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Mr. W. from is requesting supplies through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

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Fully Funded

Mr. W.'s classroom raised $344

Getting The Lead Out -Greener Schools

My students need soil test kits to determine the fertility of the soil, lead testing kits to see if the soil is safe, and slides to identify the community of life in the soil.

Classroom photo
Mr. W.
Grades 6-8

We are going to grow our own lunch! Our school is going "green" and many classes are playing a role in greening our school. We hope to be growing food in the many outdoor spaces around our school. To do so, my students are going to partner up with the kindergarten, show them how to dig, explain why it is important to prepare the soil for our garden, talk about why we should test for lead and eventually have the little ones help plant the gardens. I teach an environmental science class to the 7th grade. The collaboration with the kindergarten class is just as much about developing leadership as it is about science. First, my students need to determine if the soil is free of lead. Then a fertility test is done to see if it needs more compost, then organic materials are added and it's ready for spring! The available land should provide ingredients for raw food lessons for my class every week.

Detroit has some of the highest lead levels in the country. Demolished homes were often knocked down and buried instead of removed. As a result, the lead paint on all of the wood is still in much of the soil. This is why lead testing is imperative. Also there is no topsoil left. Many vacant lots have only rubble instead of soil. This is why we will be performing soil fertility tests. This will help us determine how much compost will need to be added. Also, like much of Detroit, the school has acres of vacant land around it. We hope to become a catalyst of change in the neighborhood, helping parents to move to grow more of their own food.

Our city is also described as a food dessert. Healthy food is not available close to where people live. To fix this, we intend on growing our own lunch. This next year we will have some new plots constructed and planted. More garden beds will be added each year, so a salad bar can be harvested . I believe you can talk to young people until you are "blue in the face" and they will not hear you, but if you show them, they understand it. The harvested vegetables and fruit will be an essential part of our "hands on" food justice curriculum that will demonstrate: food miles that add to global warming, factory farming & pollution, biodiversity & heirloom crops, healthy living, effects of Genetically Modified crops and much more. We currently collaborate with local environmental organizations and urban farming organizations to enhance our farming efforts. (www.emeac.org and www.greeningofdetroit..com)

Purchasing the soil testing equipment takes care of a major obstacle; the cost of lead testing. This will allow our young people to create the gardens that will be a focal point of change, instruction, and healthy eating.

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

150 students impacted 7 donors
Mr. W. Grades 6-8

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

150 students impacted 7donors

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
Lead Soil Test Kit • Carolina Biological Supply Company $27.90 6 $167.40
LaMotte N P K Soil Test Kit • Carolina Biological Supply Company $22.95 2 $45.90
SLIDE, MUSHROOM • Sargent-Welch $2.68 1 $2.68
Life in the Soil Slide Set • Carolina Biological Supply Company $28.80 1 $28.80

Materials cost

$244.78

Vendor shipping charges

 $24.48

Sales tax

 $0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$3.67

Fulfillment labor & materials

$9.00

Total project cost

$281.93

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$61.89

Total project goal

$343.82

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $343.82

4 Donors

-$332.84

Donations toward project cost

-$281.93

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$50.91

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$10.98

Still needed View calculationHide calculation

 $0.00

Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.

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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. W. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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