{"monthlySchoolDonationEnabled":false,"callToActionDisplayName":"Sparks High School","outOfStateSupporters":43.8,"allowSchoolLevelGiving":true,"hasFundedProjects":true,"projectGratitudeData":[{"teacherId":9373614,"projectId":9891886,"letterContent":"When our project was funded, my students were thrilled. They could hardly believe that people outside our school cared enough to support them. When they first saw the mini fridge, microwave, and new supplies, their reactions ranged from excited chatter to quiet smiles. One student asked, \"This is really for us?\" and that moment alone showed just how meaningful your generosity was.\r\n\r\nSince then, these resources have become an important part of our daily routines. The mini fridge and microwave help students develop real-life independence as they learn to safely heat their own food and clean up afterward. They now take turns managing the \"snack station,\" stocking the fridge, throwing away trash, and practicing multi-step tasks that build confidence and functional skills. The snacks also support sensory and emotional regulation—students are noticeably more focused, calm, and ready to learn when they have access to what they need.\r\n\r\nThe binders and pocket dividers have made a huge difference in helping students stay organized. They now keep track of assignments, goals, and daily routines with much more independence. Even small successes, like quickly finding their warm-up materials, have boosted their confidence and helped the classroom run more smoothly. And yes—the Keurig has been a much-appreciated energy boost for me, allowing me to stay focused and present for my students throughout the day.\r\n\r\nRight now, we're working on a functional life skills project where students follow step-by-step directions to prepare simple snacks, log their work in their binders, and reflect on what they learned. These hands-on tasks help them connect academic skills to real-world routines, and your donation made it possible for us to create meaningful learning experiences that truly meet their needs.\r\n\r\nThank you again for believing in my students and supporting a classroom environment where they feel safe, capable, and valued. Your generosity made an impact the moment the materials arrived—and it continues to make a difference every single day.","fullyFundedDate":1763498210853,"projectUrl":"project/fueling-focus-with-snacks-comfort-and/9891886/","projectTitle":"Fueling Focus with Snacks, Comfort, and Care","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Valentine","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-8_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9373614"},{"teacherId":9373614,"projectId":9524407,"letterContent":"Thanks to your generosity, my autistic students can now work more independently and comfortably. The glue helps them complete cut-and-paste projects with ease, building fine motor skills and confidence. The ice machine has become a favorite classroom tool—we use it for science experiments, to cool water bottles after PE, and even for small bumps or sensory needs. Your support makes our classroom a more engaging, caring, and inclusive place to learn! Because of these materials, my students are thriving in ways they hadn't before. Thank you so much for everything you do!","fullyFundedDate":1755700062118,"projectUrl":"project/science-projects-for-autism-students/9524407/","projectTitle":"Science Projects for Autism Students","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Valentine","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-8_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9373614"},{"teacherId":9348904,"projectId":9242696,"letterContent":"I would like to thank you on behalf of my students and I for your donation to helping us have a bilingual library. This project came about from students expressing that while they enjoy reading from my English library that they wish they had access to books in Spanish as well. Our school library does have books in Spanish but they are usually checked out meaning they have a hard time getting the books they want. This need for more books and drive students have to read is what prompted me to submit this project to Donors Choose.\r\n\r\nSince the books arriving, I have had students checking out books and seeing an increase in students reading. They are sharing with their friends about what they are reading and less time on their phone. Their enthusiasm towards our independent reading time has increased as well where students are reading the entire time and become distracted less frequently. I have had conversations withs students about the stories they are reading and it has shown me that their recall skills is increasing as well as their reading stamina. Some have even shared how proud they are of themselves because they are reading consistently or even reading an entire book for the first time.\r\n\r\nThis is all thanks to your donation and consideration towards our classroom. Your impact in our room is felt and is making our learning better because of it. Thank you for your donation once again.","fullyFundedDate":1746786036875,"projectUrl":"project/reading-rocks-we-need-spanish-books-to/9242696/","projectTitle":"Reading Rocks! We Need Spanish Books to Keep it Rocking!","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Garcia Varela","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9348904_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1698972204322","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9348904"},{"teacherId":9895904,"projectId":9063253,"letterContent":"First, I would like to thank everyone who donated to make this project happen. I showed the students as soon as these two machines arrived and in typical teenage fashion I was met with skeptical looks. I was more excited than they were. I am sure once they get to make custom comp books/ journals the attitude will change.\r\n\r\nThe actual project is not slotted for a couple more weeks, so all the students have not yet been able to utilize them to make their journals/comp books yet. I provided some pictures and the book we made with the two machines was actually made by one of my student aides. He was surprised at how good the book turned out and how easy it was compared to previous ones we made using hand tools.\r\n\r\nTwo of my students have already asked if they can use one of the machines to make their own stationary tear away pads. This I hope is only the beginning with my students getting creative and coming up with their own projects now that we have the machines available to use.","fullyFundedDate":1746786154306,"projectUrl":"project/why-buy-composition-books-when-we-can-ma/9063253/","projectTitle":"Why Buy Composition Books When We Can Make Them","teacherDisplayName":"Mr. O'Boyle","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9895904_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1743463544878","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9895904"},{"teacherId":2028118,"projectId":9098277,"letterContent":"My students are LOVING the books! We have been reading every morning in homeroom and everyone is reading quietly because they are so engrossed in the books that we now have. \r\nMany students have continued to read after the allotted 20 minutes of reading time. A couple students have asked me if they can take a book home for the night because they want to continue reading it. I have even heard the students talking about the books with each other. It has been amazing to have a wider variety of text in my student's home language to read. This is a teacher's dream! \r\nWe can not thank you enough for this wonderful gift of literature that you have given us.","fullyFundedDate":1739304298203,"projectUrl":"project/more-books-please/9098277/","projectTitle":"More Books, Please!","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. A.","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2028118_orig.jpg?crop=504,504,x0,y80&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1699129811447","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/heyitsmsanderson"},{"teacherId":8113484,"projectId":8796462,"letterContent":"The IPAD and apple TV provided have allowed me and my co-teacher to provide a more visual and engaging learning experience in geometry. The apple TV allows us to display our math problems wirelessly while we move about the room and allow students to also display their work using the IPAD and apple TV. The IPAD allows us to color code complex problems which better shows the steps in math problems. \r\n\r\nThe students do enjoy being able to sit at their desk and use the IPAD to show their work. They like being able to use the IPAD and they really enjoy not having to go to the front of the room to do their work. \r\n\r\nOur EL students like using the IPAD to show their work, because it allows them to do the problem without having to verbally answer questions as they are building their English skills.","fullyFundedDate":1726683828986,"projectUrl":"project/visualize-geometry/8796462/","projectTitle":"Visualize Geometry","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Lau","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-3_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/8113484"},{"teacherId":2028118,"projectId":8857919,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for your donation! My students were so excited to get all of our stuff. Our classroom is brighter with our hanging plants and the kids are loving the games and other tools that you helped us purchase for learning. \r\nI was a bit nervous that the flash cards might not be exciting for them, but without even introducing the cards, my students picked them up and started going through them on their own and with friends! They really want to learn English and through your generous help, they are able to achieve that more easily. \r\nThank you for supporting public education and our classroom.","fullyFundedDate":1732390230413,"projectUrl":"project/ease-tension-by-making-learning-fun/8857919/","projectTitle":"Ease Tension by Making Learning Fun","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. A.","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2028118_orig.jpg?crop=504,504,x0,y80&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1699129811447","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/heyitsmsanderson"},{"teacherId":9348904,"projectId":8854540,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for your contribution to making this project come true. I have seen a huge increase in students engaging in conversations with each other and friendships being formed through the games, materials, and resources that we received. Students have been off their phone and getting to know one another. As you may know, I mainly teach EL students so there are a lot of languages being spoken in my classroom. Since we have gotten the games students have been teaching each other words in their home language. Overall, the sense of community and unity has increased within our classroom, and this was made possible with your donation to our class.","fullyFundedDate":1728177716105,"projectUrl":"project/mental-health-lets-talk-about-it/8854540/","projectTitle":"Mental Health, Let's Talk About It!","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Garcia Varela","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9348904_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1698972204322","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9348904"}],"pageName":"schoolpage_83115","usesDonorsChoose":true,"infoPageType":"school","demographicsInfo":{"numStudents":1204,"numTeachers":60,"percentFrplEligible":95,"percentAsian":3,"percentBlack":2,"percentWhite":12,"percentIndigenous":0,"percentLatinx":76,"showFreeAndReducedPriceLunchInfo":true,"showDemographicsInfo":true,"sourceTooltipString":"the National Center for Education Statistics","gradesServed":"9 - 12","studentTeacherRatio":"20.1:1","demographicsDataSource":"MDR School","equityFocus":true,"titleOne":true,"metroType":"SUBURBAN","ncesMetroType":"SUBURB_LARGE"},"inStateSupporters":56.3,"schoolId":83115,"financialInfo":null,"twitterShareText":"Learn more about Sparks High School on @DonorsChoose:","schoolName":"Sparks High School","canonicalPageUrl":"schools/nevada/washoe-county-school-district/sparks-high-school/83115"}