"How would you feel if you stepped onto the ice with old copies of 'The Enquirer' taped to your shins?" questioned hockey coach Gordon Bombay of a potential donor in the movie "The Mighty Ducks." Like Bombay's hockey players, my students are in need of basic supplies: pencils, paper, and folders.
My students attend a failing high school in a major city in Pennsylvania.
They walk through the front door of a dilapidated, century-old building every day looking for hope. They have the same dreams and ambitions as students in high-performing schools: they want to be doctors, lawyers, and businessmen. But they struggle every day with the reality of attending an under-resourced school. At the beginning of the year, I asked my students what they would buy if they had $1,000 to spend on improving their high school. The two most common responses were infrastructure and basic supplies, such as pencils and paper. They know they do not have the supplies they need, and they want them because they want to learn.
My Project
Basic classroom resources are in short supply for my English students. The supplies I am requesting include overhead transparencies, copy paper, and pocket folders. These supplies will help my students learn in several ways. My classroom does not have an LCD projector, so visual learners depend on the overhead projector to learn. The transparencies I have requested are designed to be used not only with a high-speed copier, but also with an ink-jet printer, which means I can print in color at home (low-quality transparencies smear when printed on an ink-jet printer). Copy paper enables me to distribute handouts and graphic organizers to help my students learn content and how to take notes. Organization is another life skill that I teach my students. Pocket folders will help them learn personal organization and allow them to create and present professional-quality projects and portfolios.
As my students' learning coach, I am asking you to replace the copies of "The Enquirer" taped to their shins with pairs of real shin pads.
This project is not fancy--it is essential; and my students will be moved to know how much people they have never met care about their futures. Thank you for your interest in "Back to Basics: The Gordon Bombay Project." Thank you for making a difference.
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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. Markey and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.