Since I'm the Tech Integration teacher, I'm privileged to know all 420 amazing students at our school by name. They are each sweet and unique and gifted in their own way! We have students from a variety of SES backgrounds, but each one of them arrives in my computer lab eager to learn. Some are learning English while others receive their one hot meal at school. The wonderful thing about our population is that they support each other and get along regardless of their individual circumstances.
At our school we very hard to cultivate a culture of sincere gratitude and kindness.
Showing up to work and being greeted by smiling high fives and hugs makes my school a very enjoyable place to teach. I've been there over twenty years and have no intention of leaving!
The best part of being a specialist teacher is getting to know these kids for six years; I am able to learn their individual likes and tastes, capitalize on their strengths, and most importantly, develop meaningful relationships.
My Project
Can you imagine an education tool that versatile enough to stimulate learning and challenge students that range in age from 5-11? These little Edison Robots are amazing...and do just that! My youngest students will be able to interact and program these robots using simple bar codes, while my older students will be able to take their "Scratch/Block" programming to the next level! In fact, for my students who truly excel in computer science, these robots are even capable of being programmed with Python!
My students have been coding using Scratch for years...and while it's both beneficial and fun to watch their programs run on the monitor, I eagerly await the day when I can hand them a robot for them to upload their programs onto and have them experience their programming in the real world!
I'm amazed at the quality of these robots. While I have used other brands that are EIGHT times the price, I am convinced these are the classroom robots of the future. Combined with the fact that they understand four different coding languages, their durability is unmatched. I have seen them fall off tables and even get stepped on; they are virtually indestructible!
I am a K-5 multimedia teacher in an elementary school. Funding this grant would allow me to purchase a class set of Edison Robots (only $44 apiece when purchased in bulk). All 420 of my students would get to experience hands-on, awesome lessons that cover more than just programming. Taught in the context of engineering and problem solving, these robots are a game-changer.
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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 Ms. Flanagan and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
