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
Menu
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.

Your school email address was successfully verified.

Upload a classroom photo

Ms. Gallagher’s Classroom Edit display name

https://www.donorschoose.org/classroom/8026067 Customize URL

View your stats
Track donations »
Upload a classroom photo
I have taught in my district for 20 years and I know through experience and data that my students struggle with academic literacy - comprehending many of the new terms often used only in the educational and/or science setting. Improved literacy will also translate into better post-secondary opportunities. My goal is to increase the academic and scientific vocabulary of my students, but more importantly to improve the comprehension of their reading, the quality of their writing, and even their speech. Through the use of dictionaries, one in each student desk at all times, as we encounter new, unfamiliar, or even familiar but "multiple meaning" terms, we can quickly refer to the dictionary to clarify the specific definition, pronunciation, a word root, etc. Utilizing a common dictionary eliminates the confusion that often occurs with my students selecting the incorrect meaning for the context. (Please note, in this age of technology, paper dictionaries seem archaic. But cell phones are limited, my classroom signal is poor, and it is distracting for my students to get onto their phones in the middle of class. As my students and I explore science, a subject with its own entire vocabulary, having a dictionary as an additional tool will support their learning through our readings and writings. As we define new terms, we will write them out and post them to our Word Wall in the classroom- which will include BOTH science vocabulary and academic language. We will review the Word Wall regularly, as this visual aid created by our dictionary use will reinforce their progress in academic literacy.

About my class

I have taught in my district for 20 years and I know through experience and data that my students struggle with academic literacy - comprehending many of the new terms often used only in the educational and/or science setting. Improved literacy will also translate into better post-secondary opportunities. My goal is to increase the academic and scientific vocabulary of my students, but more importantly to improve the comprehension of their reading, the quality of their writing, and even their speech. Through the use of dictionaries, one in each student desk at all times, as we encounter new, unfamiliar, or even familiar but "multiple meaning" terms, we can quickly refer to the dictionary to clarify the specific definition, pronunciation, a word root, etc. Utilizing a common dictionary eliminates the confusion that often occurs with my students selecting the incorrect meaning for the context. (Please note, in this age of technology, paper dictionaries seem archaic. But cell phones are limited, my classroom signal is poor, and it is distracting for my students to get onto their phones in the middle of class. As my students and I explore science, a subject with its own entire vocabulary, having a dictionary as an additional tool will support their learning through our readings and writings. As we define new terms, we will write them out and post them to our Word Wall in the classroom- which will include BOTH science vocabulary and academic language. We will review the Word Wall regularly, as this visual aid created by our dictionary use will reinforce their progress in academic literacy.

Read more

About my class

Read more
{"followTeacherId":8026067,"teacherId":8026067,"teacherName":"Ms. Gallagher","teacherProfilePhotoURL":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/136/teacher-placeholder-4_136.png","teacherHasProfilePhoto":false,"vanityURL":"","teacherChallengeId":21799354,"followAbout":"Ms. Gallagher's projects","teacherVerify":1352098472,"teacherNameEncoded":"Ms. Gallagher","vanityType":"teacher","teacherPageInfo":{"teacherHasClassroomPhoto":false,"teacherHasClassroomDescription":true,"teacherClassroomDescription":"","teacherProfileURL":"https://www.donorschoose.org/classroom/8026067","tafURL":"https://secure.donorschoose.org/donors/share_teacher_profile.html?teacher=8026067","stats":{"numActiveProjects":0,"numFundedProjects":1,"numSupporters":3},"classroomPhotoPendingScreening":false,"showEssentialsListCard":false}}
Supporting teachers and students since 2000

DonorsChoose makes it easy for anyone to help a classroom in need. Public school teachers from every corner of America create classroom project requests, and you can give any amount to the project that inspires you.

We've earned the highest possible ratings from Better Business Bureau, Charity Watch, Charity Navigator, and Guidestar.