Teacher Professional Development: I need to attend this internship to improve writing within my classroom and gain skills to act as a mentor within my school. <profdevpilot>
"Of all the arts, writing should be among the most democratic: all one needs is paper and a pen--and I would suggest, a teacher or two along the way who works to make the intangible tangible, so ever student might know the joy of writing well" ~Nancie Attwell, first recipient of Global Teacher Prize
For a generation I have had the unique privilege of being the only kindergarten teacher in our small rural community.
I am passionately driven to provide a world class education for every child. Along with a colleague, I was awarded a National Semiconductor Innovative Educator award that provided funds to push our school to the forefront in technology integration. I subjected my work to rigorous scrutiny as I achieved National Board Certification and was awarded a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science teaching. I use technology to collaborate globally as part of the Skype Master teacher group. Rather than limiting opportunity, our school's geographical location and poverty level offer an opportunity for me to think outside the box and innovate. Due to my school's location, however, I rarely have the opportunity to engage in rigorous, top quality, professional development close to home.
My Project
This time, however, a globally celebrated educator is offering professional development in my own "back yard." As I continually strive to bring the world to my students, I feel fortunate that my application was selected from the pool of potential participants to take part in an internship at Nancie Atwell's Center For Teaching and Learning. The four day internship will help me refine my reading and writing instruction. Additionally, it will give me the opportunity to observe an exemplary k-8 school in a community that mirrors my own in many ways. As our district is faced with school reconfiguration, their school may serve as a useful model as we revision ours. The scope of the internship is well aligned to our current school configuration, too, so I anticipate leading professional development for all staff upon completion of the internship in my role as team leader for the school.
This internship provides a unique opportunity for me to improve my instructional skills in reading and writing with the woman who literally wrote the books, which I'm also requesting, on high quality literacy instruction.
By helping my students become outstanding writers I can do more than bring the world to them. I can empower them to be the authors of their future success.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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. Heidemann and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
