I teach kindergarten and have a wonderful school community and environment. Our community is very diverse and our parents have a lot to offer to our students. One thing our parents have a hard time offering is monetary donations. We have a lot of families who struggle to make it to take care of themselves. I do not want this to be a factor in the level of education that I provide my students.
Due to the current budget crisis and all the cuts that the districts have to make, our kindergarten class is increasing by 10 students and I will now be responsible for 30 children. Last year I worked hard and was able to receive a grant to purchase Leapsters to aid my students' learning. At that time we had 20 students and 5 children per group. We ordered the pack of Leapsters that included 5 handheld units. It was perfect, however, now there will be 6 children per group and we are one short.
I would love to continue to use these fantastic resources during our learning centers, however if I am not able to obtain one more handheld unit then this will not be possible. The students have also shown an interest in other cartridges than the kindergarten cartridge that was purchased. I think they are ready for something that will challenge them more.
We have about 75% of our students entering kindergarten not knowing their letters or sounds. We are expected to have them ready for first grade by reading and writing by the end of the year. The one solution that I have found that has worked great has been the use of the Leapsters.
The children are engaged and think they are playing games when they are truly learning. I have seen such growth that with the use of the Leapsters there were only 10% of students who did not know all their letters and sounds by December. This is great growth and I would love to continue to use this resource. I will need one more Leapster and extra cartridges to continue to run this program in the classroom.
Your help will ensure that my students are ready for first grade at the end of the year. Your donation will make it possible for me to continue to use a great resource that we have earned. Our students do not have these resources at home and I would love to give them these resources at school.
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