54.1% of the 1,116 students at my school come from economically disadvantaged homes. A large portion of my own students come from homes in which they are being raised by their grandparents or extended family, and are one of multiple children in the household.
Each year, I give away hundreds of dollars of my own money in notebooks, loose leaf paper, pencil and snacks to my students in need whose families cannot provide them with these materials.
On a daily basis, my students face and overcome various obstacles in order to just make it to school. How can I refuse them the opportunity of learning simply because they don't have a pencil?
"Cause I Ain't Got a Pencil"
Poem by Joshua T. Dickerson
"I woke myself up
Because we ain’t got an alarm clock
Dug in the dirty clothes basket,
Cause ain’t nobody washed my uniform
Brushed my hair and teeth in the dark,
Cause the lights ain’t on
Even got my baby sister ready,
Cause my mama wasn’t home.
Got us both to school on time,
To eat us a good breakfast.
Then when I got to class the teacher fussed
Cause I ain’t got no pencil."
My Project
Each year, students are required to have pencils, binders, paper, pencils, glue, pens, erasers, and more for school. This can be difficult to fund, especially for families with multiple children. A student's right to an education should not be affected by the inability to purchase necessary materials for school.
My students face adversity outside of school that I could never imagine facing as a middle school student and the least I can do is provide them with a pencil, or notebook paper, or a binder.
I want my students to be able to enter my room and let the rest of their world's worries melt away.
In my classroom, I want my students to have the opportunity to be children, to make mistakes, to learn new life lessons and skills. I want them to enjoy coming to school and to enjoy learning and trying new things. I want to provide for my students the things they need, but there's no way I can do it alone. To give my students their chance at an education, a future, a better life for themselves, I need your help!
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 Mrs. Jernigan and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
