Today's students need to be able to use technology in a lot of different ways. While my kids love using technology, many of them don't have Internet access at home and don't get to personally use technology on any kind of regular basis in school. This project would help rectify that problem.
I work in an urban public school district in Central New York.
100% of our students live in poverty and over half of them are English Language Learners (ELL). Despite the fact that many of them have already lived through struggles I can only imagine facing, they're bright, funny, creative kids, full of ideas and potential. They definitely have the ability to accomplish a lot of great things.
My Project
I have a lot of ideas for how these iPads will be used in our classroom. Here are just a few things I imagine students doing: Interacting with the sky through apps like Stephen Hawking's Snapshot of the Universe and NASA Visualization Explorer; researching, creating, and presenting multimedia projects through apps and programs like Haiku Deck and Keynote; demonstrating understanding of things like how volcanoes are formed, plate tectonics, and the life cycle of a star through claymation and video; performing virtual labs that can't be performed in the classroom due to a lack of resources (or safety!); and participating in enrichment activities like coding and robotics.
All of these things allow students to take control of their own learning and work at a more personalized level.
These six iPads will make technology a weekly - if not daily - part of our classroom.
They'll also move science out of the textbook and make it more hands-on, allowing my below grade level readers and ELLs to access and interact with content that they might not otherwise be able to access. Their curiosity and imagination will be allowed to take full flight. And while they're having fun, the kids will become more prepared for high school, college, and the world beyond school.
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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 Mrs. Bermingham and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
