Do you remember struggling with math? Or being bored because it was too easy? Many students grow to hate math because the classroom is taught towards the average skill level, but if presented with an achievable challenge, a math passion develops to lead the next generation.
Our school is lacking funding therefore does not have the ability to appropriately give out mass colored paper and highlighters.
My students are also unable to provide such resources because of their high poverty background.
My students are extremely diverse. Among them they speak 35 languages and their backgrounds are rich. Their diversity also comes in terms of skill level. Although my students are motivated to succeed, some struggle with single digit multiplication while others are bored in class when I present them with word problems.
My Project
Because of the large range of skill levels in my classroom, it is of utmost importance to differentiate my instruction so that I can challenge the high skill level students and motivate the low level students in addition to meeting the needs of the average student. By sorting assignments by their difficulty using a color coded scheme, students will be able to choose the level of difficulty that suits them and track their progress towards new heights. We need colored paper, highlighters, file boxes, hanging file folders, and markers to create this new system
In high poverty areas, children are too often pushed through the system that do not have the skills to master math in the next grade.
On the other hand the high skill level students are left to low expectations and never see college-ready level challenges.
Differentiation solves BOTH of these issues by providing scaffolding and motivation to the low kids, while challenging the high kids.
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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. Van Lunen and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
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