We are a classroom of 18 energetic, curious, and wonderfully unique first graders! Our school, which has about 400 kindergarten through third grade students, is part of a small, rural community in central Illinois. About 60% of our students qualify for free and reduced lunch. Our district has always been proud of the educational experiences it provides, but has lost many businesses and tax revenue over the past few decades and has struggled to provide resources to its students.
Every day, we make a promise to be kind, safe, and the very best learners we can be!
We work hard to learn in every way... socially, emotionally, and academically. We try hard, make lots of mistakes, learn from them, and try again! It is so important that students learn to accept and appreciate themselves and each other.
I am passionate about accepting my students as they are and helping them grow. They each have their own abilities, needs, interests, and emotions. It's my job to unlock their potential in whatever way I can.
My Project
My request is for materials that enhance social/emotional learning. These include high-quality children's literature to be used to read aloud, and yoga tools that can be used with my first graders.
Not only do we have a responsibility to teach subject material, we need to equip children with skills to become positive, well-balanced global citizens.
They can learn to understand and manage their emotions, have empathy and compassion for others, adopt a growth mindset, navigate friendships, practice self-care, and have respect and tolerance for others.
One facet of this project is to use quality literature as 'jumping off points' for rich discussion of social and emotional topics. Another facet is to include children's literature that depicts different ethnicity and race and to incorporate understanding and acceptance of cultural differences. I've also included literature that addresses children with disabilities and encourages empathy and understanding. Lastly, I've included some yoga materials, which include books to guide us and some instructional cards.
I have learned about the benefits of yoga with children and want to incorporate relaxation 'brain breaks' that include yoga this year. These materials will supplement curriculum that we already use and will be shared with other teachers in the building, and students I will have in the future. This affecting hundreds of students.
Thank you for helping to make the world better by nurturing and promoting positive, well-balanced learners and citizens!
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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. Levan and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.