More about DonorsChoose: DonorsChoose is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation that facilitates tax-deductible donations to specific, vetted projects in public schools. Founded in 2000 by Charles Best, a public-school history teacher, DonorsChoose is a crowdfunding charity, one that has been highly rated by Charity Navigator and Charity Watch, among others.
DonorsChoose is also the first charity to be recognized among the top 10 of Fast Company's list of the World's Most Innovative Companies and operates in accordance with a simple philosophy (my emphasis):
“Teachers know how to improve education,” [Best] says, “but they are a voice that is consistently overlooked or ignored.” [….]
“We’ve heard people say that teachers have no business going rogue and trying to select their own books, technology, and classes–and citizens have no business deciding what is worthy. And yes, we have a position on that, and a response to people who raise that question,” says Best, evenly. “Screw you. We believe in teachers. We believe in the wisdom of the crowd.”
Beyond helping classrooms and libraries on a regular basis, this ”How teachers at Mitchell Elementary are rebuilding after Hurricane Harvey” video illustrates how teachers and librarians also use DonorsChoose to crowdfund replacement materials after natural disasters:
Since TIP’s inception in 2009, our supporters have helped fund over 1,000 DonorsChoose projects! Here are our previous lists of successfully funded science and math projects:
TIP #s 1-200
TIP #s 201-400
TIP #s 401-500
TIP #s 501-600
TIP #s 601-750
TIP #s 751-900 (#810+ completed during Covid-19 pandemic)
Current list:
901. Science Books for Curious Students
902. Gravitrax: Physics Made Fun Through Marble Runs!
903. Tools and Knowledge for the Outside World!
904. Outside Exploration
905. Developing Real-World Scientists Through a Mobile Science Lab
906. Science in Kindergarten
907. ”Energized” Learning .
908. Between the World and Me
909. What Are You Doing in My Laboratory?
910. Salt Water Fuel Cell Robots
911. Immersed in Learning Reading Centers
912. STEM Superstars in the Making!
913. Puzzle It Out
914. STEM For Our Minds
915. Kid's Garden Therapy After Covid
916. Closing the Hunger Gap
917. Lakota Students Use Cutting Edge Technology for Environmental Field Studies
918. Phonics Fun For Everyone!
919. STEM For Us!
920. Hands-on Learning in the Science Classroom!
921. Face Shield Design
922. Let’s Explore Science!!!
923. Inspirational Reads to Soothe the Soul
924. Pick Us for Pixton Comics!
925. Virtual Laboratory Experiences! .
926. Spare Robot Parts
927. STEAM Activities to Activate Our Minds
928. Let's Get Creative With STEM Sets!
929. Battle of the Books
930. Study.com Is the Bomb.com!
931. Build, Create, Learn. Stem Activities for Little Learners
932. Micro Ecosystems
933. Reading Is Mathematical!
934. Geometry with Legos
935. More Boundless Books
936. Indoor Gardens for Science
937. Foundation for Success
938. Science: Hands-on/Brains-open!
939. Hotplate for Chemistry Labs
940. A Handful of Learning
941. A Classroom Full of Video Game Designers and Animators!
942. 2nd Grade Books for Inferring
943. Growing Wild!
944. STEM Kits Boost Engagement
945. Fabulous Fish
946. Lego World!
947. Building a Better Understanding
948. Level Up Our Literacy, Part 1
949. Diverse Books for Diverse Students
950. Out of This World
951. The Bare Bones of Learning
952. Intentionally Filling in Literacy Gaps With Revamped Classroom (part 1)
953. Wanted: Classroom Books and Art Supplies For Black History Month
954. Reading Books Rather Than Burning Them
955. I Love My New Books!
956. Greenhouse Greatness
957. Building Our Cell Cities
958. ¡Leamos! Let's Read!
959. 3D Printing for Math
960. Storytelling & Play in PreK
961. Let’s Give our Students “A Series of Fortunate Events”!!!
962. New Stories!
963. Mathematicians Need Math Manipulatives!
964. Exploring Women Who Made a Difference
965. Marvelous Mathematicians in Kindergarten
966. Plant Propagation for Service Learning
967. Highlighting Black History and Experiences
968. Scientists in Progress!
969. We Want Mo Books! Books by Mo Willems
970. Summer Learning
971. Discovering Science
972. We Need Updated AP Environmental Science Textbooks!
973. Reading Joy!
974. Doodling Into Existence
975. The Gift of Reading
976. Let's Get Our Learning-on With Hands-on!
977. Help a Teacher Translate EMT Instruction
978. Creating Millennial Scientists Through S.T.E.A.M Learning
979. Reading in Math Class
980. Young, Black and Lit
981. STEM Building Tools for Second Graders
982. A World of Science
983. STEM on a Roll!
984. Project-based 2nd Grade STEAMers
985. Hey, Bud! How's it Growing?
986. Tech Savvy in Pre-K Land
987. Kamishibai Story telling
988. Graphing Materials for Title I Mathematicians
989. Just a Few Scientists, with No Resources...Safety First?...Oh Boy
990. Never Stop Questioning
991. Scientists in the Making
992. Future Readers of America!
993. Life Science for Success
994. Informational Science Books
995. Ecosystems Engage and Enliven Learning
996. People That Make An Impact!
997. Math Centers
998. Algorithmic Classroom Elegance
999. STEM Resources to Support Our Future Inventors and Innovators
1000. Imagination Is Neverending
1001. Freedom Writer's Unit
1002. Building Vocabulary One Word at a Time
1003. Ninja-fied and Understanding Our Feelings
1004. Readers Are Leaders!
1005. Enhancing STEM Knowledge and Skills
1006. Engaging STEM Buckets
1007. A Microscopic Experiment
1008. AP Reading Library
1009. We Deserve Relevant Engaging Books
1010. Magical Math Classroom
1011. Calculators Needed in Engineering Classroom
1012. A Journey to New Worlds
1013. Exploring the Lunar New Year With STEMs!
1014. Center Supplies for Library Learners
1015. Music + Reading= Fun!
1016. Pigments and Wavelengths of Light
1017. Schoolhouse Succulents!
1018. STEM Full Speed Ahead
1019. To Fear or Not to Fear: Macbeth
1020. Summer Learning
1021. We Need More Books of Substance!
1022. Lego Team
1023. Growing Plants!
1024. So Many Books, So Little Time
1025. Rainforest Habitat Classroom Transformation
1026. More Bilingual Books
1027. Hatching Baby Chicks
1028. Hands On Learning Is Fun
1029. Robots at Work
1030. Fish Tank Replacement Parts
1031. Stem Activities for Hands-on Learning
1032. New Books for the Classroom Library
1033. Beautiful Birds
1034. Music Book Bonanza
1035. Classroom Manipulatives
1036. All Hands on Deck for Reading
1037. Math Mastery Matters
1038. Good Books Make Great Readers
1039. Let's Cultivate Our Children And Help Our Garden Grow!
1040. Digital Citizenship Through Books
1041. Green Energy, Clean Energy
1042. Nonfiction Books
1043. New, Exciting Books!
1044. Make Our Grow Lab Come to Life!
1045. Read and Celebrate Fairy Tales That Inspire Students
1046. Please Help My Brilliant Students Acquire New Vocabulary
1047. Books Like Me
1048. Board Games Help Us Learn Skills
1049. Exploring Our Environment
1050. Nature Explorers Service Project
1051. What's a Science Lab Without Microscopes?
1052. Karst Topography in Science
More about DonorsChoose:
When a project is not fully funded by its expiration date, donors are contacted by DonorsChoose and asked to redirect their donations to another project. Occasionally, a fully funded project is called off for some reason internal to the school/teacher. DonorsChoose handles those donations in the same way as for expired projects.
How is a school’s economic need defined at DonorsChoose?
”Our definition of a school’s economic need level is based on the percentage of students at a given school who qualify for free and reduced fee lunch - a measure that’s commonly used to represent a school’s level of need and eligibility for federal funding.
To be deemed eligible for free lunch, a student's family income must be within 130% of the poverty line (a max of $29,055 for a family of four). For reduced fee lunch, the family income must be within 185% of the poverty level (a max of $41,348 for a family of four). [….]
For schools that provide free lunch to all their students through the Community Eligibility Provision, we approximate the percentage of students who qualify for free and reduced-fee lunch by using the school’s Identified Student Percentage (ISP), multiplied by 1.6. This multiplier is used by the federal government to equate a school’s ISP to their likely free and reduced fee lunch percentage.
Projects on DonorsChoose.org will denote the approximate percentage of students at the school that qualify for free and reduced-fee lunch . . . :
- More than half of students from low-income households: 51-75%
- More than three-quarters of students from low-income households: 76-89%
- Nearly all students from low-income households: 90%+”
More info: DonorsChoose blog and About DonorsChoose
Disclaimer: The Inoculation Project series is in no way affiliated with DonorsChoose or with any of the classroom projects presented for funding, except as specifically indicated (for example, when a Daily Kos community member is the teacher). Daily Kos community members run the TIP group and series; our efforts are neither directed nor endorsed by Daily Kos or Kos Media LLC.
