This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
"What's are you talking about? I've never heard of that before." An all too common statement made by first graders in response to something mentioned in a story. Young students learn new words all the time but sometimes they need a picture to match that word to.
My students are Superstars.
They work hard, they try their best, and they want to learn! They face many obstacles in their quest for knowledge though. My students live in a low-income neighborhood where many of their parents are out of work and gang violence seems to occur more and more each year. Over half of them are considered English Language Learners because English is not their native language. They're not only learning how to read in school but even how to speak English. Many of them come to my classroom already half a year or more behind in reading because they started school without knowing their letters or numbers. They are not exposed to many common, every day things like types of kitchen utensils, gardening equipment, things found in nature especially plants and animals not in the desert, or even whatever is sitting right next to you even. They're amazing kids who want to learn, they just don't have the everyday access to what the rest of us know sometimes.
My Project
The "I Spy" series is made up of books full of easy to read riddles and vibrant, eye catching pictures. Each riddle forces the student to think and comprehend the vocabulary being used and gives them pictures to match the words to. It also exposes the students to new objects that they may not have seen or heard of before. Young students learn vocabulary best when they have a visual to match it to. The pictures in these books are bright, interesting, and keep the students' attention. They want to read these books and will spend a great deal of time just looking at pictures of things they've never seen before. They learn from each other by pointing at things and asking what it is. They run up to me with the book asking what things are. They're driven to practice their reading so they can read the clues and solve the riddles and gain confidence when they do. These books are an excellent aide in developing any students' vocabulary.
Having these books in my classroom will aide and inspire my students to learn new vocabulary that will help them understand better what they read and what goes on in the world around them.
These books will give my students the words they need to communicate with others and get their point across. My students will learn with the help of these books thanks to the help of you!
Nearly all students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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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. Warshawsky and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
