This is the second installment in our Back to School Spotlight series! These posts highlight the creative ways educators have used Scholastic ClassroomsCount™ to purchase books, magazines, and other trusted products to support their students throughout the school year.
Over the past year, teachers across the nation have created over 18,000 campaigns, raising over $2 million on Scholastic ClassroomsCount™, a fully crowdsourced fund for educators to buy resources for their classroom. Teachers don’t have to worry about organizing checks or cash, and contributors can feel confident that their funds stay in each teacher’s Scholastic account. Educators can spend every penny immediately across Scholastic at The Scholastic Teacher Store, Scholastic Book Clubs, The Scholastic Parent Store, and Scholastic Magazines+. In other words, there’s no need to reach a target goal to use the funds.
One of those teachers using Scholastic ClassoomsCount™ is Brianna Reasoner-Castillo, a Sacramento-area fifth-grade teacher and military spouse. Through her career, she has moved to different cities and states and has been able to meet the different needs of her students with the help of Scholastic ClassroomsCount™. We caught up with Brianna to ask her more about her experience:
What was your experience in raising funds through ClassroomsCount™?
I found out about it from an email. I must have gotten it like 10 times. One day, I had five minutes of free time and decided to read about it. I had done other wish lists before, but I wanted something different. Once I had my [ClassroomsCount™] campaign, I shared it to my Facebook, and all of my family donated.
I set a goal for $250, thinking it would be nice if I could even get $100. But then it was fully funded in less than a week. It was fantastic. It gives the donator peace of mind knowing that they’re not just giving me cash — they know exactly how it’s going to be spent.
What resources did you select to purchase?
I tried to pick read-aloud books, or picture books, that can relate to my students. I didn’t have enough non-fiction titles, so I wanted to get more. I specifically picked up the I Survived series, and other big packs like that, because those are not usually things that I would have spent my money on.
Could you tell us about the ways you used your new books in the classroom? How did your students respond?
When the two giant, heavy boxes got plopped on my back table, they all ran up to it saying ‘what new books did we get?’ They were so excited. I teach in a school that has some challenging demographics. Our school sits at 98% free and reduced lunch. One of the books I like to read to the kids is Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts, which I picked up in my campaign. I see kids relate and think, and that’s what I want them to do.
If you’re a teacher, you can set up a ClassroomsCount™ campaign in minutes and share it with your friends, family, and community. Sharing on social media makes it four times more likely that your campaign will get funded.
If you’re not a teacher but want to support classrooms, ClassroomsCount™ is a fantastic way to do so. Check out these inspiring campaigns, and fund a teacher’s campaign today to get books, magazines, and products in kids’ hands all year long!
