Response sent to Middle School Math teacher for ideas.

Hey !

Glad you found the email helpful. I would encourage you to begin your grant as soon as possible. Probably the most reliable funder is Townsend Press - their focus is on  Bully Prevention. You could easily tie this into math by having your students do a survey on Bullying in schools and create a multimedia presentation to "show" on the Promethean Board. One problem is I think Townsend may mainly fund grant that are under $400.

 2 other large funders I have gotten my grants fulfilled through are Progress Energy and UPS.  UPS picked up my grant for a Promethean Board and it is halfway funded right now. If you focus on an energy study of some kind they will usually pick up your grant. An example might be calculating how much energy the average classroom is using - this may be intense but it would be a great project based learning experience. With it being algebra you are teaching you could look variables changing in relationship to one another - for example, florescent light use vs traditional light bulbs. They could contact the energy company or research on line these rates and how much money/energy is saved per classroom/per school/ per county by switching bulbs. Just some ideas - project based learning  is a passion of mine. Whatever you choose to do, make sure to be very specific about how each item you ask for will relate to the topic of energy. Also include energy, electricity etc. somewhere in your title

  Below is copy of a grant I posted and had fulfilled. I also included a link to the one the girl from my school wrote for the Promethean board. You can take a look at how I specifically listed what I was going to do with the items. Make sure to include in these grants, along with the Promethean Board, some science related materials like solar kit or windmill generator ( something cheap) this will help get it fulfilled. Also like I said before, in your demographics include the fact that you have military students. All these things should aid in getting your grant fulfilled. Good luck and feel free to call me sometime if you want to chat about it. 

PS ( Feel free to copy any info from mine that you would like into yours)

MY GRANT

My Students: Waste! We see it everywhere - even in the classroom! After studying global warming, my students have become quite concerned with continuity and conservation. As a result, we have decided to explore ways in which our school could be come more efficient in its use of energy and other resources.

The school at which I teach is a Title 1 school in a rural area. In addition, I have a very diverse classroom. The school is located near an AF Base and so my class is made up of a mixture of local and military students. Over 25% of my students have been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. I also have a population of about 15% which are ESL students, 30% Special Education, as well as the majority of them receiving a free or reduced lunch.

My students are an energetic and motivated group, but many of them lack the background knowledge necessary to be as successful as they can be. Science can often be a very abstract subject with its own set of unique vocabulary. Often times I find my students struggle to understand many concepts I am teaching without some hands-on experience As a result, many of the lessons I teach and materials I use need to be very hands on. Abstract concepts and reading passages just don't hit the mark. Especially when investigating science!

My Project: 

With the solar energy kits I will be able to extend to my students more depth in the concepts of electricity and how it is created, stored, distributed etc. Students will be able to see that there may be other better or alternative methods of obtaining energy while conserving the resources we currently have.

With the laptop and spreadsheet software, students will be able to chart data we gather about school energy usage and use the data to come up with solutions for better energy use. 

This study will allow my students to engage in hands on, problem and project based learning. This will prepare them with the some of the technology and social skills necessary for their life in the 21st Century.

This project is important on so many levels but I will try to express the reasons I think it is most important.

1. It makes my students aware of the need for conserving energy and other resources in our school, while showing them how to accomplish it.

2. It increases problem solving skills with math and technology.

3. It empowers students to make a difference in their school, community and world.

4. It increases global awareness and social conscientiousnesshide»

My students need a solar energy kit, a laptop, and a Microsoft Office license.

Promethian Board Winner Grant

click link below to view

http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/proposal.html?id=671240&verify=1655863490&challengeid=114763

more tips

Dear Friends,

We are just a few days away from our Christmas break and I know all everyone can think about is just getting the next few days behind us, but, once again I just wanted to send out a little encouragement, that if, during your break, you find your mind wandering, consider trying your hand at writing a grant for WWW.DONORSCHOOSE.ORG   

 Just this week I had 2 grants fulfilled through this website for technology and learning materials in my classroom. I also have 2 more posted which are both at under $100 to fund. All four of these grants have been up LESS THAN an MONTH. I would like to resubmit to you some of the previous tips I gave before as well as some new ones:

New Tips

·  Place the key word "military" somewhere in your description of your students. As Wayne county does serve SJAFB I think this would be a good demographic to include in student descriptions. Goldman Sachs is currently teamed withwww.donorschoose.org  to fulfill all but $95 dollars of grants with this key word. They started on Veterans Day and are still currently applying funds to grant with this buzz word. At our school one teacher alone had this word in her proposal and now she has a Promethean board waiting to in her classroom to be mounted. This should definitely be motivation to give it a try!

·  Keep most of your proposals under $400 dollars for materials ( 1pt projects) - These tend to get funded faster.

writing a successful grant through DC

Dear Friends,

I know everyone at our school has heard about Donors Choose and a number of our teacher have received grants from DC. There are several others who have expressed interest but may be somewhat intimidated or worried about failure. 

Let me encourage you to GIVE IT A TRY now!!! This is the best time of year because numerous companies are now gearing up to fund a large portion of your projects. Right now I have 3 projects on the website. Two have less than $100 to complete them and another is halfway funded. They have been on the site LESS THAN A WEEK. If all three are funded I will have two laptops, an Interactive whiteboard and other games and resources to use with my students totaling over $2000.

I have had several grants funded on this site  giving me various technology items such as: a projector, document camera, 2 flip camcorders, a laptop and whiteboard games.

There is a trick however to writing a successful grant on this site:

#1 You need to Check out what donors are available to  fund a large portion of your grant alone. This listing can be found here: 

http://help.donorschoose.org/app/fundingopportunities#northcarolina

It is updated monthly and many of these donors will match or fulfill all but a minimal amount of the grant automatically IF your grant is geared around a specific subject.

For example:

Townsend Press: Funds projects from high poverty schools that request $400 or less in materials to combat bullying, including the book "Bullying in Schools," available through AKJ Books. Projects will be added to the campaign weekly at the discretion of the grantor. Be sure to explain how each item you request will contribute to an anti-bullying curriculum.

When you write your grant, your simply gear it around bullying, but include the items you would like to have (ex: projector). As long as you justify how it is related, you'll nearly always be funded. 

Here is an excerpt from a grant I currently have posted which has been nearly fulfilled by this company:

My Project: In my room I hope to build a community of friends who can solve problems in a peaceable fashion. The resources requested will help in a variety of ways. The floor cushions will create a group area for discussing problems or situations that might arise. The stress balls will be a tool students may be introduced to using if they become frustrated instead of lashing out at others. The various books on bullying will educate and set a clear definition for students of what activities encompass bullying. The games and discussion cards will also be helpful in teaching skills and facilitating friendships. Finally students will use the laptop to create a multimedia/ppt presentation on ways to combat bullying and promote peace.  This will help to build confidence, teams and friendships because they will all be working toward a common goal.

It may take a little "creative thinking" but this is one way many of us could receive equiptment and materials we desire. The site has a variety of dealers to choose from so technology isn't the only thing that gets funded. Art materials, PE equipment, musical instruments and more can be found here. Let's not let such a precious resource go to waste!

If you are concerned your writing skills, or that your not computer savvy enough, don't distress!  When you go to begin the grant this site guides you very explicitly through each step of the process. You will have it done before you know it!!!!

If any of you have felt encouraged or inspired by this email but still are a bit apprehensive, send me an email. Tell me the type of materials you are interested in getting or questions you have I would be happy to help you generate ideas for getting them funded.

Hope this has been helpful!

To the digital Nation of NEE - both immigrants and natives alike :)

Have a wonderful Friday!!!!