{"monthlySchoolDonationEnabled":true,"callToActionDisplayName":"Nokomis Montessori Magnet School - South","outOfStateSupporters":36.0,"allowSchoolLevelGiving":true,"hasFundedProjects":true,"projectGratitudeData":[{"teacherId":9322393,"projectId":10447149,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for all these wonderful, engaging materials! My students are using these materials daily to explore building, creating, and inventing. They are developing their fine motor movements and hand-eye coordination while having fun! They are also learning deep concentration with these materials, and how to stay with an activity and take care of it. \r\n\r\nWhen they first saw these materials, it was like Christmas, or a birthday! They oooh'ed and ahhh'ed when I opened the box and couldn't wait for me to put the materials on the shelf for them. \r\n\r\nAs we put these materials away for more challenging reading and writing works, they will come out again on \"Fun Fridays\" as something to look forward to! After a long week of lots of learning, they love to celebrate with Fun Friday manipulatives and working with friends on buildings, cars, spaceships... anything they can imagine!\r\n\r\nThank you so much!","fullyFundedDate":1789579938891,"projectUrl":"project/engaging-materials-for-public-montessori/10447149/","projectTitle":"Engaging Materials for Public Montessori!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Ashley","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9322393_orig.jpg?crop=2316,2316,x0,y386&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1754663954337","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9322393"},{"teacherId":9322393,"projectId":10432853,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for donating to my project! We love these new books! I am super excited for my classroom to have its very own set to use year after year.\r\n\r\nA concept that we work on at the beginning of the year is \"making predictions\". With these books, we took a look at the front cover picture and the title, and tried to make a hypothesis, or prediction, about what the book was going to be about. This is a great skill for early readers to learn and they start to understand that books deliver us messages and information. At the end of the book, we review whether our predictions were correct or not! We also use these books to teach new vocabulary - I highlight words in the text that might be confusing, especially to English Language Learners, and put the words onto a Powerpoint we use as we read. I show pictures and gifs as examples for unknown words, and we expand our vocabulary every time we read!\r\n\r\nIn my classroom, we read each day before lunch, and then the books go into my little library corner with my comfy chair. It's a great place for my students to look at pictures close up, relax, and read their favorite stories as many times as they'd like.\r\n\r\nThese books really do impact my whole classroom. Since I have a mixed classroom of PreK and Kindergarten students, my Kindergarteners get to hear books they love again, and my PreKs get to hear them for the first time. Read aloud is our favorite time!","fullyFundedDate":1787167930732,"projectUrl":"project/giggle-worthy-read-alouds-to-say-welcom/10432853/","projectTitle":"Giggle-Worthy Read-Alouds To Say \"Welcome to Kindergarten!\"","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Ashley","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9322393_orig.jpg?crop=2316,2316,x0,y386&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1754663954337","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9322393"},{"teacherId":9322393,"projectId":10436774,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for donating these much-needed materials to my classroom! The cylinder blocks, pink tower, brown stair, and binomial cube are taken out every single day! We even have a special procedure when a student wants to do the pink tower and needs the tiniest cube; they have to ask myself or my assistant, and it's kept in a special beautiful container on the side of my little workspace. When I open the little container, it's this \"awww\" moment as I carefully hand them the tiniest cube, which they lovingly cup in their hands on their way over to their work rug. When they're finished, they bring it back to me and so carefully place it in my palm. It's adorable!\r\n\r\nWhen my students first saw our new materials, it was like Christmas or a birthday; their eyes were big, and spontaneous, excited chatter erupted! We talked about how beautiful and precious our new materials are, and how to take care of them. They've been so respectful and loving to our new materials. \r\n\r\nAs they grow, these materials get used in new ways; they'll learn how to combine the pink tower and brown stairs, growing a sense of size discrepancy between two different objects, and use cards to help guide them to explore creating different designs with these materials. The cylinder blocks have multiple lessons to them as well, and they've been working on taking out all four blocks at a time and mixing up all the pieces to notice very tiny differences! The binomial cube itself is a physical representation of mathematics, and they'll use this knowledge later on in fourth and fifth grades!\r\n\r\nThank you again for your generous donation!","fullyFundedDate":1787168154931,"projectUrl":"project/stem-montessori-materials/10436774/","projectTitle":"STEM Montessori Materials!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Ashley","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9322393_orig.jpg?crop=2316,2316,x0,y386&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1754663954337","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9322393"},{"teacherId":5024506,"projectId":10201259,"letterContent":"Our students are so excited to have all the amazing new toys for the outdoor class room. We opened the outdoor space this past week and they have been so busy. They are using trucks to move materials around the space. Creating imaginary play with making food in their mud kitchen and creating memories. The frisbees are a huge hit! They are so easy for this age to throw and catch without anyone getting hit in the head with a hard frisbee. I am so appreciative of the on going support we have received by Donors Choose.","fullyFundedDate":1778787131954,"projectUrl":"project/outdoor-experiences/10201259/","projectTitle":"Outdoor Experiences","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Chuhel","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp5024506_272x272.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1516493956213","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/5024506"},{"teacherId":5099331,"projectId":10200586,"letterContent":"The new materials that were purchased for this project were introduced to the students today. They were so excited to use the new mud kitchen! Right away, they figured out how to open the oven and pretend to cook things on the stove. I received the mud kitchen at the end of the school year, last year and I was able to modify the kitchen and give it a couple of coats of poly on it so that it will last even longer! \r\nThe children also enjoy using the brooms and wheelbarrow that were part of this project. They are going to have a blast using these materials as the leaves fall. Thank you for your generosity.","fullyFundedDate":1779292332633,"projectUrl":"project/mud-kitchen-magic/10200586/","projectTitle":"Mud Kitchen Magic","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Wente","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp5099331_272x272.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1517178509492","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/5099331"},{"teacherId":5024506,"projectId":10201338,"letterContent":"The generous donation of books, slides, puzzles and specimens for our frog, bee and flower life cycle unit will have a tremendous impact on our students' learning. As a inner-city school, many of our students have limited opportunities for hands on science experiences. These materials will bring learning to life by allowing students to see, touch and explore the concepts they have studied.\r\nThe books will build background knowledge and support literacy development, while the slides and specimens wil give students a close-up look at the stages of life cycles and the natural world. The puzzles will reinforce learning through interactive play and problem solving. Together, these resources will help students make a meaningful connections, increase engagement, and deepen their understanding of science. \r\nWe are incredibly grateful for this donation. It will inspire curiosity, encourage discovery, and create memorable learning experiences that are students will carry with them for years to come.","fullyFundedDate":1776712137568,"projectUrl":"project/life-cycles/10201338/","projectTitle":"Life Cycles","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Chuhel","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp5024506_272x272.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1516493956213","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/5024506"},{"teacherId":5024506,"projectId":10117031,"letterContent":"Receiving these supplies from a generous donor will have an impact on my students learning. New materials often spark curiosity and excitement over learning. When students have access to quality learning materials, they are more likely to feel prepared and capable of succeeding.\r\nThe donations help that all students, regardless of their circumstances, have access to the resources they need to thrive in their learning. \r\nWe are incredibly grateful for this support and the positive difference it has made in our classroom. \r\nDonors Choose has always been so supportive to the teachers in the the St. Paul Public Schools. Your match to the donations was extremely helpful. Thank you.","fullyFundedDate":1772551020161,"projectUrl":"project/classroom-supplies/10117031/","projectTitle":"Classroom Supplies","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Chuhel","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp5024506_272x272.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1516493956213","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/5024506"},{"teacherId":5099331,"projectId":10108372,"letterContent":"Thank you for supporting my project! The children have been excited to use the large sensory table tray and many of the materials that came with the project such as the mini dinosaur fossils, the playdoh and playdoh tools! A hidden benefit of the sensory table is that the children need to stand to use it. Which may seem silly, but it is important for my students to stand and use their core muscles rather than slouching over or leaning. Another great benefit is that the I can easily store the table away and it doesn't take up prime real estate in the classroom. I can also easily change out the materials in the tray which will allow me to use it year round with lots of new things for the children to explore! \r\n\r\nThank you very much for your donation.","fullyFundedDate":1771702022942,"projectUrl":"project/stem-starts-with-the-senses/10108372/","projectTitle":"STEM Starts With the Senses","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Wente","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp5099331_272x272.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1517178509492","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/5099331"},{"teacherId":9322393,"projectId":10157390,"letterContent":"Thank you so much for donating to my project and providing us an amazing library of books to connect to spring and our garden! We have used these books in a myriad of ways and they will continue to be used for years to come.\r\n\r\nIn our classroom, reading is my favorite part of the day, and my students favorite time as well. We start by gathering together and talking about our current theme; so in this case, gardening and springtime! Once we open up our book, we discuss if our book is fiction or non-fiction, how the illustrations were created, and make a hypothesis about what we think the story will be about. As I read, I also highlight important words and concepts in a slideshow for each book, with a kid-friendly definition and a picture or gif to show the concept. This helps us learn new vocabulary and helps my English Language Learners get a visual connection. As we read, we then talk about what we're thinking and how it applies to us in real life.\r\n\r\nWith these books, we took our learning directly outside to our garden! We planted sunflowers and cleaned out weeds in preparation for more springtime planting. We talked about the bees that pollinate and the scientific names for parts of flowers!\r\n\r\nAfter we read, our story time books are featured in our in-classroom library, where a comfy Ikea chair awaits readers who want a closer look at the beautiful pictures or want to see how much they can read independently. It's an honor in our classroom to be the student called to walk our read aloud book over to the library shelf!\r\n\r\nThank you so much for contributing to my classroom and my students' love of learning!","fullyFundedDate":1773685405174,"projectUrl":"project/planting-power-and-vocabulary-through-bo/10157390/","projectTitle":"Planting Power and Vocabulary Through Books!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Ashley","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9322393_orig.jpg?crop=2316,2316,x0,y386&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1754663954337","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9322393"},{"teacherId":9322393,"projectId":10158266,"letterContent":"My students were so excited to unbox our new puzzles! It felt like everyone's birthday and they CHEERED! Before the new puzzles' arrival, we were working with old puzzles missing pieces; had to pretend what the missing piece might look like or look at a photo of that animal or plant and draw an approximation. Now, we can use the puzzles in their entirety!\r\n\r\nMy youngest students use the puzzles to memorize parts of animals and plants as they replace the pieces into the form. As they grow older in PreK and Kindergarten, they then use the puzzles to trace the animal or plant onto a paper. Next, they color the parts in their best coloring with colored pencils, and then they label the parts of animal or plant with scientific names. For example, the bottom shell on a turtle is called the plastron!\r\n\r\nWe connect these puzzles to our learning throughout the year. In Fall we visit a farm, in Winter we talk about hibernation and a frog's amazing body, and in Spring we talk about blooming flowers and growing plants! \r\n\r\nThank you so much for contributing to my students and our school!","fullyFundedDate":1773717885230,"projectUrl":"project/the-puzzling-natural-world-around-us/10158266/","projectTitle":"The Puzzling Natural World Around Us!","teacherDisplayName":"Mrs. Ashley","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/orig/tp9322393_orig.jpg?crop=2316,2316,x0,y386&width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1754663954337","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9322393"},{"teacherId":4189281,"projectId":9607746,"letterContent":"We have been using the Magna-Tiles and plastic animal toys during our writing. One of the students' favorite projects has been building animal habitats. Students worked in small groups to design homes for different animals using the Magna-Tiles. For example, one group built a tall \"mountain cave\" for the bears while another group created a zoo enclosure with different sections for farm animals and jungle animals. The students talked about what each animal might need—space, shelter, and safety—and then used the tiles to build structures that matched those needs. It was wonderful to see them problem-solve together when their structures fell and then rebuild them stronger. These hands on opportunities allowed them to engage in discussions which in turn helped their writing.\r\n\r\nThe students were incredibly excited when they first saw the Magna-Tiles and animal toys. There were lots of smiles, gasps, and immediate ideas about what they wanted to build. Many students began sorting the animals and planning homes for them right away. Others experimented with connecting the tiles in different ways to see how tall or wide they could build. The materials instantly sparked creativity, collaboration, and curiosity.\r\n\r\nNext, we plan to expand our habitat project into a simple research and storytelling activity. Students will choose an animal and learn a little about where it lives and what it needs to survive. Then they will build a habitat for that animal using the Magna-Tiles and include the plastic animals in their structure. After building, students will share their habitat with the class and explain why they designed it the way they did. This will help them practice communication skills while connecting science concepts with hands-on learning.\r\n\r\nWe are so appreciative of the support for hands on activities to make learning fun and meaningful!!","fullyFundedDate":1765725493538,"projectUrl":"project/animals-around-the-world/9607746/","projectTitle":"Animals Around the World","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Padmini","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp4189281_272x272.jpg?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1486950981312","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/4189281"},{"teacherId":9727539,"projectId":10001739,"letterContent":"My students have been so excited to use all the sensory tools you have provided. The hammock swing, bike and sensory bin have been a hit in the school sensory room! My students who seek out vestibular input now have a tool (hammock swing) and are instantly more calm and regulated. The outer space sensory bin is also something my students love and they are learning so much about the solar system while engaged in sensory play. The wiggle feet were great additions for my students in the gen ed classroom and allowed them to get their wiggles out while working on classroom tasks. They are more engaged and sit for longer because of this tool. Finally the bounce board has allowed my students to bounce when they need to get a little movement in to regulate themselves and also increase their attention during classroom tasks. My students and I truly appreciate your donations and just know that because of your donations you have made a huge impact on my students learning and education.","fullyFundedDate":1770907289588,"projectUrl":"project/busy-bodies-need-movement/10001739/","projectTitle":"Busy Bodies Need Movement","teacherDisplayName":"Ms. Amal","teacherPhotoUrl":"https://cdn.donorschoose.net/images/placeholder-avatars/272/teacher-placeholder-10_272.png?auto=webp","teacherClassroomUrl":"classroom/9727539"}],"pageName":"schoolpage_107880","usesDonorsChoose":true,"infoPageType":"school","demographicsInfo":{"numStudents":257,"numTeachers":16,"percentFrplEligible":74,"percentAsian":41,"percentBlack":13,"percentWhite":23,"percentIndigenous":0,"percentLatinx":9,"showFreeAndReducedPriceLunchInfo":true,"showDemographicsInfo":true,"sourceTooltipString":"the National Center for Education Statistics","percentHawaiianImputed":0,"percentMultiracialImputed":11,"gradesServed":"K - 5","studentTeacherRatio":"16.1:1","demographicsDataSource":"MDR School","equityFocus":true,"titleOne":true,"metroType":"URBAN","ncesMetroType":"CITY_LARGE"},"inStateSupporters":64.0,"schoolId":107880,"financialInfo":null,"twitterShareText":"Learn more about Nokomis Montessori Magnet School - South on @DonorsChoose:","schoolName":"Nokomis Montessori Magnet School - South","canonicalPageUrl":"schools/minnesota/saint-paul-public-schools/nokomis-montessori-magnet-school-s/107880"}