I've known about RAFT for a long time, and it is an organization that consistently provides educational opportunities for educators and students alike. RAFT is unlike any other organization in the Bay Area and stays true to its mission by bringing out the joy in learning through STEAM education at every grade level (K-12) while following the state curriculum guidelines. As a former educator, I can tell you firsthand that if RAFT was around when I was teaching elementary school-aged children, my job, and the students' experiences, would have been highly enhanced and greatly impacted by what RAFT offers today. RAFT is also like a 'one-stop-shopping' experience for educators as they get ready for the next school year or simply need a 'lesson in a kit' to deepen the students' understanding of core STEAM concepts. Hats off and tons of kudos to RAFT for continuing to be a tremendous resource for our community for the last 30 years and for many more to come!
RAFT is a great resource for educators and the schools. I highly encourage folks to explore their store and educational services, including their expanded learning programs and maker mobile.
I've had the privilege of being part of the RAFT community for over a decade, and I can genuinely say that their unwavering dedication to education is exceptional.
What truly distinguishes this organization is its extensive array of resources and programs designed to meet the unique needs of educators, students, and families. Their hands-on kits and teaching materials are a goldmine for teachers, adding a new dimension to lesson planning and delivery. I was particularly excited about some of their new offerings, such as their direct service programming including their Maker Mobile, STEAM nights at schools for families, and their highly engaging intersession and summer camps.
They are not just a resource hub but also a place for collaboration and learning. The workshops and training sessions I attended were insightful and had a direct impact on my teaching methodology.
For anyone in the role of district leader, educator, or a parent seeking to enrich their child's learning experience, this is the go-to place. RAFT is an invaluable asset not only in the greater Bay Area but also throughout California and I'm grateful for the difference they've made in my educational journey!
RAFT is one of the jewels in the Bay Area for educators, this 32,000 square foot facility has everything teachers and parents need to increase STEM instruction in the classroom and inspire the next generation of innovators, problem solvers, and creators.
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RAFT (Resource Area For Teaching) is the only place in the Bay Area where over 300 Tons of materials are donated every year from local companies and transformed into STEAM hands-on learning materials! We are a Costco for Teachers with our 32,000 square foot warehouse. For over 26 years educators have relied on RAFT for professional development, makerspace builds, classroom materials, and STEAM learning activities and kits.
I am proud to work at RAFT and support the 8,000 teachers and their 150,000 students during these uncertain times!
Absolute genius! An organization that utilizes donated items to repurpose via engaging STEAM activity kits for teachers to use with children! Affordable resources and intentional partnerships make RAFT a stand out organization that just feels GREAT in every way!
RAFT is an incredible resource for the teaching and learning community in our region and beyond. Teachers, parents, families, children, home schoolers, after school programs and community groups can all access materials supporting STEM related learning. Teachers love being able to network with each other and learn together how to bring hands on learning to the classroom (in person and virtually).
RAFT is a user friendly resource for teachers and families. Students and teachers love the hands on activities. It is the perfect resource for making the science standards come alive and getting kids excited about learning! Sending kits home with students while in distance learning has become a stress free, fun family activity that brings out the joy of discovery for everyone!
RAFT has accomplished so much in its 26 year history. Founded by a local San Jose teacher in 1994, this organization has grown with the Bay Area to serve over 8,000 educators and 150,000 students. In the past few months it has been incredible to see how they have pivoted to serve those students, families, and educators who have been most impacted by shelter-in-place, and they are committed to providing hands-on learning resources to the community during this time.
RAFT does such a HUGE service for educators in Bay area by reutilizing tools, materials, and resources for the classroom at super cheap! Teachers are so stretched thin with their own budgets that RAFT allows them to feel a sense of relief with the cost to buy materials. Also the amount of dedicated community service they have provided for schools since the pandemic started has been super heartfelt. Thankfully through partnerships, they have been able to provide students with hands-on steam projects in conjunction of meal distribution school sites to encourage at-home education that was diminished due to the pandemic.
As a retired k- 8 science teacher hear is m,y recommendation:
Fabulous real science in a kit for home science.. I have kits sent to my grandie and then we do them on facetime.. I would suggest more teachers use these and even the worksheets for virtual education better than the stuff sent home from classroom that was randomly selected with not always real science or appropriate grade level follow ups that these include..
I would suggest a kit for you and the student.. I downloaded instructions for me but it would have been better to each have a kit.
Thankfully, I was introduced to the RAFT early in my teaching career, so I've been coming to the RAFT for more than 20 of my 30 years of teaching. Discovering Klutz Press books on string figures changed the focus of my work, and the recycled fiber and yarn resources gave me the means to implement many of these project-based and hands-on activities. Their amazing kits and learning ideas also added a lot to my ability to create a truly student-centered curriculum. What a gift and blessing for the educational community!
As a parent, I love RAFT for what they do for the community. During the summer, RAFT housed STEAM summer program for Infinity Charter school, and my daughters had the time of their life! Not only did they have a load of fun, they had opportunities to ideate, design, create, and present their creation.
Lastly, as a teacher, Mrs. Phoung and Mr. Diaz facilitated a project design challenge for my class to get their brains warm for STEAM, in addition, we're going to venture out to RAFT in 2019 to continue our STEAM adventures and prepare our minds for our STEAM fair in addition to prepping for our Science standards for the Spring Semester.
Video:https://photos.app.goo.gl/zkC83WUjRPCzdCaB7
RAFT offers countless affordable-to-free resources for teachers. I found fabulous science and art lesson/experiment packets that are standards-based with materials for 20 kids already included, awesome materials for projects and cheap books. They have a room with discounted stickers and an area for prepping for projects with hundreds of different die cuts. I can spend hours there just browsing and getting ideas for science, art, math and writing projects. There are great workshops offered as well. I love RAFT! When I retire from teaching, I want to volunteer!
Today my 3rd graders combined measurement and planning skills, language skills, creativity, and materials that might have been discarded instead of cherished . . . to create monogram cards, each as unique as its artist. It's Halloween week, and we put our capital letters "in costume". Tomorrow my 3rd graders will use their letter-writing skills to personalize their cards, put them in hand-decorated RAFT envelopes, and further the preservation of the hand-written letter as a treasured form of social connection. RAFT provides me kits that match the state's curriculum requirements, completely capture student interest, are affordable in this time of budget cuts, and that I would NEVER have been able to pull together on my own. RAFT offers me workshops that are models of classroom management while teaching activities that enrich my students' creative opportunities. RAFT inspires me with its synthesis and excitement. RAFT offers corporations a lively opportunity to do a wonderful thing for children and the financial advantage of not paying to discard their overages.
Whenever you see a great organization doing the right things, look behind for a shining star. RAFT is fortunate because founding director Mary Simon is a dedicated individual who strongly believes in what they do. So many children are served each day; things are taken from the waste stream and re-used (not recycled) and everyone wins. I love RAFT!