I have the most spunky, creative students this side of the Mississippi, and there is never a dull moment in my classroom. Three of the courses I teach are composition classes, which are writing intensive. My students joke that after completing one of my writing courses, they have the stamina to each write their own novel.
I have high expectations, but my students always exceed them (and we have a lot of fun too).
Their writing makes me laugh, cry, think, and question. I would not trade this group of writers for anything.
My Project
Currently, my students sit in chairs that are connected to student desks. Not only are they uncomfortable to sit in for most of the day, they do not allow me to easily arrange the room so that students can share their writing in pairs or small groups.
Writing is a process, and no one is going to write a Pulitzer prize-winning novel in complete isolation.
Writing is a challenge, even under the very best circumstances, and it should not be done alone. Students need to be able to brainstorm ideas together and seek feedback from each other. They need to have discussions about the characters they have created and about their evidence and sentence structure. It is awkward to have these conversations while sitting in student desks, placed in rows. If my students had a markerboard top table and chairs on wheels, we would be able to arrange the room in a way that would support collaboration and peer editing. Markerboard top tables are a great space to brainstorm ideas or take a few quick notes.
Every college writing course I have attended - as a student and as an instructor - has students seated around conference-style tables. This is a more conducive format for encouraging students to ask questions of each other and seek feedback from peer editors. This is what I want in my classroom.
Nearly all students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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 Mrs. Marquart and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
{"pmaHash":"","showProjectRecommendations":true,"leadGenEnabled":true,"hideTeacherDetails":false,"schoolState":"NY","teacherPossessivePronoun":"her","PMsManager":null,"schoolGradeType":{"id":4,"name":"High School"},"TeacherPMForms":{},"completingDonationAmount":0,"teacherHasClassroomPhoto":true,"proposalURL":"https://www.donorschoose.org/project/collaboration-station-markerboard-top-t/2931090/","mayHaveReplacements":false,"numStudents":80,"isEquityFocusV1":true,"teacherScreenName":"Mrs. Marquart","isEquityFocus":true,"proposalHash":"-1894828504","isApplePayMobileOnly":true,"progressBarPercentage":100.00,"monthlySchoolDonationEnabled":false,"photosPublished":true,"queryString":"","DonorPMForm":null,"shouldTrackEquityFocusV2":true,"schoolCity":"Geneva","teachersOnPage":[252391],"isTeacherViewingTheirOwnProject":false,"minimizedLeadGenEnabled":true,"proposalId":2931090,"proposalMessageFormModel":null,"numActiveProjects":2,"verifyShowPhotos":"","eligibleToBeCopied":false,"schoolId":22984,"schoolName":"Geneva High School","authorIds":{"252391":{"owner":"Mrs. Marquart","donationSalutations":{}}},"displayedPercentFunded":1.0,"proposalsOnPage":[2931090],"pmaId":"","teacherProfilePhotoURL":"https://storage.donorschoose.net/dc_prod/images/teacher/profile/272x272/tp252391_272x272.png?width=272&height=272&fit=bounds&auto=webp&t=1533920942962","teacherHasProfilePhoto":true,"currentWorkflowStatusCode":21,"teacherChallengeId":55292,"isApplePayEnabled":true,"fundedByTarget":false,"activeProject":{"completingDonationAmount":329,"proposalURL":"project/building-better-players-one-ball-at-a-t/9761466/","proposalTitle":"Building Better Players, One Ball at a Time","proposalId":9761466},"donorIdsForImpactPhotoCheck":["NDEzNzUyMg==","MTc5MjA3OA==","MTc2NTc3OQ==","NDIzMzk0","NTEzMzYwNg==","NTE1ODE2NA==","MjUyMzkx","MzczNjgzMg==","NzI2MzY5","NDEyNzI1Ng==","NTEyMzU5MQ==","NTIyMjcyOA==","NTA4NjkxOQ==","NTEyNTg3MQ==","Njk1MTcz","NTEyMzcwNQ=="],"teacherId":252391,"schoolCounty":"Ontario","fullyFunded":true,"isStudentLed":false,"isExpired":true,"schoolStateObj":{"code":"NY","name":"New York"}}
