I have a passion to teach science to my students and honestly you will see me teaching in a lab coat to promote my enthusiasm for the subject. I teach second graders, coach science teams and host a group of 4th and 5th graders in an environmental group that meets after school. My school has the highest ranking for Green School. The premier level was an honor earned by my students for their efforts with environmental studies.
For years my students have used an incubator for learning and observing how a chick develops. We have hatched chickens in our second grade classroom, but also have used the incubator for raising native quail in our environmental club. I will always remember when one of my students sauntered into school cradling an injured robin and we were able to keep her warm until our local wildlife rescue agency came to care for her. There is no funding available for projects such as these to be brought into the classroom. Children love to watch the wonders of nature and hatching eggs is a hands-on experience they never forget. I want to return that experience to my students.
Our classroom and science groups are in need of an incubator. Our local farmer donated fertile eggs. This year as I plugged in the tired, old incubator it no longer was operational. The children's excitement grew, but I had to return the eggs only explaining to my students that the incubator no longer worked. We would love to have a replacement.
This project enhances our science curriculum by allowing students to become active data keepers and responsible pet owners. My students not only learn science but become readers and writers when projects keep them engaged. The egg scope will give students an opportunity to view through the shell watching the developing embryo without harming the chick inside. They will no longer have just a poster of the stages of development. They will witness it first hand. Imagine the scientific drawings they will produce! The chickens they raise are returned to the farmer so that the students know they have a proper home, which is an important lesson in responsible pet ownership.
You are creating future scientists while allowing children to explore through your donation of supplies for this project. My students will have opportunities to interact with living animals that will promote respect and responsibility for a lifetime. Incubation of eggs brings an authentic way to bring nature inside the classroom allowing students to observe, explore and make long lasting memories of their experience. Imagine the smiles you will bring when children speak, write and draw about their experience with parents, teachers, peers and the community. We will look forward to “squawking” about our newly hatched chickens.
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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 Ms. Foelkl and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.