My students come from a variety of backgrounds. Some have grown up with technology as a foundation of their childhood, others have never been introduced to technology. The two elementary schools that feed our school are both Title I schools so many of the students are at or below the poverty line. Some students come from a home where parent involvement is not a priority. For the vast majority of my students, school is as much of an outlet as it is an educational environment. I am trying to create an environment where students are engaging in relevant curriculum and at the same time being challenged to solve real-world problems.
My Project
My students will be creating a completely self-sustaining aquaponic system. The science of aquaponics consists of growing plants on top of the water, without soil. The plants are able to grow without soil because they sit on top of the water that there are fish in. The plants, essentially, act as cleaning "machines". They feed off of the fish waste and at the same time, clean the water. My students are going to be studying the ins and outs of aquaponics and then they will be constructing their own system. The produce that they grow in their systems will be used in our school's cafeteria. Additionally, when the fish are at a mature age, we will harvest them as well to be used in our school's cafeteria. We will need a 55-gallon drum to hold our plants and also our fish. The water pump will pump the fish water to the plant container. The plants will clean the water and an additional pump will pump the clean water back to the fish. The plants will grow on the surface of the water by being placed in small rockwool block and sitting on top of hydroton or clay pebbles.
Hydro Crunch Expanded Clay Growing Media Hydroponic 50 L 8 mm Aggregate Pebbles Pellets
• Amazon Business
$33.76
5
$168.80
Augason Farms Water Storage Barrel 55-Gallon Drum
• Amazon Business
$95.11
1
$95.11
Homasy Upgraded 400GPH Submersible Water Pump With 48 hours Dry Burning, 25W Fountain Water Pump with 5.9ft Power Cord for Aquarium, Pond, Fish Tank, Water Pump Hydroponics
• Amazon Business
$25.99
2
$51.98
25 pack - 3 inch Net Pots Cz All Star Round HEAVY DUTY Cups WIDE LIP Design - Orchids • Hydroponics Kratky WIDE Mouth Mason Jars Slotted Mesh
• Amazon Business
$11.98
4
$47.92
Grodan Rockwool Cubes (1 inch) 100 Cubes
• Amazon Business
$11.65
2
$23.30
Penn Plax Airline Tubing for Aquariums –Clear and Flexible Resists Kinking, 25 Feet Standard
• Amazon Business
$2.99
2
$5.98
Materials cost
$393.09
Vendor shipping charges
FREE
Sales tax
$21.62
3rd party payment processing fee
$5.90
Fulfillment labor & materials
$30.00
Total project cost
$450.61
Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
$79.52
Total project goal
$530.13
How we calculate what's needed
Total project goal
$530.13
2 Donors
-$505.13
Donations toward project cost
-$429.36
Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
-$75.77
match offer
-$25.00
Match offer toward project cost
-$21.25
Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
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 Mr. Cerny and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
