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This teacher needs your help!

Ms. Szakal from Henrico, VA is requesting instructional technology through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Ms. Szakal is requesting

Innovative BirdBrains

Help me give my students a Hummingbird Duo kit to create and program engineered objects to move, light up, and so much more.

  • $902 goal

This project expired on September 17, 2019.

This project expired on September 17, 2019.

My Students

I have the privilege of working with over 600 students in grades K-5 each week; roughly 120 kids a day. This is a new role for me; instead of having my own little group of 20 or so kiddos all day, my classroom is a revolving door that starts with fourth graders that come to me a little sleepy, but leave me wide awake, and ends with first graders that love everything about learning. Sandwiched between them are a variety of grade levels with different likes and dislikes, a range of abilities, and all of which are excited about the opportunities and activities STEAM class provides them.

They are inquisitive and curious, hardworking and determined.

A high percentage of our students are English Language Learners, but there's always a classmate (or ten) who is willing to jump in and help out when one doesn't understand or needs some guidance. Some even try to learn a few words in their peer's language in order to communicate with each other.

My Project

This Humminbird Duo kit is packed full of a bunch of "loose parts," that when connected and programmed can make engineered creations spin, dance, light up, and even...throw up glitter!

The BirdBrain robotics kit will allow me to empower students by providing them with the opportunity to be truly engaged in deeper learning as they communicate and collaborate together to think critically, to solve more complex problems, through self-directed learning.

Imagine handing students a "controller," with lots of different colored boxes on the back, an LED and a light or sound sensor with some very basic instruction, and then saying "GO, what can you do?" Soon, they'll learn how to program the sensor to react to light and cause the LED to light up. The next thing you know, they've designed a room from recycled materials and create a switch that causes the lights in the house to turn on and off. Or maybe, they use a motor that makes a paper dragon "dance" when music is turned on by programming the motor to respond the the sound sensor. These activities are very doable for a beginning coder, but goes beyond coding a character on a screen to do something!

I want to be able to provide our students with innovative technology that will bring to life what they're already learning, or what they want to learn. Whether it's incorporating angles and measurement in the design of the dragon, or using a lesson on energy conservation drive constructing a model of a house and programming it for the most effecient use of electricity; bringing in the Hummingbird kits can take this learning to the next level and provide a real learning experience.

Ms. Szakal Dumbarton Elementary School Grades 3-5

Equity Focus

This project directly supports students at a historically underfunded school. Learn more about our Equity Focus.

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

Henrico, VA View local requests

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

650 students impacted

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
Hummingbird Bit Classroom Bundle • Bird Brain Technologies $725.00 1 $725.00

Materials cost

$725.00

Vendor shipping charges

 FREE

Sales tax

 $0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$10.88

Fulfillment labor & materials

$30.00

Total project cost

$765.88

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$135.16

Total project goal

$901.04

Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.

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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. Szakal and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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