"A class is a class...no matter how small"
I am a special education teacher. I teach a 5th grade self-contained special education class for students with mild mental retardation and speech/language impairments. We are in a high-need school with 56% of the school on free or reduced lunch. I have 6 students in my class and one instructional assistant, and we follow our own curriculum separate from any other class in the school.
The students in my class love to read. Our reading levels range from a kindergarten level to a 3rd grade level. Part of how we learn new vocabulary words from books is by illustrating them. To make our pictures vibrant and memorable, the students use colored pencils to color their pictures and make them their own.
Another part of our reading curriculum is learning how to match letter sounds with printed letters. We play word games on dry erase boards to see who can change "CAT" to "MAT", then "MAT" to "FAT", then "FAT to FIT", etc. The students love using the dry erase boards because they feel like the teacher...And they're practicing their reading and listening skills at the same time!
A donation of colored pencils and dry erase markers would brighten our faces and our papers. A bigger selection of colored pencils would allow each student to have one of every color, instead of each student getting 3 or 4 random pencils. Having more dry erase markers would mean that the entire class could participate in our letter and sound games instead of playing the game in shifts.
You will make it possible for my students to feel important and special by giving them the supplies they need. Just because my class is small doesn't mean that we're different from any other class in the school. Having ample supplies will allow my students to complete their work just like any other class. With new supplies my class will be able to color their pictures with a variety of colors instead of just one or two. They will be able to "play teacher" using dry erase boards during our letter games. Your generosity will bring smiles to all of our faces!
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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. H. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.