This week, we’re helping teachers at an Orlando elementary school and a high school in a small Ohio town to be ready for the new term with supplies for science experiments, whether conducted at home or at school. 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 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.
Teachers are having to prepare now for how they will manage in a new school year, with the possibility of in-person learning requiring thought about how to manage safely, while the possibility of further (or partial) distance learning must also be considered. This Florida elementary school teacher is trying to outfit each student with a set of basic supplies that can be used for many lab activities but need not be shared between students, even if they are physically present at school together.
Both of our projects today are receiving matching funds from Google,org: Donations to this project are now being matched, thanks to support from Google.org. We’re committed to supporting Black and Latinx educators, and we’re incredibly grateful for the work all teachers do to create inclusive learning environments that affirm and reflect students’ identities.
MAIN PROJECT
Resources: Help me give my students individual materials to be able to engage in scientific investigations.
Economic need: Nearly all students from low‑income households
Location: Union Park Elementary School, Orlando, Florida
Total: $286.22 (2x matching funds from Google.org)
Still Needed: $286.22 Completed, thank you! Please consider project below.
Teacher’s Comments from Mr. Hart:
My Students: Close your eyes and imagine the feel of a warm summer evening. You feel the warm air, you hear and witness the calls and clatters of all things nature; you welcome and are mesmerized by the majestic beauty of the sunset. Welcome to my Learning Pond.
My Fearless Frogs are a charismatic, eager to learn, ensemble of 20 “ribbiting" ranas (the Spanish word for “frogs”) that are in a Two-Way, English-Spanish Dual Language Program at our wonderful campus on the east-side of sunny Orlando.
My Project: The current pandemic is tasking teachers worldwide to rethink the day-to-day operations of education. This includes science, a subject area that many students absolutely love. What makes science so engaging for students are the many hands-on labs and investigations we get to do. When we return in the fall, we will be implementing physical distancing measures.
Before the pandemic, students were able to work in small groups to complete these tasks; however, these activities will have to be reimagined with physical distancing in mind.
This project features additional resources and materials that can be, and will be, used across many different investigations we will do throughout the course of the school year. While students will still be able to connect with each other in small groups via a digital web-conferencing platform, students will need to have their own materials. Additionally, there are a few items that will be used for instances where we have a Scientific Teacher Demonstration for more complex topics, in lieu of a hands-on lab.
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
(⬇️ 11. Mr. Hart’s students!)
This never-before-funded Ohio high school teacher wants to be ready with a lab activity for his students when they come to school. Currently, there is 2X matching as noted above.
LONG-TERM PROJECT
Resources: Help me give my students the experience of learning about hydraulics in our new S.T.E.M. Lab class.
Economic need: Nearly all students from low‑income households
Location: Berne Union High School, Sugar Grove, Ohio
Total: $612.34 (2x matching funds from Google.org)
Still Needed: $418.34 $278.34 ($140 from us)
Teacher’s Comments from Mr. Valenzuela:
My Students: All students have natural curiosity and creativity and my students are no different. They are often full of questions and we, as educators, are responsible for doing our best to answer these questions or at least to given them the tools they need to arrive to their own answers. Students learn in different ways, but from the beginning of my teaching career, I quickly came to realize that students absolutely love hands-on, inquiry based projects, which provide challenges that allow them to express their creativity and learning style. Students come to school everyday looking for a chance to grow both, personally and academically and this is one of the reasons I love teaching.
As an educator, I truly believe that all students can learn as long as they are willing to try.
Unfortunately, our school has a large number of low income students. They face home challenges or situations that are less than ideal and that make school the last thing on their minds. Yet, most of them come to school looking for a way to escape their reality, and it is my job to help them find that escape by providing a meaningful learning environment.
My Project: S.T.E.M. is one of the big learning ideas that is currently sweeping the nation in education. These materials will help my S.T.E.M. Lab students learn about hydraulics. The word “hydraulics” generally refers to power produced by moving liquids. Modern hydraulics is defined as the use of confined liquid to transmit power, multiply force, or produce motion.
French philosopher, Blaise Pascal discovered that liquids cannot be compressed.
He discovered a law which states that pressure applied to any part of an enclosed liquid will be transmitted equally in all directions throughout the liquid. This particular topic can be a very difficult idea to understand; the use of these materials should help give students a visual representation of this idea.
In addition, by exploring this idea in collaborating teams, this project will also allow students to work together in order to come up with solutions to future engineering problems.
Donations of ANY size can make a BIG difference!
(Part 2)
Charles Best, founder of DonorsChoose, shared a message with donors this week, with a link to a web page of displays about what went on during the 2019-20 school year that I’d like to share.
When schools opened last fall, none of us could have predicted where we’d end the year: schools closed early, a worldwide pandemic, and a much-needed national focus on racial equity.
As uncertain as things seem, public school teachers and those — like you — who support them are more important than ever. As you look back on the year, I hope you can take pride in your role as a champion of teachers and kids.
Both of our projects last week were completed! Many thanks to our readers for helping to achieve that!
Mrs. Bopst’s Florida pre-K students are getting their own kits to build a model cottage at home and grow a tiny garden in its “yard”. The project was It's Grow Time. Mrs. Bopst hasn’t yet seen that her project is complete, but we’ll bring you her reaction in a future diary.
In Georgia, Mrs. Whitesell is the STEM teacher for all grades in her K-5 school. She likes to tie in books to her science/math projects, and she was seeking, and will now receive, a good assortment of books at all grade levels with characters who look more like her very diverse student body. Her project was Innovators Like Me!
She writes: I am so amazed by the support this project received. It is very important to me to make sure I am adequately representing ALL of my students in order to help them become learners and leaders. I can't wait to introduce these amazing books to my students in a few short weeks. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Our Dollars at Work
Way back in November, 2017, we helped Mrs. Punneo’s Oklahoma City first grade to get some building kits that would enable them to create bridges and buildings as well as chain reactions! The project was Enthusiastic Engineers (More photos at the link.)
Thank you so much for supporting my classroom and students. They are so excited each time we get out our engineering manipulatives. I love to watch them experiment and build with the materials. They have created cars, experimented with movement, built structures, and created pathways! Their love for Science grows and as they create! Thanks to your donations they are able to grow and learn in a hands on exciting way. These materials will continue to make them eager for Science and enthusiastic about learning!
Founded in 2009, The Inoculation Project combats the anti-science push in conservative America by funding science and math projects in 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 835! The success-list diary also contains links and additional information about DonorsChoose.org.