My students need a more primary friendly environment! The flex sphere seating, reading bench, book storage, and supply storage will change the way we learn and move daily.
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
MES is a 100% low income Chicago Public School. We are located in the Little Village neighborhood, right at the border of South Lawndale. I have a classroom of 28 with various academic, social, and emotional needs. Ninety percent of my students are bilingual, and many of them immigrants or children of immigrants. Several of my students have individualized learning plans, which in turn leaves me with a challenge to cater to a variety of learning styles and abilities. A portion of my students are pulled out for extra learning support because of their academic level or social emotional needs. In this neighborhood, education and attendance is crucial to their safety.
My Project
For many of my students, my classroom space is the safest one they have in their lives. As I guide their foundational reading, writing, and mathematical skills: I determined our learning space was outdated. Broken chairs, lack of storage and primary friendly furniture left my kids overcrowded at their desks or on our gathering carpet. I hope with new classroom furniture I can inspire and surprise my students with a more colorful and conducive environment for reading and learning.
Most of my students struggle to stay focused as we go into the most rigorous learning in their first grade lives.
I know a simple change in how we sit, read, and store our books can impact their learning journey!
I know with additional book storage I can arrange my leveled books into primary friendly reading stations and feature additional books by genre. As we venture out into reading a variety of genres, something as simple as facing book covers and having more bins for books allows students to grab-as-they go. These are the needs that the bench storage, book cart, and book bins will be filling.
Currently my 28 students are divided into five desk groups. Unfortunately, down some aisles it is hard for each student to have space due to their bulky, hard chairs. With flex ball seating, students will be able to move more freely. They will have the ability to rotate and take their ball chairs easily to another location in the classroom to read or break out into discussion groups.
Finally, the colorful storage caddies will allow each group to store their art and work supplies efficiently! Storage and seating may seem like simple needs, but it comes to a high cost to a school and a classroom like ours.
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
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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. Berezka-Zuniga and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
