Watertown Middle School in Watertown, Massachusetts on DonorsChoose

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The index cards, soil, sphagnum moss, sand, paint, and hot glue guns are all essential to turn the students' vision into a 3-D model. This grant provided key supplies that make this project work, and that we certainly could never access with our limited school-supply budget. We are so appreciative!\r\n\r\nWe began by building some background knowledge. Students learned about how the ancient Romans created a template for city design and water management that they replicated throughout the empire. Students learned how to think about and calculate proportions using math skills to help them design their cities to scale. Students learned about stormwater management practices and conducted an experiment to measure how water infiltrated through different natural materials, including soil, sand, gravel, and clay. A wonderful crew of professionals from the Watertown Stormwater Committee volunteered to lead our students on a walking field trip from our school to the Charles River to learn about stormwater management. A building challenge gave students the opportunity to create a tower designed to keep water in place. Each team had a limited amount of sphagnum moss, soil and, and gravel to include in their design. Each tower had to pass the test of holding 1 cup of water. All of those supplies let students experiment with how water could be managed in a tactile way.\r\nNext up, students will begin designing and building their cities. Our wonderful friends at Iggy's Bread donated the 20 large flat boxes that we will line with graph chart paper for students to begin to sketch and figure proportions. Students will dive into the paint, glue, and glue guns to turn their ideas into a scale model. We will end with a showcase and welcome back our community volunteer team of architects, city planners, and environmental engineers to see the final showcase. (Since we have not yet begun the models, I will include pictures from last year's designs.) The ample supplies will be essential for this project's success. \r\n\r\nWe can't thank you enough! Students will remember this for many years to come.","fullyFundedDate":1735657689687,"projectUrl":"project/future-cities-interdisciplinary-projec/8967110/","projectTitle":"Future Cities - Interdisciplinary Project","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. McDonagh","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-1_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/981380"},{"teacherId":981380,"projectId":9057166,"letterContent":"I wanted to extend my sincere gratitude for your generous donation of a class set of headphones! Your support has made a meaningful difference for my seventh grade English Language Arts classroom. We are so appreciative for this kind gift!\r\n\r\nThe headphones have been incredibly useful across many aspects of our curriculum. Students have used them to listen to audio versions of class texts, enhancing their access to and comprehension of challenging material. The headphones have also been valuable for watching videos related to research. For example, for our recent argument writing unit, students choose one of several topics such as driverless cars, required military service, and the existence of aliens. Students, then set off to explore and research from a variety of sources. While many sources were newspaper and journal articles, we also wanted to include videos and podcasts. The headphones made it possible for students to listen to the sources with audio without interrupting the focus of their peers. \r\n\r\nThe headphones were also useful for catching up on mini-lessons I've recorded when a student has been absent. This ensures all students can stay engaged and on track, even when they miss a day. Listening to music while studying or reading has also been a great addition for students who find this helps them to focus.\r\n\r\nThe headphones have been especially impactful for our multi-lingual learners, who benefit from being able to slow down or replay content as needed. Having this level of accessibility empowers them to better understand lessons and build confidence in their language development. \r\n\r\nThe class set has so many uses and is a gift that will remain in use for future years. 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About this school

Watertown Middle School is a suburban public school in Watertown, Massachusetts that is part of Watertown Public School District. It serves 583 students in grades 6 - 8 with a student/teacher ratio of 11.2:1. Its teachers have had 18 projects funded on DonorsChoose.

Equity Focus School

Support towards this school will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

Public School

Title 1

Grades 6 - 8

583 Students

52 Teachers

68 Waverley Ave

Watertown, MA 02472 View local requests

http://www.watertown.k12.ma.us/wms/index.html

Evidence-based impact

Inspire teachers to stay in the classroom and boost student achievement.¹

Give to this school

Ms. Vero, a DonorsChoose teacher for 9 years.

Kindergarten teacher at PS81 - Robert J. Christen School in Bronx, NY

Watertown Middle School Teachers on DonorsChoose

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Watertown Middle School Demographics

65%

of students receive free or reduced price lunch

Source: the National Center for Education Statistics

34%

of students are Black, Latino, Native American, or Asian

Schools in districts that mainly serve students of color receive substantially less state and local support than similar districts that serve primarily White students. Learn more about this gap, why it exists, and how you can help close it.

Watertown Middle School Support on DonorsChoose Last updated Dec 5, 2025

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