Imagine the joy I feel when a kindergarten students runs up to me to proudly display their newest work of art! At this age, their creativity is boundless, as is their capacity to explore new things in their artwork.
Our students are from low-income families.
They all qualify for free or reduced lunch. Our school climate, on the other hand, is far from impoverished. We are a very cohesive staff that sees to it that our children foster a solid sense of self-worth. That applies to the principal, teachers, office workers, the librarian, and custodians. We have the opportunity to provide experiences for our kids that are not available to them in their home life. From the time they are in kindergarten, we encourage them to set their sights on attending college. I am certain that our students develop a love of learning, and an appreciation of the value of education.
My Project
I have 30 students from varied racial backgrounds. I try to incorporate art into the subjects of writing, math and science. Our school is the poorest in our district, and because we are not able to supplement our school resources from parent club fundraising, we have very little money for supplies. We have to make due with $175 for the whole year. We are only given copy paper. We have to provide pencils, special paper, art supplies, glue, tape, erasers, materials for crafts, etc. I usually begin the school year having depleted that money, and dig into my personal account for supplies throughout the year. Right now my class is using colored pencils that I had when I first began teaching 11 years ago.
To have freshly sharpened crayons and colored pencils in their table containers would really delight them.
They are so proud of their artwork made with broken crayons and stubby colored pencils, imagine their smiling faces as they share their beautiful artwork made with quality materials!
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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. Hawthorne and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.