My students need microscopes, slides and pipettes to experience "doing" science and should "see" the things we often only read about in class.
FULLY FUNDED! Ms. Smith's classroom raised $1,420
This project is fully funded
My Students
I don't want my students' only experience with science to be from reading a textbook. Boring!!
My students live in a diverse, bustling, exciting metropolitan area, yet many of them have never left the small suburb they were born in.
Just like their day-to-day lives, their experience with science has been narrow. Not only is the world bigger than they can imagine, it's also quite small. Fifth grade is largely about learning about small things...fractions, decimals, atoms and cells. Instead of drawing a plant cell from a picture in a book, I'd like them to actually draw the cell they see through a microscope.
My students attend a very antiquated school. We finally got a computer lab this year and for many, it is their first experience with technology. Some years we are designated Title 1, but if the criteria change, we lose the funding. For years our school was overlooked for upgrades because we were stated to close. Now we will remain open, but everything is so outdated. There aren't enough outlets in the classroom for two computers.
My Project
I am requesting five elementary microscopes and accompanying grade-specific slides. In addition to reading the text, they will get to see, draw and label what they are learning about! I look forward to drawings of enlarged onion skin cells instead of a copy of the plant cell on page 26. My students will be able to see into the world they can not possibly imagine. I want them to envision the limitless of the microscopic world as well as the vastness of the universe.
I hope that our initial views into the microscopic world will inspire them to make slides of their own to further explore the world around them.
In addition, they can learn how to handle lab equipment like a microscope as well as delicate slides. They will be better prepared for middle school and high school because of their exposure to the equipment. They will enter future science labs with respect, knowledge and experience.
I'm happy to share the microscopes with other teachers to further impact our students.
I believe that if I foster a love of learning at a young age, my students will be more likely to take that love into their teens and adulthood.
If I can prove to them now that school is not always "boring", they can take the enthusiasm with them forever. Can you imagine a generation of students excited about science? Their potential is limitless. Our society and our future can only benefit. Ultimately this project is priceless.
More than half of 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
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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. Smith and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
