Past projects 3
Yearbook 2017!
Funded Dec 20, 2016With so much gratitude from myself and from my students we can't thank all the donors enough for their generous donation in providing the technology needed for students to create Yearbook 2017!
Technology in the school is completely different than using technology at home. At home, you use it for your personal business and you use it whenever you want. There are students in this time of age that don't have access to a physical laptop. Most students only have their cellphones that they use to access any work related information. This doesn't help them when it comes to using an actual laptop and actually using a keyboard. It might be easy for those who have technology to assume because of the time we live in everyone has access to technology. That is why when we created a legitimate Yearbook Club, we wanted to make sure that students had the right technology to create the yearbook for their graduating class. This allowed them to laptops that other students were not using and they knew it was strictly designated for creating the Yearbook.
The students loved the easy access they had to the laptops. They were happy to know that the laptops were designated to create their yearbooks since they needed a space to save all the pictures, information and programs they needed to develop the yearbook.They could not believe that there were people out there that willingly donated for them to get the laptops. The best part, as mentioned before, was that they were able to access the yearbook technology with ease. The students were excited and anytime they came in to work on the yearbook, they knew exactly where to go and pick up their laptops.
Most of the students were used to using laptops in the school setting, but the yearbook staff were not used to using laptops in a creative setting. So for many students yes they have used laptops in school, but it was different for them using the laptop to create a yearbook. There were different keys and combinations they had to use. Even though some were apprehensive at first, they were able to use the laptop in the right in way. Even something as simple as uploading and saving pictures from the camera were new to them. But when they were taught to do it, they became so good at it the they did not have to ask me.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Amsterdam
He Named Me Malala Class field trip
Funded Aug 14, 2015The trip was a worthwhile experience for my students. After prepping them for two weeks on not only Malala herself but the history of Pakistan, the students were excited to see this film. Most students never heard of Malala before the trip was brought up but they thoroughly enjoyed learning about her. Most of the students come from hard circumstances and many were able to relate to Malala's story and understood her hunger to do better.
One highlight from the trip for the students was the simple fact that Malala was one child who took on the responsibility to write about what was happening in her country. She was not scared to talk about something that concerned her in her community. Most of the students realized that no matter how small, they could make and impact in their neighborhood. Many students also realized the importance of school and Malala was willing to risk her life to attend school even though there were many reasons why she could have just stayed home. A lot of students realized that not only is school free for them but they don't have to worry about their school being bombed.
This film and Malala's story impacted the classroom because students were willing to help out. They were energized to raise money and also donate clothes to Malala's cause. As we went throughout the year students were still connecting what they learned in the film to what we learned in class. When we came back from the trip, we took class time to reflect on the trip and it was great to see how many students were impacted.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Amsterdam
History in Action
Funded Jun 27, 2014When the students first saw the laptops and printer, they were of course shocked. The first thing they asked me was if I went out and bought it myself. I told the students from before how I was signing up for something called Donors Choose but they didn't believe that people would actually donate until they saw the items come in. They loved the laptops because they were small and easy to use and they had another way to look up and type information in class. They loved the ease of the printer and instead of having to run around looking for somewhere to print, they were able to come to my class and print with ease!
In class, I planned for students to conduct and write out an oral history. We have been looking at immigration and the importance of it in the United States of America. Before students even started to type out their oral history projects we learned about Ellis Island. After going on the trip there, students did a virtual tour online using the laptops. So they were able to see the pictures up close and also listen to audio using the new computers. Students had a really good time having something they could use and not having to share because they were able to have these extra laptops in which everyone was able to use a computer. After this, students picked an immigrant they knew or a family friend and conducted an interview on this person to learn why they came, connecting past and present. Students were able to type up their oral histories using the laptops and were able to print it out using the printer. It was was so easy for them to get the work done and not have to worry about where they were printing it out from because they just came to my class.
This boosted my teaching and students learning because we did not have to worry about everyone not having the opportunity to type out or print their work. It might seem like something small but since a lot of students don't have access to a printer it is something great when students have one less worry. It is also great when students can have a laptop to come and type up their work or they are able to learn and see something using the Internet and a variety of different websites. These are things we think all students have access to but believe it or not they don't and just having that is something that takes the stress off of my students and I. So this was a great boost not only for me but for my students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Amsterdam
This classroom project was brought to life by 100 Women in Hedge Funds and 4 other donors.