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This teacher needs your help!

Mrs. Ferro from Albany, NY is requesting supplies through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mrs. Ferro is requesting

Developing Cultural Self Awareness with Literacy and Art

My projects need a variety of art supplies, such as multicultural paper, crayons, paints and books to engage students in meaningful, cultural activities.

  • $913 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Celebrate Black Teachers and Students

This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.

I teach 2nd grade to 21 diverse and exciting students. Each year I try to create culturally meaningful and creative art activities that my students can engage in throughout the year. Art allows them to express themselves and let their imaginations run wild. Art in the classroom gives me a great time in which to teach ways to share and socialize. It helps develop their language and problem solving skills. Since my students primarily come from homes of poverty, their experiences with different types of art supplies is limited. My students deserve to enjoy something more than just paper and standard crayons. Often students of color will use a brown or black crayon for skin color. I would love them to be able to go through a box of multicultural crayons and find a color that matches their skin. We spend a lot of time reading and telling stories about their lives and culture. I would like my students to have the opportunity to be able to create art activities that represent who they are culturally. I would like to engage my students in activities that promote pride in who they are. Using books like, "The Skin I'm", "In, Skin Again", and "Black is Brown is Tan". I hope to engage my student in conversation about culture and race. While they are engaged in an art activity I hope to teach my class to have similar conversations with peers. I would like to see them discuss their likenesses and differences as a positive aspect of who they are. I hope to give them skills to develop friends based on their commonality as well as show tolerance for each others differences. "The Colors of Us", "Nappy Hair and Cornrolls" will be used as a bridge for students to embrace their skin color and hair texture as well as that of others. I wants students to have access to multicultural crayons, paper and paint that they can use when drawing pictures of themselves and others. If you help to stock our art closet you will give my class the opportunity to work with multicultural paint, paper and crayons as well as sponges, scratch art, glitter glue, sun catchers, and pom poms. I appreciate your help in building a culturally artistic community in our classroom.

Mrs. Ferro
Grades PreK-2

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Where Your Donation Goes

Materials Cost Quantity Total
Chenille Stems (Pipe Cleaners) - 1/8 Polyester, Bag of 100 • Nasco $0.92 1 $0.92
Mini No-Mess Trays - Pkg. of 5, 9 x 12 • Nasco $8.32 5 $41.60
Sun Catchers Class Pack for 24 Students • Nasco $25.64 1 $25.64
Mosaic 1 Tissue Squares - Pkg. of 2,500 • Nasco $1.80 2 $3.60
Glitter Glue Pens Class pack - Box of 72 • Nasco $22.36 1 $22.36
Pom-Pom Giant Assortment • Nasco $12.55 1 $12.55
Sponge People • Nasco $3.12 1 $3.12
People Shapes on Craft Sticks • Nasco $4.27 1 $4.27
Multicultural Tissue Assortment • Nasco $3.24 1 $3.24
Pacon Multicultural Heavyweight Construction Paper - Pkg. of 50 sheets, 9 • Nasco $1.80 2 $3.60
Traditional Peel N Stick Wiggle Eye Assortment • Nasco $16.08 1 $16.08
Feather Assortments - Set of 3 • Nasco $3.16 1 $3.16
Crayola Multicultural Crayons - Regular Size • Nasco $0.76 30 $22.80
Crayola Multicultural Washable Markers Classpack • Nasco $31.45 1 $31.45
Black Is Brown Is Tan Arnold Adoff, Emily Arnold McCully (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.29 1 $6.29
The Colors of Us Karen Katz • Barnes and Noble $7.15 1 $7.15
Famous African-American Women Cal Massey, Cal Massey (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $3.55 1 $3.55
Just the Two of Us Will Smith, Kadir Nelson (Illustrator), Kadir A. Nelson (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $5.39 1 $5.39
Aunt Flossie's Hats (and Crab Cakes Later) Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard, James Ransome (Illustrator), James E. Ransome (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.25 1 $6.25
Black Books Galore's Guide to Great African American Children's Books Donna Rand, Sheila Foster, Toni Trent Parker, Toni T. Parker • Barnes and Noble $14.35 1 $14.35
Speak to Me: And I Will Listen between the Lines Karen English, Amy June Bates (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $14.40 1 $14.40
Snug in Mama's Arms Angela Shelf Medearis, John Sandford (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $13.45 1 $13.45
In My Momma's Kitchen Jerdine Nolen, Jerdine Nolen (Illustrator), Colin Bootman (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.29 1 $6.29
Hot Day on Abbott Avenue Karen English, Javaka Steptoe (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $14.40 1 $14.40
Great African Americans Coloring Book Taylor Oughton • Barnes and Noble $3.55 1 $3.55
Grandpa's Face Eloise Greenfield, Floyd Cooper, Floyd Cooper (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.29 1 $6.29
Daddy Calls Me Man Angela Johnson, Rhonda Mitchell (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.25 1 $6.25
Colors Come from God Just like Me! Carolyn A. Forche, Charles Cox (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $12.60 1 $12.60
Bright Eyes, Brown Skin Cheryl Willis Hudson, Bernette G. Ford, George Ford (Illustrator), With Bernette G. Ford • Barnes and Noble $6.25 1 $6.25
Rainbow Joe and Me Maria Diaz Diaz Strom, Maria Diaz Strom (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $7.15 1 $7.15
Dear Willie Rudd Libba Moore Gray, Peter M. Fiore (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.29 1 $6.29
Black Books Galore!: Guide to More Great African American Children's Books Donna Rand, Toni Trent Parker • Barnes and Noble $14.35 1 $14.35
The Skin I'm In: A First Look at Racism Pat Thomas, Lesley Harker (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.25 1 $6.25
I Saw Your Face Tom Feelings, Jerry Pinkney, Jerry Pinkey (Afterword), Kwame Dawes • Barnes and Noble $15.29 1 $15.29
Skin Again bell hooks, Chris Raschka (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $15.29 1 $15.29
Painted Dreams Karen Lynn Williams, Catherine Stock (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $16.19 1 $16.19
Octopus Hug, Vol. 1 Laurence Pringle, Kate Salley Palmer (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $7.15 1 $7.15
Ma Dear's Aprons Patricia C. McKissack, Floyd Cooper (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $7.19 1 $7.19
Homemade Love bell hooks, Shane W. Evans (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $15.29 1 $15.29
Grandpa, Is Everything Black Bad? Sandy Holman Lynne, Sandy Lynne Holman, Lela Kometiani (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $17.05 1 $17.05
Nappy Charisse Carney-Nunes, Ann Marie Williams (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $13.49 1 $13.49
Cornrows Camille Yarbrough, Carole Byard (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.29 1 $6.29
Nappy Hair Carolivia Herron, Joe Cepeda (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $6.29 1 $6.29
Honest-to-Goodness Truth Patricia C. McKissack, Giselle Potter (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $14.40 1 $14.40
Gettin' through Thursday Melrose Cooper, Nneka Bennett (Illustrator) • Barnes and Noble $15.25 1 $15.25
You Be Me, I'll Be You Pili Mandelbaum • Barnes and Noble $7.15 1 $7.15
Do Like Kyla Angela Johnson, James Ransome (Illustrator), James Ransome (Photographer) • Barnes and Noble $6.25 1 $6.25
Plastic Paint Trays • Nasco $3.40 2 $6.80
Matisse Inspired Sponges - Pkg. of 20 • Nasco $5.04 1 $5.04
Ribbon Value Pack • Nasco $1.40 1 $1.40
Flitter Velvet Doodles Group Pack • Nasco $24.20 2 $48.40
Disposable Paint Cups - Pkg. of 250 • Nasco $5.76 1 $5.76
Crayola Washable Paint Multicultural Colors • Nasco $15.97 1 $15.97
Class Collage Puzzle - 6, Pkg. of 15 • Nasco $14.60 2 $29.20
Folding Fun Masks - Pkg. of 40 • Nasco $5.76 1 $5.76
I Am African American Ruth Turk, R. Turk • Barnes and Noble $14.33 1 $14.33

Materials cost

$650.12

Vendor shipping charges

$65.01

Sales tax

$0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$16.25

Fulfillment labor & materials

$17.00

Total project cost

$748.00

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$164.20

Total project goal

$912.20

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

$912.20

6 Donors

-$862.35

Donations toward project cost

-$748.00

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$114.35

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$49.85

Still needed View calculationHide calculation

$0.00

Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.

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Project Activity

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