Past projects 10
TpT for Biology
Funded Aug 10, 2022What a wonderful way to start the new year! I am so grateful for this generous gift. My students will benefit the most with all the new activities and resources that that will be available to them. This very generous gift will make our lives much easier and give us so many more options for learning.
Thank you again.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
This classroom project was brought to life by Bill Gates and 4 other donors.Inkspiration! PART 1
Funded Feb 18, 2022There are not enough words to express my joy, gratitude, and thanks for your generous donations to my class project. My students and I are so very appreciative of your support for education and creative, hands-on techniques for learning. We are looking forward to receiving our new ink for our classroom printer. It will be a great tool as we continue to grow and learn in the classroom. We can't wait to share some of the projects we create with it! Thank you again!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
Teachers Pay Teachers for Even Better Biology
Funded Feb 16, 2022I am so excited to see that this project was funded. I can't wait to use the gift card for additional resources to use with my students. The support of the DonorsChoose community is overwhelming and I feel so blessed to know so many people who value public education as much as you do. Thank you again for allowing me to provide these materials for my students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
Biology Basics!
Funded Jul 27, 2018Thank you so much for your generous donations! The students have been able to have a more "hands-on" approach to Biology as a result. During our unit on interdependent relationships between organisms, the students were able to observe the mutualistic symbiotic relationship between honey bees and flowers. The students not only used the petri dishes to observe the bees up close, but also used the bees to help pollinate the plants we grew with the growing lamps. The petri dishes also served as a growing medium for our bacteria and the DNA model proved very helpful during our lessons on how nucleic acids are structured.
Science is now a more "inquiry based" type of learning in my classroom thanks to you! My students learn better when they are able to collaborate with their peers and a lot of that has to do with the new materials we have access to.
Approximately one third of my class is composed of students with learning disabilities and English language learners. Having them communicate with each other through scientific experimentation has made a big impact with them and their success with learning science. Thank you! Thank you!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
Chromebooks for Environmental Science Goal 1
Funded Jun 28, 2017Thank you so very much for your generous donation! The Chrome book has already been used multiple times in our classroom! Most recently, we have used it through a digital program that takes a closer look at the Geologic Timescale. Through this special online program, students were able to go back in time millions (and even billions) of years ago! They were able to view the surface of the Earth and its organisms from a specific time period! We discussed the evolution of species and how mammals came to dominate the Earth today. The students were super excited to find out that we had a Chrome book donated to us and are hoping to accumulate a class set to keep with us throughout the year. Some students are not huge fans of science but digital classroom lessons like this one created an engaging and highly motivated environment.
Thank you again for helping to create inquiry and wonder in our science classroom!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
This classroom project was brought to life by Tom's of Maine and 5 other donors.Science Supplies for Water Testing
Funded Mar 9, 2016We cannot fully express our excitement and thanks for your donation to our student-led project in honor of World Water Day! It is great to see that you share our vision for monitoring the environment and providing us with experiences we won't soon forget!
The supplies that you have funded have enabled us to test and explain our findings with concrete tools. In addition, we were able to demonstrate how to properly test real life water samples, record observations, and how to share the analyzed results. The Water Test Kits were be great. We loved the hands on experimentation and were very excited about the trip. The water sample results got us thinking about the quality of our local water ways.
Since our trip, we have presented our findings with the rest of the Environmental Science Classes and analyzed our results. We will continue using our water testing kits with our upcoming unit on water and water pollution.
We have learned a great deal from this experience. We understand how field scientists conduct their sampling, how to analyze real-life science data, and how to present out findings formally to to others.
Thank you so much. We can't wait to do this again!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
This classroom project was brought to life by Gates Foundation & Think It Up Supporters and 6 other donors.The Future of Science Education
Funded Apr 22, 2015Thank you for your generous donations! The books, post-it paper, highlighters, and markers are being used to develop investigative lessons that are aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards. One of the lessons I recently used from the textbooks was a "Gallery Walk". Students used the post-it paper and markers to display their understanding of issues related to global warming, other students then walked around examining each others work and provided feedback. Displaying student work provided me with a visual record of student learning and examining student feedback provided an indiction of how well they understood the learning target. It was great!
Although my students did not use the textbooks directly, they did benefit indirectly from the lessons that I created from them. My students have become much more enthusiastic about learning and are beginning to think independently during investigations- one of the major goals for the Next Generation Science Standards!
My next step is to share my lessons with my fellow educators and continue creating lessons that will allow my students to become scientifically literate well beyond our classroom.
Thank you again for your generosity and for supporting science education,”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
This classroom project was brought to life by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 3 other donors.Cleaning Up and Collecting!
Funded Jun 19, 2015Thank you so very much for your generous donation to our project! The students have already used the supplies during our annual Fall Clean-up. The Canal was quite muddy and the students were fortunate to have the boots, waders, and gloves to protect them during the clean-up! The students were also very excited to use the water testing kits to check the quality and health of the canal. They were very surprised by the results! It turns out that the canal is not as polluted as we had originally proposed. (Which is a good thing!)
The students were very surprised to learn that we had more tools and equipment than we did in prior field trips. They were very excited and eager to use all the materials. They will last us a very long time and continue to be used in many more future field trips (as well as during school in our EcoCenter!)
We are already planning our Spring clean-up in which we will be using your generous donations again. In addition, because so many of the students were inspired by the water testing kits (and had such fun testing the water) they have begun to plan a water testing experiment for local water systems around our entire city!! The trip is projected for some time in March and will be quite informative for our students. We are sincerely grateful for all you have done!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
This classroom project was brought to life by Paul G. Allen Family Foundation and 3 other donors.Fun with Physical Science!
Funded Feb 7, 2014My students were very excited about the supplies obtained through your generous donation for our electricity unit. After learning about electricity they were very eager to begin working on their own circuits and even more enthusiastic when they were able to make the light bulbs illuminate! The plasma ball was also a huge hit!
My students used the multimeters to measure the amount of voltage given off in their circuits, as well as figure out why a lightbulb may not be lighting up. The wiring and lightbulbs were also able to help my students build their own potato batteries! Another very cool experiment!
After completing their lab activity using the materials donated, they were better able to understand the mechanisms behind how electricity works and how it powers their homes. Their scores were also high when they were given their end of unit test, further proving their understanding of electricity thanks to your generous donation!
Thank you once again for support and generosity.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch
Mapping Our Way to Science!
Funded Dec 31, 2012I am writing to you on behalf of your generous gift to our classroom. The inflatable globes and maps that you donated have helped my students develop proper map reading skills. So far, we've used them in a competitive "geographic scavenger hunt" and also to make closer observations of geologic features. The globes and maps are used in my current Earth Science classes and will also be used in future Earth Science classes.
Our school is quite large and often has difficulties finding enough supplies for all our students. Without your support and generosity, my students would not have been able to study the world of maps in such a "hands-on" manner. Proper map-reading skills is an essential trait for any student with the curiosity to explore and learn about the features around them.
Without donors like you, my students would not have been able to have as much fun as they did, nor been able to learn in such a inquiry-based manner.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ploch