{"monthlySchoolDonationEnabled":false,"callToActionDisplayName":"Charles H Castle Elementary School","outOfStateSupporters":22.3,"allowSchoolLevelGiving":true,"hasFundedProjects":true,"projectGratitudeData":[{"teacherId":2618115,"projectId":9345030,"letterContent":"My first graders are incredibly creative, curious, and full of imagination. They love exploring the world through hands-on projects and take so much pride in creating work that reflects their unique personalities. Watching them light up during STEM activities and crafts is truly one of the best parts of teaching!\r\n\r\nWhen our new materials arrived, watercolor and acrylic paints, tissue paper, small pots, and plenty of glue sticks, the students were so excited. Their faces lit up as they explored the colors and textures, asking, \"What are we making next? Can we start today?\" Their enthusiasm filled the room!\r\n\r\nThese new resources are helping bring our STEM and art projects to life. Students will use the paints and craft materials to design models, create artwork connected to our science lessons, and complete hands-on activities that allow them to express their learning in creative ways.\r\n\r\nNext up, students will be starting a project where they design and decorate their own mini planter pots while learning about plant life cycles. They're eager to apply their new materials and can't wait to bring their ideas to life.\r\n\r\nThank you for giving my students the chance to learn, explore, and create in such meaningful ways!","fullyFundedDate":1757423900723,"projectUrl":"project/supplies-for-smiles-help-our-first-grad/9345030/","projectTitle":"Supplies for Smiles: Help Our First Graders Shine","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Santana","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2618115_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1691217427111","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/2618115"},{"teacherId":2618115,"projectId":9127071,"letterContent":"Thanks to your generous support, our classroom received storage bins, STEM activities, and clear photo boxes, and they have already made such a positive impact on my students. The storage bins have become our new \"Brain Bins,\" which students use during Fun Friday and as a morning start-up. They absolutely love this routine and look forward to it each week. The STEM activities have been an incredible addition as well, the moment the kids first saw them, their eyes lit up with excitement. They couldn't wait to get started, and it was amazing to watch them dive in, use critical thinking, and collaborate with one another. The clear photo boxes have also been a game-changer for organizing my math task cards, making them easy for students to access during centers and small groups.\r\n Moving forward, we will continue to incorporate the STEM activities into our science and math lessons, giving students opportunities to extend their problem-solving and creativity through group challenges. The Brain Bins will remain a fun and engaging way to build independence each morning, while the organized math cards will allow students to practice skills at their own level. These resources are helping to create an environment where my students feel inspired, independent, and excited to learn each day. We are so grateful to you for making this possible.","fullyFundedDate":1746785514602,"projectUrl":"project/stem-building-bright-minds-with-hands-o/9127071/","projectTitle":"STEM: Building Bright Minds with Hands-On Bins for 1st Graders","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Santana","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2618115_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1691217427111","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/2618115"},{"teacherId":9317479,"projectId":9122598,"letterContent":"Our classroom has been having FUN with creativity since receiving these new materials! The LED tablets have become a favorite tool for practicing spelling, math facts, and even sketching story ideas before writing them out. Our \"Colors of the World\" crayon sets gave our students the chance to create self portraits that truly reflect who they are. The play dough has been perfect for hands on word building and as a calming sensory break. The \"Smencils\" (smelly pencils) and fun water bottle stickers have motivated students to be creative in their writing while the card stock has allowed us to create crafts with sturdy material. \r\nOur students LOVED the LED tablets! We couldn't wait to try them out, and opened them as soon as we received them. The excitement when we received you donation was immediate! we passed the smelly pencils around and had a sniff test! We used it to teach adjectives and describe the delicious smells. We are now working on a classroom project where students combine these resources to create their own \"All About Me\" poster. This project is giving our students the oportunity to celebrate their identities with the \"Colors of the world\" crayons, and also encouraging them to write and create art! \r\nThank you for your donations!","fullyFundedDate":1746786004139,"projectUrl":"project/enhancing-student-engagement-supporting/9122598/","projectTitle":"Enhancing Student Engagement: Supporting Creativity and Learning","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Castaneda","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9317479_orig.jpg?crop=2448,2448,x0,y0&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1741403951567","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/nancy-castaneda"},{"teacherId":9317479,"projectId":9124360,"letterContent":"The technology in our classroom is helping students learn by making lessons more interactive, accessible, and personalized. Headphones give students the ability to focus during reading and online lessons without distractions, while reading phones allow them to hear their own voices, which strengthens fluency and builds confidence. The marble run maze introduces problem solving and engineering concepts through play, and kinetic sand provides a calming sensory tool that also develops fine motor skills.\r\nHeadphones and clipboards may seem like small items, but to my students they feel special because they provide independence letting them move, focus, and work in ways that suit their needs best.","fullyFundedDate":1746785926424,"projectUrl":"project/enhancing-learning-through-play/9124360/","projectTitle":"Enhancing Learning Through Play","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Castaneda","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9317479_orig.jpg?crop=2448,2448,x0,y0&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1741403951567","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/nancy-castaneda"},{"teacherId":9317479,"projectId":9122573,"letterContent":"These books have allowed us to integrate SEL and life lessons into our daily reading. The SEL (social emotional learning) books have helped our English learners build vocabulary. It has guided our students to learn emotions like happiness, empathy, self-regulation and many more! We received many books and have not yet read all of them however we plan to read the Bad Seed Book series in the following months to teach and support comprehension and sequencing in an engaging way. We used the Jack Rabbit's Creepy Tales to motivate our readers to explore character traits, and identify the problem and solution within a story. \r\nReading in our classroom includes independent reading, whole class reading where the teacher reads and ask questions throughout the story, choral reading where we both teachers and students read together to build fluency, and small group reading. We read to act it out, discuss themes, describe characters, sequence the order, and to connect stories to their own lives and experiences. Our students LOVE \"A Little Spot of SEL\" book series as they personally relate their own feelings to the stories examples and guides them to feel confident in sharing their thoughts and ideas. With your donation you have inspired our students to be creative thinkers who enjoy retelling stories and relating to them too.","fullyFundedDate":1746786398961,"projectUrl":"project/the-sel-haven-a-safe-space-for-growth-/9122573/","projectTitle":"The SEL Haven: A Safe Space for Growth & Learning","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Castaneda","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9317479_orig.jpg?crop=2448,2448,x0,y0&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1741403951567","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/nancy-castaneda"},{"teacherId":2618115,"projectId":8955052,"letterContent":"Thank you for your generous support! Your contributions have made a huge impact in our classroom by providing new books that have enhanced our students' reading experiences.\r\n\r\nThese new texts have allowed us to teach essential skills like character development, story structure, and vocabulary in exciting ways. Our students are more engaged than ever, asking questions, making predictions, and actively participating in discussions. It's especially rewarding to see students who previously struggled with reading begin to enjoy it and grow in confidence.\r\n\r\nWith these new books, I've been able to tailor lessons to meet the needs of all my students, fostering a love of reading and deeper learning. The variety of materials has helped us explore more dynamic teaching methods, from group discussions to independent reading time.\r\n\r\nThank you to *The Mo & Cher Willems Foundation* for making this possible. Your support is truly making a difference in our students' lives!","fullyFundedDate":1733495573827,"projectUrl":"project/boom-bam-read-and-write/8955052/","projectTitle":"Boom! Bam! Read and Write!","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Santana","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp2618115_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1691217427111","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/2618115"},{"teacherId":9317479,"projectId":8946177,"letterContent":"Our students enjoyed reading the first book of the \"Wild Robot\" series focusing on comprehension of texts. Students worked through the book focusing on setting, characters, problem and solution, and theme. Once our students completed the first book they focused on learning what a simile is and worked on a project where they created their own robot using different robot pieces including similes to describe their robot. \r\n \r\nReading in our first grade classroom is done within small groups to ensure our students can read independently, by taking turns or be read to as they follow along. After our book club finished reading the first book they watched the \"The Wild Robot\" movie and focused on compare and contrast to see what similarities or differences they noticed between the book and the movie. All the students in the \"Wild Robot\" book club enjoyed the 1st book and are currently beginning to read the second book. \r\n\r\nThank you for donating to our class and giving us the oportunity to learn to LOVE to read.","fullyFundedDate":1731940466116,"projectUrl":"project/hooked-on-books/8946177/","projectTitle":"Hooked on Books","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Castaneda","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9317479_orig.jpg?crop=2448,2448,x0,y0&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1741403951567","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/nancy-castaneda"},{"teacherId":8838508,"projectId":8719972,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for your generous support in funding my projects! My students were thrilled to explore the pink and purple cubes, creating colorful patterns that sparked their creativity. They had so much fun building a small town with the wooden play set and magna-tile road pieces, and the alphabet learning locks were a huge hit, making letter recognition both fun and engaging. We have enjoyed all of our wonderful donations. Your kindness truly brings joy and inspiration to our classroom every day!","fullyFundedDate":1726750034871,"projectUrl":"project/unleash-the-power-of-loose-parts/8719972/","projectTitle":"Unleash the Power of Loose Parts!","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Virgen","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp8838508_orig.jpg?crop=1:1,smart&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1724898746044","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/8838508"}],"pageName":"schoolpage_40936","usesDonorsChoose":true,"infoPageType":"school","demographicsInfo":{"numStudents":844,"numTeachers":30,"percentFrplEligible":95,"percentAsian":1,"percentBlack":13,"percentWhite":9,"percentIndigenous":0,"percentLatinx":69,"showFreeAndReducedPriceLunchInfo":true,"showDemographicsInfo":true,"sourceTooltipString":"the National Center for Education Statistics","gradesServed":"Pre-K - 6","studentTeacherRatio":"28.1:1","demographicsDataSource":"MDR School","equityFocus":true,"titleOne":true,"metroType":"URBAN","ncesMetroType":"CITY_LARGE"},"inStateSupporters":77.7,"schoolId":40936,"financialInfo":null,"twitterShareText":"Learn more about Charles H Castle Elementary School on @DonorsChoose:","schoolName":"Charles H Castle Elementary School","canonicalPageUrl":"schools/california/panama-buena-vista-union-school-district/charles-h-castle-elementary-school/40936"}