This week, we're taking advantage of double and triple matches to help provide Ozobots at one elementary school and engineering kits at another. We hope that readers who support quality public school education will help these teachers and students by sharing or supporting our featured projects.
The Inoculation Project is an ongoing, volunteer effort to crowdfund science and math projects for red-state public schools in low-income neighborhoods. As always, our conduit is DonorsChoose.org, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation that facilitates tax-deductible donations to specific, vetted projects in public schools.
We’re still working on this El Paso 3rd-grade teacher’s project helping her students to understand coding by using tiny Ozobot Bits programmable robots. Donations to this project are now being doubled.
MAIN PROJECT
Resources: Help me give my students the experience of coding with a little robot, Ozobots Bits.
Economic need: Nearly all students from low‑income households
Location: Lee Elementary School, El Paso, Texas
Total: $371.89 (2x matching funds)
Still Needed: $201.89 Completed, thank you! Please consider Project #3 below.
Teacher’s Comments from Ms. Almeida:
My Students: I am a first year teacher and I work at a Title I school in a low socioeconomic area, and 100% of our students receive free breakfast and lunch. For some of our kids, these are the only two meals they have in a day.
Although my kids face many challenges, they are always eager to learn.
We are three miles away from Ft. Bliss, so we have many military families in our school as well. Our school is located in a border city, and many of my students moved here from Mexico and are English language learners. I'm always looking for innovative ways to teach my kids and encourage them to love school and learning.
My Project: My students love to learn new things. Coding and technology is a huge part of our society. The Ozobots will be used to allow my students the opportunity to learn to code and program these bots.
By donating to this project, you will help my students to acquire skills which will boost their academic achievement and help them in today's society.
The world is ever-changing and my students want the opportunity to change and grow with it.
This will allow my students to learn the academic material they need, but in a fun way. My students will have the opportunity to incorporate STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) into their everyday learning.
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
This never-before-funded teacher’s project will provide STEM kits for students in this rural elementary school. Donations to this project are now being tripled.
LONG-TERM PROJECT
Resources: Help me give my students the ability to explore the realm of STEM through a special engineering project that will inspire students to help the world around them.
Economic need: More than three-quarters of students from low‑income households
Location: Petersburg School, Petersburg, Texas
Total: $477.84 (3x matching funds)
Still Needed: $477.84 Completed, thank you! Please consider project below.
Teacher’s Comments from Mrs. Miller:
My Students: I am the proud teacher of over 70 3rd-5th grade students! Our school has grown tremendously over the last year and my students have worked so hard to achieve success.
For the majority of my students, school is an escape from the real world, it is a chance to prove they are going to go far.
I teach in a low-income, primarily minority student, rural school district. Despite the fact that all the cards are stacked against them, my students work hard to shine every day. When we go on field trips, we regularly get complimented on the manners and behavior of our students.
Regardless of external disadvantage, my students work hard to prove to the world it doesn't matter how much money you have or how many things you have when it comes to achieving your dreams. They are an inspiration to me and the community every day and I could not be more proud to be their teacher.
My Project: Students in low-income communities with heavy minority populations often lack adequate enrichment. In our school, focus is often given to reading and math skills to ensure our students are adequately prepared for the academic challenge they will face moving forward. The students who are at or above grade level tend to get "left behind" since they do not need interventions.
This STEM project kit is part of the answer to the need for enrichment in my 3rd-5th grade science classroom!
My students crave extra experimentation and stimulation. This kit will inspire my students to solve real world problems efficiently and with ingenuity. I love that this kit is adaptable for all the age groups I work with and really love the lesson it will teach.
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
Edited to add another project with a triple match offer:
PROJECT #3
Resources: Help me give my students the STEM activity, To the Rescue: Engineering Aid Drop package, to provide opportunities to bring classroom concepts to life and develop a passion for learning within the STEM field.
Economic need: More than three-quarters of students from low‑income households
Location: Torres Elementary School, Victoria, Texas
Total: $477.84 (3x match offer)
Still Needed: $477.84 $363.31 ($122 from us!)
Teacher’s Comments from Mrs. Zimmerman:
My Students: We are a Pre K-5th grade public elementary school with over 520 students from varied backgrounds and diverse needs. We are a Title l school with at least 85% of our students on free and reduced-price lunch. The majority of our students are from low socioeconomic families, in a community still recovering from effects of Hurricane Harvey. Many students do not have access to technology in the home. Our students are bright and love new challenges. They are always ready and excited to learn new things and look forward to working with technology.
My Project: In 2017, our community was hit by Hurricane Harvey. Many student's homes were damaged and many of our families were displaced because of the hurricane.
My students have seen first hand the destruction of Mother Nature and experienced the need for food, clothing, and shelter in a disaster situation.
As the school's librarian, I want to make those out of classroom experiences relevant to what our students are learning. Having the EiE Engineering Air Drop Kit will help my kids develop creative and better problem solving solutions to help their community in an emergency situation while engaging student in the Science curriculum.
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
One of last week’s projects was completed after a boost from our donors. Seeing Hei Hei on one of the donor lists made me lol. Here’s the teacher’s thank you note:
Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of your heart for your contribution that helped fund my first project. These resources will give my students invaluable practice time to help hone their math skills! Your donations are so very appreciated by me and my students for years to come!
With gratitude,
Ms. Rodriguez
Founded in 2009, The Inoculation Project combats the anti-science push in conservative America by funding science and math projects in traditionally red-state classrooms and libraries. Our conduit is DonorsChoose.org, a crowdfunding charity founded in 2000 and highly rated by both Charity Navigator and the Better Business Bureau.
Every Sunday, we focus on helping to fund science or math projects, preferably in neighborhood public schools where the overwhelming majority of students come from low-income households. We welcome everyone who supports public school education — no money is required!
Finally, here’s our list of successfully funded projects — our series total is 759! The success-list diary also contains links and additional information about DonorsChoose.org.