We're launching the future--one computer at a time! Part I
The cost of an Acer TravelMate Notebook PC from CDW is $1208, including shipping and <a target="new" href="http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm" onclick="g_openWindow('http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm', 300, 800, 'fulfillwindow');return false;">fulfillment</a>.
This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.
I am the science teacher at Ibraham Elementary School, an Equity + School. I have the unique opportunity to teach the children at our school about flight, aeronautics, and aerospace. There are 504 students (K-5 grades with 27 different classrooms) at Ibraham who come to my aeronautics class once a week. 81% of our students receive free and reduced lunch, 20% are English as a Second Language (ESL) students, and 10% are Exceptional Children. Most of the children in our school come from single parent, low-income households.
My vision for my double wide trailer classroom is to create the Ibraham Space Station/Aeronautics Center (ISSAC). The interior of the classroom will closely replicate the habitation module and the laboratory module of the International Space Station (ISS). Our children are performing at significantly different academic levels within each classroom. This space station setting will provide working spaces for small groups and individual students so that they may find success no matter what their present levels are. In order to facilitate this project I am in dire need of laptop computers.
Our children rarely have computers at home. These children are being left behind in this technology age. My goal is to give my students technological advantages that most other children already have. Research shows that children learn better when working in pairs. I would like to use laptop computers for pairs of students to be working at the same time using problem-based learning (PBL). PBL presents real life circumstances for the children to solve problems using research, community resources, and their own creative insights. Our school doesn't have the funding for enough resources for students to research their problems. Yet, access to the Internet offers a world of opportunities for our children to catch up and excel academically. These laptops would provide life-changing experiences for them by giving them practice using important problem solving skills for their future vocations. The children will also benefit by having more one-on-one time for individual instruction, while the rest of the class is engaged in meaningful learning experiences, which they desperately need.
Please help me launch my students into the future and inspire them to seek successful and meaningful futures for themselves. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my proposal.
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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. H. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.