Did you know that a rug can make a big difference in the learning experience of a child? It's true! A rug that has a defined space for each student can help alleviate the stress of wondering where to sit when they come to the rug. It can also be a tool to group students for cooperative learning.
My students are curious and excited second graders in a high-poverty, urban public school.
70% of them are learning English as a second language. Many are homeless and/or highly mobile. School provides the only stable place that they know-and their only healthy meal.
Because their home lives can be so chaotic, it is important that school be exceedingly pleasant, structured, predictable, and fun.
Unfortunately, this inner city school does not have the resources to provide the first class environment that the kids deserve.
Despite their circumstances, my students are bright and full of potential. Their faces light up with excitement when they discover new things. Yep, they're pretty great.
My Project
I'm requesting a rug with a space for each student defined by a shape, a color, and a letter. In addition to greatly improving the aesthetics of the room, this rug will make management of cooperative grouping a much more efficient process. Students can work with their color groups or their shape groups. Having such an efficient grouping system will maximize cooperative learning time.
In addition to the rug, I am requesting one composition notebook per student. These will be used by students as their science notebooks. Students will be able to draw diagrams on the top portion and write on the handwriting lines below. In their notebooks, students will diagram and record their observations, questions, predictions, data, and conclusions as they venture through the process of scientific inquiry. Incidentally, they will be practicing new academic vocabulary and language structures as they write and share their work.
This project is important for so many reasons.
The rug is an essential learning tool for its grouping potential. I'll be able to group students either heterogeneously or homogeneously in only a few seconds. Students will have their very only spot on the rug, which will reduce the stress of finding a spot on the rug.
The interactive notebooks are a necessary tool for learning and will also serve as a lifelong memento for students at the end of the school year.
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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 Ms. Watson and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.