A large cardboard box arrived in the office at school today. I couldn’t contain my excitement, so I hurried the package to a nearby classroom, summoned some Kindlers, and urged them to take a look inside.
Steven, Jasmin, Tamera, and Kei’ana did the unboxing honors:
Kindle Unboxing from Mark Isero on Vimeo.
(OK, they’re pretty smart, so I think they may have figured out what would be in the box. But no way could they have imagined that there would be 10 new Kindles inside.)
That’s right: Ten new Kindles arrived today, which puts the total collection up to 41.
I would like to thank my friend (who would like to remain anonymous) who spearheaded the effort. She suggested I create a project at DonorsChoose and encouraged her colleagues at Zappos to pitch in.
They did — and so did many other kind people. Here is the list, in no particular order: Millie, Iris, Rich, Brent, Lisa, Ran, Brian, Crystal, David, Laura, Stamatis, Alane, Adam, Donna, Brad, Susan, Megan, Tracy, Jenni, Julee, Ben, Zener, and Anonymous Donors.
Some of the people who donated are good, old friends, some of whom have given repeatedly and consistently to the Kindle Classroom Project. Some are newer friends. Then there are friends and family of friends. And strangers who work at Zappos. And strangers who don’t work at Zappos. And anonymous people.
As usual, I’m appreciative of everyone’s generosity. But I’m no longer surprised. It’s becoming clear that this project has begun to resonate.
More and more people are realizing that young people like to read, but some of them need to be reminded. My students need to be shown that they and their reading lives are valued. Thank you for caring about them!