GirlsDo, BoysDo, WeDo 2.0!

This is what Mrs. Thomasson’s project was.

My Students

A day in my classroom is a day filled with learning, respect, and hard work. My school is in a rural area, and the students whom I teach come from a wide variety of backgrounds.

Our class motto is, "In this room, we don't do easy.

We make easy happen through hard work and learning!" I have high expectations for my students and do everything in my ability to help them achieve their goals! I enjoy planning creative lessons and projects as much as my students enjoy working on them!

My Project

For the past couple of years, I have been teaching my students coding. Coding is going to be essential to a variety of careers in the future, and I want to not only teach students how to code, but I want to provide the means for my students to ENJOY coding as well.

Using their knowledge of coding in a fun and exciting way like programming a robot is a great way to get students involved and interested in learning more about both robotics and coding.

My third graders will love using their skills to program their robots, and I can’t think of a better way or more enjoyable way for them to practice than with the LEGO WeDo 2.0 sets!

Dear Beau Dodson,

My students are so eager to dive into all of the projects that they can do with the Lego WeDo 2.0 set! LEGOs are always a hit with kids this age, but to know that they can actually build a robotic device that can be programmed with an iPad while using those Legos is nothing short of jaw-dropping! Because of their familiarity with LEGOs, it makes the introduction into robotics and coding that much easier. We appreciate your help in funding this project and can't wait to see what new things come to life in our classroom because of the WeDo 2.0 sets!

With gratitude,
Mrs. Thomasson

October 2019. It’s “ Time” to Read. Mrs. Mitchell Grades 3-5 Illinois.

My Project

My students are extremely motivated when involved in classroom discussions. At the 3rd grade level, I am always so pleasantly surprised at the level of thought that goes into any classroom discussion we have. A subscription for Time for Kids magazine would help not only to promote such discussions, but also to show the students there are so many different avenues for reading materials. Often, non-fiction reading is not as “fun” for 3rd graders, but when they see it can bring “real world” events to life, they will engage enthusiastically. Funding for “extra” materials such as this, just isn’t given.

October 2019. Technology for Talented Third Graders.

My Project

Technology in the classroom is a must. In order for students to succeed in life, they must be familiar with computers, apps, and the internet.

Our class needs your help!

We currently have two desktop computers in our classroom but desperately need more. Slowly, we are hoping to get a classroom set of Chromebooks. Chromebooks would allow my students to work more at their own pace. I would be able to differentiate their learning better.

Students would be able to work together on projects, do research, write, and practice skills. It would give me more opportunities to teach using interactive technology. Our classroom would have the opportunity to be more student ran vs teacher focused.

October 2019. Dream Big! Design the Future!

My Project

Part of the NextGen Science Standards includes a component for Engineering Design. Students are expected to define an engineering problem, develop possible solutions, and then test, design, evaluate, and redesign to make their projects better. My project will begin with the students watching the short documentary, "Dream Big: Engineering Our World". As the students DREAM BIG, and think of unique solutions to modern-day designs and problems, they will design and bring their projects to life using just cardboard and Makedo tools! Makedo tools include Makedo scrus, scru-drivers, and saws that work well with cardboard which happens to be one of the most readily available and cheapest of sources for our classroom STEM projects!

Employers today are consistently telling us that our students are not ready for real-world applications.

In this very self-focused world,​ we live in, students bury themselves in their own electronic devices or phones and lose the ability to communicate with those around them and many times lack the patience needed to work through problems. The use of STEM projects not only inspires students to think creatively, but it also teaches them the skill of perseverance through failure and retesting. In addition, students learn the very important skill of collaborating with their peers and have to work through differences of opinions in order to create their projects.

My students enjoy hands-on STEM projects, and engineering projects have been some of their favorites so far this year so I know these resources will be an engaging and exciting addition to our classroom!

Mrs. Thomasson's classroom. Grades 3-5. Project scholastic magazine and book project.

Mrs. Thomasson’s project

I use both BrainPop and BrainPop Jr. in my classroom to introduce both our science and social studies lessons. The short videos align with our curriculum and state standards and cover a wide range of topics.

By presenting the new vocabulary and basic ideas through the use of stimulating videos, BrainPop engages my students and helps lead them into a deeper understanding of the material covered that day.

The short quizzes that follow give me a glimpse as to what I need to focus on the most as we read through the lesson. BrainPop grabs my students’ attention and are an enjoyable part of each lesson!

For the past two years, my class has also used Scholastic News Magazines during our tiered reading instruction. The news magazines have been a fun and informative way to work on nonfiction ELA Common Core standards while staying at a reading level that my students can understand and learn from.

My students have enjoyed articles about George Washington, volcanoes, and even jellyfish! The magazines include short videos, skills sheets, and online resources that make learning nonfiction skills even more engaging and interesting to my students. With your help, I would like to continue this subscription into next year!

Removing Barriers: Equal Access to Technology. Ms. Ray’s Classroom. 1st grade North Calloway Elementary School Murray, KY

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Removing Barriers: Equal Access to Technology

Ms. Ray’s Classroom
1st grade
North Calloway Elementary School
Murray, Kentucky

We were one of two donors to this project. It was a matching fund.

Equal access to technology they all deserve.

These Dell Chromebooks will not only allow my struggling readers to access grade-level materials but will help them to grow in all areas.

Ms. Ray’s Students

She teaches 1st and 3rd grades students.

Her students are eager to learn and achieve. They are hard working and far exceed their abilities in most situations.

These students are motivated and want to grow and learn new things.

Ms. Ray wants to keep them motivated, learning, and challenged even when she is working with other students. She needed extra experiences for them in the classroom so they can continue to learn, grow, and gain independence.
Ms. Ray’s Project

Her special education classroom is full of students of varying ability levels who are dependent upon the support of others.

With these Chromebooks, Ms. Ray’s students are able to work independently on materials and tasks that are specially designed for their unique strengths and weaknesses.

Chromebooks allow for her students to practice and engage in grade level materials and assignments, while she works in small group sessions with students of varying ability levels.

Thank you, everyone, for helping with this project!

Portable Plastic Recycling Grinder. Mr. Cope’s Classroom 10th grade Ballard County Career & Tech Center Barlow, KY

We helped purchase the students a drill press.

We were one of two donors to this project.

Mr. Cope’s Students

His students are high school 9th-12th graders and attend a small, rural school. He teaches about 90 students a day. They really push the students to become college and/or career ready. In doing so, all students in their high school go through at least one career pathway.

He teaches an Industrial Maintenance pathway that really pushes all of the STEM categories. His students really love and focus on technology and engineering though. They love to solve problems and get their hands dirty performing real world work.

This project is trying to solve pollution issues in our community, especially plastic pollution.

Their community doesn't have a recycling center or even a plan really. They are trying to minimize and reduce pollution by increasing recycling.

Mr. Cope’s Project

His students will be able to use this drill press for this project and many more to come. The drill press will be used to help fabricate a plastic grinding machine. The hope is that these can be an incentive for more people recycle their plastic.

By donating to this project, you have helped my students create an awareness for recycling, and give them hands-on experience.

The students will be able to work on their project and will not have to wait for tools to be borrowed. As part of the Samsung Solve For Tomorrow campaign, my students are excited about completing this project.