My students need two digital cameras, memory cards, a photo printer and photo paper.
$925 goal
This project expired on August 20, 2008.
This project expired on August 20, 2008.
I teach kids who cannot participate in regular education settings due to extreme mental health issue or aggression issues. They are from very poor families in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Metro areas. They deal with parents who are abusive, in prison, extremely mentally ill or nonexistent in their lives. 100% of my class receives free lunches.
We watched the Documentary "Born Into Brothels" about the children in India who photographed their world around them, and the kids asked about doing something similar. One of the things my students LOVE is when I bring in my camera and take photos. I created a photography/MY WORLD Curriculum, using digital cameras, a photo printer, and our class computer. I went to our administration and they said they didn't have the funding, so I thought I would seek help here.
I believe that allowing the creativity of my students to look at their world, to be able to express what is going on around them through the eye of a camera would be both educational and also very emotionally healthy for them. Sometimes people just can't see the world through their eyes..what is important to these kids, but through their photos they could find their voices.
I have worked in this educational field for 18 years and the kids just seem to be getting less and less from everyone. We have text books from 1965, a school that was built in 1910 and that leaks water everywhere, but still to these kids this is their stability. They feel safe in our school, safe to express their needs and emotions. This project will help them express their creativity, and also show those around them who they are and what they believe is important.
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