The cost of a Panasonic DVD Palmcorder Camcorder from Highsmith, Inc. and a 25-pack spindle of DVD-RW Discs from Quill Corporation is $947, including shipping and <a target="new" href="http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm" onclick="g_openWindow('http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm', 300, 800, 'fulfillwindow');return false;">fulfillment</a>.
I teach sixth grade at Little Oak Middle School in Slidell, LA. I teach English, reading, spelling, and social studies to two classes of sixth graders. The students I teach were all affected by Hurricane Katrina in ways that will forever be ingrained in my mind. Many students are still living with family/friends, or they are living with their family in a FEMA trailer. Due to the conditions these kids deal with on a daily basis, I have vowed to make their time with me a FUN, enjoyable experience. We sing songs to learn basic concepts, and we put on skits to review skills. Recently, we have been working on our story telling techniques and public speaking skills. Students are regularly put into groups and are given the opportunity to retell stories, fairy tales, and myths that we have been studying in class. I have brought in my video camera from home and taped the children's performances. Later as a class, we are able to watch the performances and pick up on things we missed during the original performance. Since I teach two classes of students, I am even able to share one class's performances with the other class and vice versa. Many times, the kids ask to bring the tape home to share their performances with their parents. They are unable to do so because the camera attaches directly to the TV for viewing.
This leads me to my proposal. In order for my kids to be able to share their classroom performances with their family, I am requesting a digital video camera that records directly to a DVD disk. I can then allow students to take the disk home on a rotating basis. I have a DVD burner, so I would also be able to burn several copies to rotate through the class at a quicker rate. I would also be able to integrate technology skills into these lessons by teaching students how to operate and run the camera during performances and how to create the additional DVD disks. The students and I would also be able to video whole class skits/activities and create a “living” memory for the kids at the end of the year. Since they leave Little Oak at the end of their sixth grade year, having their own copy of real memories of their middle school days would be something they would surely cherish. In future years, I would be able to utilize this resource from the beginning of the year so students will be able to see their growth from beginning to end. Field trips, guest speakers, etc., would be taped and shared with students unable to attend, or for viewing in future years.
Not only would my current students benefit from this resource, but students in years to come will be able to benefit and learn with this piece of technology. This allows the opportunity for parents to see and be involved with what goes on in the classroom. It is a "big deal" for students to show off to their parents what they are doing in school.
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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 Mrs. Besch and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.