My students need a newly designed setting conducive to learning in the 21st century! It's time to adapt to the times in my classroom, ditch the broken desks, and give my students the flexibility they deserve!
FULLY FUNDED! Ms. Pauta's classroom raised $438
This project is fully funded
Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month
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
I am fortunate enough to teach a bilingual class of third and fourth grade students this year. Our students mainly come from the troubled but beautiful countries of El Salvador and Honduras. While some are born here; many are newcomers to this country with limited school experience. Our students face so many challenges in just coming to this country. They are faced with the task of learning a new language and the unrealistic task of becoming proficient with reading and writing in such a short period of time. In addition, they are sometimes faced with being part of a family that they have been separated from for so long. They need all the support and love we can give!
My goal is to ease the anxiety of my students as much as possible to make learning as enjoyable as possible.
They come to school so eager to learn but need a lot of support academically, socially, and emotionally. These students become our children, and we really strive to take care of them as much as we can in order to foster their success. My goal is to prepare them academically with a sense of belonging and success.
My Project
Do you ever look around when you are ordering your coffee and notice all the people quietly working away in their zones? Welcome to the 21st century! We live in a wifi world, and our students are no different.
If student motivation and higher engagement is truly the desired end game, then we, as teachers, must adapt right along with our students in our classrooms.
To see that some classrooms look the same now as they did 70 years ago is shameful. The students we share our classrooms with don't know life without constant connectivity, wifi and a global audience. Outside the windows of our classroom is a dynamic, fast-paced, and ever-changing world full of choices. How can we expect our students to solve problems and make choices independently if we constantly solve their problems and make their choices for them? Our classroom environments should be conducive to open collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking. This simply cannot be done when kids are sitting in rows of desks all day. We are requesting two tables to replace our broken desks, two bean bag chairs, and six balance chairs to start the remodel of our classroom and empower students to have choices in their seating.
There is proven research that shows that a flexible, student-centered seating arrangement in the classroom has immediate benefits for students. Flexible seating requires more movement and movement and physical activity is linked to higher academic performance. I understand that this is not just changing the furniture; it is also a transformation of a mindset from the old to the new.
Half of 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. Pauta and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.