What makes my students special is their sense of creativity and artistic expression. They spontaneously design and post decorations to brighten the classroom. They design title drawings and 3-D displays for the bulletin board whenever I change the theme. My 4th grade students in Oakland come from diverse cultures and backgrounds yet all share a common love for graphic novels and music. When I projected Sisters by Raina Telgemeier on the screen, the students enjoyed acting out the characters’ dialogue. They also get into friendly competitions when I display the jeopardy style quizzes of content they are learning.
Most of my students learn best with visual and tactile tools.
Some require visual aids because of their individualized instruction plans. They rely on the step by step display of math procedures and concepts as well as other subjects. I am only able to do this using a projector. However, our old projector has finally played out and there is no money in the school budget to replace it. We desperately need a replacement.
My class loved Code.org. They were just about to start Computer Science First Club. The Chromebooks that were shared between teachers are now only accessible for state/district testing.
My Project
Our class depends on the use of the whiteboard and projector in all subjects. A projector is especially essential for math instruction because the concepts are often abstract and too complex for verbal lectures alone. We depend on the projector to build and display math models step by step. The students are able to develop a better understanding of the the concepts when actually seeing a model unfold before them on on the screen.
Students also share their thinking with the class by projecting solutions to math problems.
We also rely on the projector view and analyze informational text. The students display their writing whole class using the projector. Without a projector my students, especially those that depend on visual support will struggle.
By donating to this project, you ensure that my students have access to the curriculum and are able to internalize and share what they have learned.
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