I teach a diverse group of scholars in an urban school in Wisconsin. Many of my students live with anxiety, trauma, or struggle with learning differences. Many depend upon our district's free breakfast and lunch program and often ask for snacks as they go out the door on Fridays as well.
The students in my classroom are learning to envision themselves as scholars who are in control of their own destinies.
We use mindfulness to practice reframing struggle as growth opportunities. Doing so helps stop a recurring cycle of frustration, feelings of failure and shutting down. In our classroom, everything is set to calm our reactive minds so that we can instead respond and do our best. Whenever possible, our learning is hands-on and get-dirty! New leaders emerge and confidence soars as real-world STEM problems get solved. Our class motto is "Together, we do hard things."
My Project
All of the materials in this project will benefit two classrooms of eager learners who are ready to showcase their understanding in a variety of ways. These are the supplies that my teaching partner and I go out-of-pocket for year-in and year-out. Imagine what we could do for our students if these basics were provided!
Choice and hands-on learning provide opportunities for success and leadership by students who sometimes do not thrive in the traditional setting or with traditional assessment techniques.
The materials in this project will be used across subject areas. Construction paper may be used for posters, city planning, backgrounds for video projects and bookbinding. Modeling clay may be used for building 3-D shapes, for stop animation book reports or in STEM-build team competitions. With multiple avenues to display understanding, often creative, and ample opportunities to practice building and engineering skills, our students remain engaged and ever-learning! When they say "let me show you how I know," the magic is happening.
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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. Cunningham and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.