The cost of a variety of books about butterflies and immigration, as well as a butterfly farm Monarch kit and a Monarch life cycle poster is $231, including shipping and <a target="new" href="http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm" onclick="g_openWindow('http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm', 300, 800, 'fulfillwindow');return false;">fulfillment</a>.
FULLY FUNDED! Mrs. Wagner's classroom raised $260
This project is fully funded
Hello! I am a third grade classroom teacher at a Chicago charter school whose students are primarily immigrants or first generation citizens. We have a very diverse class, with students who are Bosnian, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Pakistani, Indian, Nigerian and Vietnamese. This will be my first year as a full-time teacher at this wonderful school, but I was lucky enough to student teach and substitute teach here last year. So I already know my students!
Since many of my students and their families are immigrants themselves, I feel that it is very important to focus on migration and immigration in our classroom. Last year, as a student teacher, I helped to develop a similiar unit on monarch migration and immigration and the students LOVED it! It really made complicated topics more engaging for the students and they were able to easily relate. For example, one student who was born in Vietnam referred to himself as a "monarch from Vietnam."
As second graders, my students ended this past school year by studying the life cycles of butterflies. They were so excited about this subject that I want to begin their third grade year by building on their previous knowledge of butterflies and linking it to the third grade topics of immigration and the study of our neighboring countries.
We will begin the school year by learning about monarchs and their amazing yearly migration to Mexico. For this, I am asking to purchase real monarch caterpillars that the students can observe and books on monarchs and Mexico. Last year, we were lucky enough to watch our monarch emerge from its chrysalis right in the classroom! It was an amazing experience for the students and I hope my students this year can also witness it! I also have plans to walk the students to a nearby park where milkweed grows and monarchs are often seen, for another hands-on experience!
We will link our study of monarch migration to immigration and the founding of our country and the city of Chicago by immigrants. For this, I have asked for several fiction and non-fiction books about immigration for read-alouds. My students love being read to, and will also use the books for research and during independent reading. As with all of our classroom books, the students will also enjoy taking them home for a night to share with their families. I also plan to take the students to a fabulous (and free!) local children's immigration museum.
Finally, we will deepen our knowledge of the country where monarchs migrate to. As part of a school-wide social studies curriculum on North America, our class will study Mexico! Again, the books will help us learn about the history, culture, politics and geography of our neighboring country.
Your generous donation will help my students become fully engaged as they learn about monarchs, migration, Mexico and immigration!
See how much we have to learn from the amazing little monarch!
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 Mrs. Wagner and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
