Naming the Rodents One by One--Owl Pellets and Taxonomy
My students need 30 owl pellets to further their study of taxonomy.
FULLY FUNDED! Mr. Cable's classroom raised $181
This project is fully funded
Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month
This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
How do we, as scientists, name plants and animals? How many species are there? Most of my students haven't seen that many species, outside of the local zoo or cable TV. I need to teach them the basics of scientific classification in biology or taxonomy.
We know of more than a million species now.
Scientists believe there are at least two million living species today, probably as many as ten million, and possibly as many as 100 million. Big numbers. This makes the concept of biological classification and taxonomy difficult to grasp without some visual and hands-on experiences especially for students with limited life experiences.
Many of my students have limited life experience. Quite a few haven't ever been outside of Texas, or for that matter more than 100 miles from our small town rural school, but when I engage them they are the best students in the world. While we are a high-poverty school, with a large Hispanic and ESL (English as Second Language) population, we always achieve Recognized or Exemplary status according to the Texas Education Agency rating system. My kids are amazing.
My Project
I take these students on field trips. School yard field trips to examine the biodiversity right on our campus. Slightly further afield, they have seen the small wetland pond a half-mile behind our school. They have been to the local zoo, and the local state park.
But to really expose them to the miraculous wonder of biodiversity, I need to put some real life examples in their hands. The opportunity to dissect owl pellets will provide my students a hands-on activity to determine the taxonomic identity of the owl's last meal--an activity they will remember for a lifetime.
I am a lifelong learner.
My goal is to instill the joy of lifelong learning into all of my students. If they experience even a small share of the sense of awe and wonder that I do every day while learning with them, I will have succeeded. The materials I've requested will help me achieve that success.
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
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. Cable and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
