{"monthlySchoolDonationEnabled":false,"callToActionDisplayName":"Horace W Porter School","outOfStateSupporters":25.6,"allowSchoolLevelGiving":true,"hasFundedProjects":true,"projectGratitudeData":[{"teacherId":9460022,"projectId":9129476,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for helping me get materials to organize our routines/procedures in class! The lights have been great as bathroom passes and for letting the students know what voice volume we are during different parts of the day. The file folders have allowed me to organize tests my subject-making it much easier to find what I need to help me guide my instruction better. At the start of the school year it was wonderful to be able to use these and introduce them right away. This would not be possible without you and for that I am so grateful.","fullyFundedDate":1742831465941,"projectUrl":"project/our-class-runs-like-a-well-oiled-machine/9129476/","projectTitle":"Our Class Runs Like a Well Oiled Machine!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Surface","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-2_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9460022"},{"teacherId":2511481,"projectId":9025354,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for donating to my \"Pretend playing in the art room\" project! My students are having an absolute blast playing with all of the food, the microwave, and the pots and pans. It's wonderful to see them making healthy choices of which foods they choose to cook. And they absolutely love the microwave, which makes all kinds of noises and even beeps when the food is ready! They really enjoy working with the little figurines and creating scenes in the barn that I had gotten from another grant. They love to make the people talk about their jobs and I see how they choose the character as the one they might want to grow up to be someday. It's really cute watching them pretend to be a fireman or a doctor. Thank you so much for making my students dreams come true by bringing these materials to our art room. They always look forward to the end of class where we spend a few minutes on our social skills. These materials give me an opportunity to teach them the proper way to share, and talk to each other during interactive play times. This is so important to me as a teacher to have social skills as part of my lessons.","fullyFundedDate":1746453193990,"projectUrl":"project/pretend-play-in-the-art-room/9025354/","projectTitle":"Pretend Play In the Art Room!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Shive","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2511481_orig.jpg?crop=2116,2116,x0,y466&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1602117590130","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/mshive"},{"teacherId":2511481,"projectId":9025281,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for your donations to my \"Pretend Play Encourages Social Skills\" project! My students absolutely LOVE to build scenarios with the bamboo, ice and rock formations for the little animals to live in! Giving my students some free time at the end of class gives them a wonderful opportunity to work on their social skills with their peers. They learn how to interact with each other, share, and exhibit kindness amongst each other by asking each other if they'd like to join in play. It's truly heartwarming to observe this. The clubhouse has been such a huge hit with the children! I wish I had more characters as they love to make them move around the clubhouse and talk. Having these resources in my classroom has been truly wonderful, especially for my children who struggle socially! Thank you for your generosity, I can't begin to tell you how much it means to me as a mom to see these social interactions. :)","fullyFundedDate":1742927930942,"projectUrl":"project/pretend-play-encourages-social-skills/9025281/","projectTitle":"Pretend Play Encourages Social Skills!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Shive","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2511481_orig.jpg?crop=2116,2116,x0,y466&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1602117590130","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/mshive"},{"teacherId":9458832,"projectId":8194175,"letterContent":"Thank you for supporting students in various aspects of their learning. This project has helped build a welcoming community within the classroom and provide students with the tools and resources they need to be independent and successful. Students have become independent learners as well as collaborative peers because they have the materials needed to feel confident and safe expressing their ideas. Students are comfortable taking risks because they see their peers working alongside them also taking risks. Thank you for allowing me to create this welcoming environment.","fullyFundedDate":1707316475647,"projectUrl":"project/mathematician-materials/8194175/","projectTitle":"Mathematician Materials","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Wood","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-7_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9458832"},{"teacherId":9459733,"projectId":8786853,"letterContent":"My 8th grade yearbook students were THRILLED to receive this new camera! Our old camera didn't have a working short frame lens, so it made taking portraits and photos inside difficult. This camera comes with a WIFI wireless connect feature that has made uploading photos to our yearbook website so much easier. This camera will last us years and will be the product of several yearbooks to come! \r\n\tAt my school, I'm a part of the PBIS Team. This year the team has decided to dedicate an adjective for each month. When I saw the matching grant opportunity for a \"compassion project,\" I immediately knew I wanted to use the month of February to launch a school wide \r\n\"Capturing Compassion\" project. Throughout the month, students learned about what it means to be compassionate through lessons and various read alouds. \"Caught being Compassionate\" paw prints (our school's logo is a panther so this was just a switch up for our normal PBIS recognitions), were created and each time a teacher saw a student demonstrating an act of compassion they received a special paw print. Then, students' pictures were taken and displayed in our end of the month PBIS assembly. Those same pictures are also featured on a page in this year's yearbook. \r\n\tA yearbook is irreplaceable and something students cherish long after they leave our school building. My students and I are immensely grateful that Donors Choose approved this project and offered several \"match\" opportunities along the way. Thank you for your generous contributions and supporting students and educators across the country.","fullyFundedDate":1736991988862,"projectUrl":"project/students-capturing-compassion-through-th/8786853/","projectTitle":"Students Capturing Compassion Through the Lens:","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Dousis","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9459733_orig.jpg?crop=916,916,x113,y795&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1707156240833","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9459733"},{"teacherId":2511481,"projectId":8355621,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for your support in helping me to fully fund my \"Lets Create Some Cool Clay Creatures\" project!!! Students get so excited to create with clay! Being able to create in 3-D is something really special! Many children who struggle to draw with a pencil often do fabulous with clay, and vice versa! \r\nAnd then comes the fun part of painting it with glaze! My students go crazy when they see glazes that have color bursts in them! We call these speckle glazes! They make their clay pieces extra unique! Because these glazes are so costly, its really helpful when I can add new colors through a Donorschoose.org grant! Thank you again for making my art students extra excited about creating and painting clay!","fullyFundedDate":1715246877730,"projectUrl":"project/lets-create-some-cool-clay-creatures/8355621/","projectTitle":"Let's Create Some Cool Clay Creatures!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Shive","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2511481_orig.jpg?crop=2116,2116,x0,y466&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1602117590130","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/mshive"},{"teacherId":9461936,"projectId":8804710,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for donating to my project; it truly warms my heart to know that you understood why these items would be so liked and helpful in keeping students calm! I am offering these calming tools every time a child enters my room upset (they often help calm them down and distract them from their concerns) and during lunch groups or individual counseling sessions where children can practice using them as calming tools. The children smiled and laughed when they saw the new calming toys! One group was so excited to see the new stress balls and the waterfall calming gel that they screamed! We will continue to practice breathing (when appropriate) and squeezing the items to enhance focus during group and individual sessions! So thanks to Donna and anyone else that contributed!\r\n I think that our next steps are perfecting our techniques and generalizing our calming strategies to the classroom and to our life outside of school. Sometimes, we are limited in funding and I thank the Donors Choose Community for providing that funding and providing a way for teachers and support staff (school psychologists like myself) to receive that funding. Thank you so much and I hope that you enjoy the thank yous that we sent! It helps to know that someone cares so much!","fullyFundedDate":1735715821381,"projectUrl":"project/help-keep-columbia-students-calm/8804710/","projectTitle":"Help Keep Columbia Students Calm!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Garofalo","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-9_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9461936"},{"teacherId":1136547,"projectId":8937007,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for your generosity! The students have been very engaged in their STEM lessons and love that folks like yourself cared enough to donate so that they could have materials for hands-on learning. \r\n\r\nThe students have learned about forces through structures such as different types of bridges, slides, and swings. They were able to use the string to help them with their projects. They also engaged in the daunting task of creating traps for the mischievous elves that come around the holidays! \r\n\r\nThe students and myself are so grateful for your support in their STEM journey! They asked many times about how they were so lucky to be receiving all of the materials, and a rich discussion ensued about how it takes a village to grow a community. They were so happy to know they are valued by people who wanted to ensure they had the materials that would make their hands-on learning so much fun! Thank you, again!","fullyFundedDate":1731589689558,"projectUrl":"project/third-grade-stem-learning-for-the-win/8937007/","projectTitle":"Third Grade STEM Learning for the Win!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Martin","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp1136547_orig.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1707066117965","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/ms-egan"},{"teacherId":2511481,"projectId":8756788,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for supporting my \"Storage for Art Supplies\" bookshelf! The students immediately noticed it and loved how it was perfectly sized to keep their free draw items organized! Students who are early finishers love to explore the free time area. It is full of paper, colored pencils, scissors, glue sticks and crayons. When students have some leftover time, they immediately go to this bookshelf and grab materials quickly to get to work. The organization of these shelves lets students maximize the time they have to do creations on their own. Thank you again for supporting my art room....my students LOVE how Donorschoose.org has transformed my art room into a magnificent place for them to create!","fullyFundedDate":1733260162213,"projectUrl":"project/storage-for-art-supplies/8756788/","projectTitle":"Storage for Art Supplies!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Shive","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2511481_orig.jpg?crop=2116,2116,x0,y466&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1602117590130","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/mshive"},{"teacherId":9787562,"projectId":8853011,"letterContent":"Thanks to your donations, 13 students now have the area and materials they need to be successful in a chillax-quiet space. We use the space daily when students need to complete an assignment or need a brain-break before tackling another task/assignment.\r\n The students were very excited when the materials arrived. They helped to unpack everything and were amazed that people who didn't know them donated money so that they could have a better quiet space.\r\nThese Lego bricks, alternative floor desk and comfy pillow will continue to contribute to student success. It allows all a chance to reset and be able to tackle the day.\r\n As we continue our year, hopefully our next project will be funded so that we can share books and the love of reading with another group of students in a community school.\r\nThank you again from my students and me!","fullyFundedDate":1728651920262,"projectUrl":"project/a-chillax-spot-to-reset/8853011/","projectTitle":"A Chillax Spot to Reset","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Rinaldi","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9787562_orig.jpg?crop=756,756,x0,y332&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1728497128231","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9787562"},{"teacherId":2511481,"projectId":8754508,"letterContent":"My students are just \"over the moon\" with the animal figurines and barn! They have LOVED drawing them during \"Free Draw\" time, as well as playing with them during imaginary play. It has been so great seeing students from preschool, all the way up to fifth grade using these animal figurines with pure excitement. \r\nAs I have always told my students, I can certainly draw just about anything, but when I have an actual example to look at and draw from, my drawing is so much more accurate and is abundant in details. They are learning this too! As much as I want the students to draw freely, I also want them to really think about what makes each animal unique, by adding many features of the animals. \r\nMy students have loved the barn as well, as it helps my students learn to use their imagination to enhance their social skills during playtime. I have already decided that there will be a \"part 2\" to this project, just because I have seen the importance of students having the animal figurines to draw from, and the barn to initiate creative play among my younger students. Thank you again for supporting my Art Room, its such a special space for children of all abilities. Everyone loves to create my Art Room!","fullyFundedDate":1728061402702,"projectUrl":"project/students-learn-best-from-observational-d/8754508/","projectTitle":"Students Learn Best from Observational Drawing!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Shive","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2511481_orig.jpg?crop=2116,2116,x0,y466&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1602117590130","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/mshive"}],"pageName":"schoolpage_44209","usesDonorsChoose":true,"infoPageType":"school","demographicsInfo":{"numStudents":440,"numTeachers":42,"percentFrplEligible":24,"percentAsian":0,"percentBlack":0,"percentWhite":84,"percentIndigenous":0,"percentLatinx":9,"showFreeAndReducedPriceLunchInfo":true,"showDemographicsInfo":true,"sourceTooltipString":"the National Center for Education Statistics","gradesServed":"Pre-K - 8","studentTeacherRatio":"10.5:1","demographicsDataSource":"MDR School","equityFocus":false,"titleOne":false,"metroType":"RURAL","ncesMetroType":"RURAL_DISTANT"},"inStateSupporters":74.4,"schoolId":44209,"financialInfo":null,"twitterShareText":"Learn more about Horace W Porter School on @DonorsChoose:","schoolName":"Horace W Porter School","canonicalPageUrl":"schools/connecticut/columbia-public-schools/horace-w-porter-school/44209"}