My students need soil, flower pots, and plants for real life opportunities to work with their hands, collaborate with their classmates, observe and report their findings, and make cross-curricular connections.
The 50 students is a combined number with my teaching colleague next door. Our goal at the end of last school year was to promote more community. I am assigned the ELL Block (usually one third of the class) and my teaching colleague is assigned the Special Education Block (usually one quarter of the class).
Our goal this school year is to have many activities that both meet the standards, but more importantly enhance the community in our wing of the building, lovingly named the "West Wing".
The West Wing's motto this school year is "Work hard and treat people nice."
My Project
All of our students want to get their hands dirty (planting the seeds in soil). Our classes can have the opportunity to do so across subject areas. The supplies will provide hands-on opportunities for students. Having and tending to plants has many benefits for students, such as improving concentration. Classroom plants (seeds to plants) will also teach responsibility, many at a time. This helps students develop a sense of pride, which goes a long way to generating happiness and building self-esteem.
After using the requested supplies to plant their seeds, students will nurture and refer to their plants as they grow as this process will serve as the centerpiece for several units throughout the school year, from science to writing to social emotion learning.
The best way to increase student's curiosity is to provide access and opportunities for practice. My student's schedules are jam packed, so I am always looking for activities that I can use across subject areas. Students show an high interest in hand-on activities, and taking this project from seeds to plants will only help enrich the student's experiences. The requested planters and greenhouse will allow students access to check for progress on a daily basis, as well as many opportunities to collaborate with their classmates.
The requested planting supplies (soil, planters, seeds, greenhouse, etc) will equip students with the supplies to create a real world experience when the plants eventually make their "home" in the school garden. Being responsible for supplies (planters in the greenhouse) and care for the plants as they grow, will allow students to observe and report with pride adding to classroom community.
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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 Mr. Picek and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.