I am Katy Rubenstein and I teach Kindergarten at Vose Elementary in Beaverton, Oregon. The children Vose serves are 84% economically disadvantaged, and 72% of our students are English Language Learners. It is typical for only 2-3 students in my class each year to tell me that they have books at home. The rest of my students do not own any books. I would like to raise money to fund a classroom bilingual library for all of the kindergarten classes at Vose where students can "check out" books at their reading level, both in English and their native language so that parents can read to them at night, as well as keep books at home to build a home library. The school to home connection to promote literacy is powerful and successful in promoting the love of reading, but when students do not read outside of my classroom, the learning stops at the end of the school day. I would also like to have some on level books that children can take home to keep to build their home library.
As a teacher it is heartbreaking to hear children who are so excited about learning to read tell me that they don't have any books. While checking out books from the library is a wonderful opportunity, parents do not always know exactly what to look for in quality literature at the early reading level. By building an on-level Kindergarten classroom library check out system and keep at home program, parents will also be educated in how to best help find their child's appropriate reading level.
I would love to see my students take home 5 or more books to keep, and to have a rich classroom bilingual check out area that parents can use to work with their children to help support what I am teaching in the classroom. My student's most favorite activity is to sit on the floor and read our classroom books and library books together. It would be wonderful for their parents to help support their love of reading at home with a check out and take home book program.
Budget details:
Amount requested is $675 per classroom x 5 kindergarten classes, total of $3,375
Minumum of 25 students per class x 5 take home books per student @ $3 per book = $375 per class
100 books per classroom to begin a check out classroom library = $300 per class
Thank you for your support in helping GROW READERS AT VOSE ELEMENTARY!
This project is supported by the Beaverton Education Foundation.
Founded in 1988, the Beaverton Education Foundation raises money to provide hands-on innovative academic enrichment and advancement programs & projects that go beyond normal school funding at all Beaverton public schools and is a 501(c)(3) community-based nonprofit organization. BEF mobilizes community resources to fund innovative classroom, summer and after-school programs.
In the event that this project does not reach its goal, BEF may apply the funds received to another project in need.
