My students need an electric pencil sharpener to sharpen their pencils in math class in a quick manner that does not interrupt teaching and learning. They also would like to staple their projects and homework to keep their assignments together.
We are a predominantly African American middle school in the heart of Brooklyn, NY. Eighty percent of our students live in single parent families that are below the federal poverty limit.
Our school is categorized as a high needs school.
We are in need of a lot of resources to meet the needs of our students who are Students with Disabilities, English Language Learners, and Homeless families.
Yet, our students have a passion for learning. They come to school daily, and give their best everyday. For most of our students, school is their safe place. It provides more than an education. Our school is where these students are fed, have a social life, and are exposed to culture such as arts, museums, and broadway shows.
My Project
As a teacher, I try to eliminate or reduce all distractions and interruptions so my students can optimize their time and learning experience in my math classroom. Having broken pencils that need to be sharpened during teaching is necessary, unavoidable, but very distracting and a waste of valuable instructional time. It gets even worse having students walk around the classroom asking their classmates if they have a sharpener that they may borrow.
Students' time in the classroom should be spent learning to sharpen their minds, not searching for a sharpener to sharpen pencils.
I purchased an electric sharpener in the past. the students loved the ease of getting their pencils sharpened so they can quickly return to their work. I loved it because my students were spending more time focused and on task. Unfortunately, the electric sharpener no longer works.
Students having access to an electric stapler will also equip them with the necessary tools they need to improve the presentation their assignments.
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