This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.
My Students
How do you manage to keep papers from flying away or carry pencils and other tools necessary for studying our environment while spending time outside?
"Survey says": The number one answer to our problem is a class set of durable clipboards with built in storage.
My students are 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders who live in an urban setting.
City living doesn't usually offer much in the way of outdoor play. Interactions with the environment are quite limited in comparison to students who live in more rural areas.
Not long ago, our school was designated as the lowest performing school in the entire state. That was before we turned it around. Now we are an internationally recognized "High Flying School" award winner and have been nominated for the National Blue Ribbon award as well. Students from other attendance areas can "opt-in" to attend our school of Math and Natural Science.
Our economically disadvantaged students make up 93% of our student population. While they may come to us with serious deficits, they have attained high growth status on standardized assessments for the past 4 years in a row.
My Project
In the classroom, we push our students to meet high expectations. They work hard to achieve their goals. Students in grades 3-5 spend a significant part of their school week in the math/science lab. It is my job to blend these subject areas, engaging students in the application and problem solving that is centered in the real world.
This is a classroom that extends beyond the four walls and 900 sq. ft. of indoor space. We have a garden and composting area outside. We also have 7 rain barrels and a weather station. When we head into our outdoor learning space, we want to be able to take our work space with us. This is where the portable desk clipboards become important.
We do not have any picnic tables or outdoor seating. These clipboards will allow us to keep papers contained, take notes and make drawings and provide storage for extra pencils, calculators, and various tools. Finally, students will be able to carry everything they need to study their environment.
It only takes one gust of wind to send papers flying, ruining a perfectly good outdoor environmental study.
These clipboards will make a huge difference in my students' ability to focus their attention on observing and documenting the changes they see in the environment.
Donors to this project can feel good about their involvement in sustaining the progress this school has made. Thank you for being a part of our success!
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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 Dr. Kaiser and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
