This week, we’re helping a Dallas first grade that needs a wide assortment of books, and a Pittsburgh middle-school class that needs Lego-scale roller coaster kits. We hope that readers who support quality public school education will help by sharing or supporting our featured projects.
The Inoculation Project is an ongoing, volunteer effort to crowdfund science, math, and literacy projects for public schools in low-income neighborhoods. As always, our conduit is DonorsChoose, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation that facilitates tax-deductible donations to specific, vetted projects in public schools.
Good morning, everyone! What do you think of our new art?
DonorsChoose wanted to take steps to help schools in Los Angeles impacted by the fires. So, to help area teachers quickly get disaster-recovery supplies they need, they have set up a special fund that they will use to fund such projects, rather than put them out individually to compete for funding. If you would like to donate to this fund, visit its page here.
We have two new projects today, and I am hoping, as I put them in place on Saturday night, that no one swoops in overnight and funds them, like last week — that is GREAT for the projects, but does increase my number of gray hairs (if that’s even possible!)
Ms. Gunnoe teaches first grade at a Dallas school with a 98% minority/96% low-income student body, and she’d love to be able to give her students some exciting books to read! We have help from a 2x match from Chesmar Foundation: The Chesmar Foundation is proud to support Texas teachers, and to help provide the supplies they need for their students to thrive.
PROJECT #1
Resources: Help me give my students a refresh in their classroom library with new books!
Economic need: An Equity Focus School; nearly all students from low‑income households.
Location: Personalized Learning Academy at Highland Meadows, Dallas, Texas
Total: $495.51 (2x matching funds from Chesmar Foundation )
Still Needed: $451.98 Completed — thank you!
Project description by Ms. Gunnoe:
Dear generous donors,
I’m reaching out to ask for your help in building a vibrant and exciting classroom library for my 1st grade students!
New books will open up a world of adventure, imagination, and learning for my young readers.
Whether it's colorful picture books, early chapter books, or stories that spark curiosity, your donation will provide my students with the opportunity to explore new worlds and develop a lifelong love of reading.
Every book you contribute will make a difference in their educational journey. Thank you for considering a donation to help us grow our library and inspire the next generation of readers!
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
Here’s one of the requested books, read aloud by its author, Ibtihaj Muhammad. You may remember her; she is an Olympic medalist in fencing and, in 2016, “became the first American woman to compete in the Olympics in hijab, the first Muslim-American woman to win an Olympic medal, and the first Black woman to win an Olympic medal in the sabre event”.
Ms. Iwanonkiw teaches a middle-school grade in an elementary school (so, 6th?) in Pittsburgh, and is hoping to get several different models of these Lego-compatible roller coaster kits, as well as some related games, to help her class understand force and motion in a way they’ll remember.
PROJECT #2
Resources: Help me give my students roller coaster kits and cool science games so they can have fun while learning about force and motion!
Economic need: An Equity Focus School; nearly all students from low‑income households.
Location: Pittsburgh Sunnyside Elementary School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Total: $558.44
Still Needed: $275.94 Completed — thank you! See you next week!
Project description by Ms. Iwanonkiw:
All of my students love hands-on activities! The smiles on their faces when they achieve a goal or get an answer correct is awesome! I would love to provide them with a variety of fun learning activities. I want them to be excited when they come to science class!
The CDX Roller Coaster kits will make learning about force and motion fun, interesting, and exciting!
Building these roller coasters will promote teamwork, goal setting, critical thinking, planning, and patience. The Science games will give the students an opportunity to learn new vocabulary words and make inferences while having fun with classmates!
These building kits, along with the games, will provide an opportunity for all learners to be successful and work as a team, to accomplish a common goal, while learning about force and motion.
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
Here’s one of the requested kits, an homage to the famous Cyclone coaster at Coney Island.
Both our projects from last week were completed, with a solid foundation from our readers that allowed a few other donors to finish them up! Many thanks, as always!
Project #1, Puzzle Time in Pre-K4: Mrs. Preciado teaches pre-K for four-year-olds in Corpus Christi, Texas, on the Gulf Coast. She was asking for a set of sturdy wooden puzzles with number and letter themes.
She writes: Thank you for helping support our learning through puzzle play. My students appreciate your generosity and are very excited to learn their letters, sounds and numbers during center time.
Play is extremely important in early childhood development and we are so thrilled to have new materials to help extend our learning.
Project #2, Love of Lava!: Dr. Joiner teaches middle school grades in Houston. She wanted her students to do a science project in which they make simple “lava lamps”.
She writes: Thank you for funding Project Love of Lava! Your support empowers girls to explore science, fostering curiosity and confidence. We're grateful for your investment in their future, igniting a passion for STEM that will last a lifetime. We appreciate the support your donors show for Cummings [school], we look forward to sending thank you pictures!​ ​ ​ ​ ​
| DonorsChoose has developed the designation Equity Focus Schools to describe some schools that submit projects. They meet two criteria: at least 50% of students are Black, Latinx, Native American, Pacific Islander, or multiracial, and at least 50% of students qualify for free or reduced price lunch, the standard measure for school economic need. You can read more at the link about their efforts to address the longstanding inequity in education. |
Founded in 2009, The Inoculation Project seeks to fund science, math, and literacy projects in public school classrooms and libraries. Our conduit is DonorsChoose, 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 projects 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 1149! The success-list diary also contains links and additional information about DonorsChoose.
