type up papers and projects. They also use to finish research on monthly research projects. Last, I am able to put one computer at each table and they can use as a resource when participating in group learning activities.
Living in a 21st century demands DAILY contact with technology. This project is allowing me to provide this for my students as well!
Thank you again.
Educationally yours,
Carrie Ann Ohannes”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
If They Can SEE It, They Can DREAM It!
Funded Aug 14, 2014Thank you once again for your generous donations. The impact having a projector in my classroom has made is huge. Not only am I able to help provide a 21st century education to them with the use of a projector, but they are able to see texts and learning games they otherwise would not be able to!
I use my computer hooked up to the projector to start each day with Classdojo. It's a behavior incentive resource. The students love it and it really keeps them engaged! Then, I use it for by Literacy lessons by showing videos that help my visual learns understand skills such as theme, point of view and cause and effect. Last, I am able to show videos such as Bully to increase my classroom community.
The students love having a projector as it adds another level of engagement to teaching and learning. Without it, they would be held captive to xerox copies and my terrible handwriting in anchor charts!
Thank you again,”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole
A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words!
Funded Aug 7, 2014Thank you again for your generosity. Having a document camera in my class has made a huge difference. I am able to model my work on a screen in front of the students so they can exactly what I am thinking. This is extremely helpful with graphic organizers.
Also, I am able to show maps and pictures from our social science curriculum - DBQ (Document Based Questioning). For example, in a unit on Hammurabi's Code I was able to show Hammurabi's empire on the overhead and draw on the map to show how to use the legend to convert to the actual distance.
Students are also able to come up to the overhead and show their thinking which gives the student confidence. Students love to use technology and the integration of a document camera is just one more awesome addition to my technology arsenal!
Thank you again!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Cole