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
My dance students are a phenomenal group of 10th-12th graders who train daily to hone their skills. My students represent a diverse group of learners from the Trenton community. These dance learners are physically expressive, socially conscious, and creative individuals. As a classroom community we view education and art-making as tools for empowerment, self-reflection, and social change.
I need new tools and strategies to challenge and respond to my learners!
My students needs are forever changing and thus challenging me as an educator. This year new needs to address emotional wellness, learners who identify as LGBTQA, and chronic absenteeism have challenged my practice. I believe that a progressive educator must engage in professional development and tackle questions of theory and philosophy to best met their instructional demands. Quality professional development for dance educators is often hard to come by in my district because these sessions are rarely directed towards dance instruction. As one of two dance educators in my district, this often leads us to work in isolation rather than in conversation with peers who can help us refine our practice.
My Project
Please help send me to the 20th Annual National Dance Education Organization's Conference "Connections, Knowledge, and Leadership: A New Era in Dance Education" in San Diego, CA. The conference is a peer learning opportunity that brings together dance educators and researchers from across the nation to share instructional strategies, engage in critical conversations to address emerging topics, and to share the newest research within our field. I have attended this conference in years past and have always come back inspired. This year I am taking on a new challenge, by presenting at the conference.
I am privileged to be presenting about DonorsChoose.org at the conference and am looking forward to share all I have learned from using this platform.
My session is entitled, "How to Maximize DonorChoose.Org: Connecting Donors to Your Program". This workshop will be a how-to session arming teachers with tools to publish a project within the hour. I hope by posting this project, I will inspire other dance educators to see how this wonderful site can empower their instruction.
Here are some additional highlights of the conference that I will look forward to:
After this conference, I will look to bring back all the information and she it with my students. Some of my leading questions include, "How will I better be able to address social emotional learning goals in my dance classroom to promote the emotional wellness of my students?", "How can the dance classroom be an inclusive environment for students on the LGBTQA spectrum?", and "How can the arts be used to improve school climate and culture?". I look forward to the chance to learn again.
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 Ms. Zwierzynski and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
