Past projects 180
Let's Help Harlem Prepare for AP Statistics Exam!
Funded Dec 2, 2015Today was early Christmas in our classroom!!!!!!!! What fun it was indeed today in AP Statistics!
As the students walked into class today, everyone found a bright purple or green sturdy binder on their desk (along with sturdy 3-hole punchers from another DonorsChoose project). The excitement was immediate, loud and festive!!!!
The students can now get organized for this course. We've completed approximately 25 actual AP Statistics Free Response questions. So, the students have 3 things for each question: the question itself, their own original completed and graded work, the College Board rubric. Now, they have a place to keep them all together.
With a breadth of scope as wide as that in the AP Statistics curriculum, it is important that we spiral topics. All of my exams are cumulative. All projects are cumulative. When, we practice with AP questions, the topics range from recently learned concepts to those we learned months ago. Now, the students can spiral themselves as well. They can revisit old AP questions and test their knowledge themselves.
The binders will keep them organized. Additionally, these materials are of high quality so the students will be able to reuse them in college.
Thank you so very much for making this possible. Many of my students have confided that they don't get any holiday gifts at home. This gift truly meant a lot to them at this time of year.
Happy holidays.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Getting a Harlem Classroom Technologically Equipped!
Funded Jun 23, 2015What a difference technology makes! Our Harlem classroom has moved into the twenty-first century!
Rather than having to "go old-school" daily by writing on the 50-year-old chalkboard, I have the opportunity to utilize much more powerful lessons on the SmartBoard. This is all thanks to the new SmartBoard that the school was able to obtain through a grant and the new laptop and related software that I was able to obtain through you!!!!!
Inserting fun graphics, photos and even short embedded videos has made class time much more fun!
Students love using the ink features on the SmartBoard to show their work - without getting chalk dust all over their clothes! I love the fact that I'm no longer a candidate for teacher 'white-lung disease' from breathing all that chalk dust all day long.
Being able to use the highlight feature on the SmartBoard helps point out key words and it is also an excellent way to shade a graph (think shading for the normal curve). The fact that we can save our written work on top of the prepared presentation is a great way to show the lesson to students who were absent or who want to review the day's lesson again.
All in all, using this technology has brought my teaching practice to the next level. Kids are learning in a more animated, technologically advanced environment. You made this possible.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Furnish AP Statistics Resources for Harlem Scholars!
Funded Oct 21, 2015The holidays came early in our classroom this week!!!
Before the students arrived, I placed a book and a stapler on each of their desks. The excitement upon their arrival, when they discovered their gifts, was loud, festive and tangible!
The students were thrilled to get their own review books to keep. They couldn't believe that they would be able to write in the books and highlight important sections. They couldn't believe that they could write their name in their very own book and "keep it forever". While my students' more affluent peers in the suburbs take for granted that their parents can purchase any and all reviews that they desire for their advanced placement courses, many of my students received their own review book for the very first time. It was truly a pleasure to witness their delight. Your donation made this possible.
The mini-staplers were also heartily appreciated. Most of my students don't have adequate school supplies at home. They tend to hand in multiple page submissions by tearing a corner of the pages and trying to fold the torn edges together. Quite often their work is separated. Now they can actually keep their work organized and kept together.
The toner has already been put to use when several students used my printer to print out an assignment that was to be submitted as typed work.
The snacks were a great help to keep my students energized during one of our after school study sessions.
You have done a great thing for deserving students. Have a wonderful holiday season!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Warby Parker Eye Glasses for Low Income Students
Funded Nov 3, 2015Wow. What an amazing benefit for our students. Thirty-two low-income students of color got a free eye exam today -- on school premises.
This process was incredibly simple and straightforward. After being pre-screened in my classroom, students were scheduled for an eye exam with the traveling eye doctor who visited our school today. Thirty-two eye exams were conducted in 4 hours. Students were checked for distance vision and reading vision as well as color-blindness.
Students had a set of twelve Warby Parker frame options to choose from. All glasses prescriptions were written today and frames selected. The frames will be ordered on Monday and arrive at school in two weeks.
What a fabulous early holiday gift for our students. The timing is especially meaningful since the families of many of our students do not have the discretionary funds to purchase holiday gifts. This will make for a cheerful holiday season in my classroom this year.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Donorschoose, Warby Parker and Dr. Tyler Maxon for making this possible!
Our school will definitely participate in this program again.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
"He Named me Malala" Motivational Class Trip
Funded Oct 7, 2015What an amazing and inspiring experience!!!!!
Our one hundred public school students from Harlem experienced this wonderful documentary created by Davis Guggenheim yesterday after school. I am still on a high from the experience!
This documentary is about Malala Yousafzai, a courageous young woman education activist who is the youngest person (at age 15) to be honored with a Nobel Peace Prize; the mean age for Nobel Peace Prize winners is 62. Malala's story is powerful. Her story is inspiring.
Our students prepared by watching the movie trailer, along with as Malala's appearances on The Daily Show and Ellen and "Words on Fire" -The Malala Anthem. Additionally, we analyzed the historical events that led to the tragic shooting of Malala on her school bus through a document prepared by one of our global history teachers.
During the entire movie, the students were completely engaged. Not a single cell phone was on. The students were silent throughout the film except when Malala gave her Nobel Peace Prize speech; during the speech they cheered her on enthusiastically and the energy in the movie theater was tangible.
Several of our students come from countries that The Malala Fund does work in such as Kenya and Nigeria. Those students felt a personal connection to Malala's pursuit of education. Our students born in the United States felt a reignited passion for knowledge; they were reminded that only through education can one truly be free and independent. All the students left the cinema with a rekindled ambition to get the most out of the free secondary education at our school.
Our students will reflect on Malala's story by completing exercises created by The Malala Fund and available through the excellent curriculum guide available for teachers on their website.
The students weren't the only ones significantly impacted by viewing this documentary. The teacher chaperons felt re-energized to help every student in their classroom reach his or her full potential and to help develop independent critical thinking young adults.
Thank you for making this possible.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Sexy Statistics in Harlem!
Funded Jul 31, 2015What a fabulous day today in AP Statistics! The students where thrilled to receive their very own copies of "What is a P-Value Anyway" by Andrew Vickers. Merely receiving a brand new book (complete with "new book smell" is a big deal for my students.
These books are great because each chapter breaks down a complex concept in a fun way through an amusing story.
The 3-ring binders will be really helpful so that students can punch holes into their practice question worksheets and insert them into the binders that were also obtained via Donorschoose.
The colored pencils are being used to today. The students will complete a practice free response question. Then, they will switch papers and grade one another's work using the rubric created by the College Board. We will repeat this process many many times this year as we prepare for the big exam in May.
Thanks for helping my wonderful students be successful.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Help Develop Financial Literacy in Harlem!
Funded Mar 13, 2015Today we had Christmas in May in our Harlem classroom! And, this was all thanks to YOU! The kids LOVED the books! First,simply being given a brand new book that is yours to keep is a treat in and of itself. Second, the topic of the "More Money Please" books is essential for my students. Personal financial literacy is not a topic that is covered in the high school curriculum. Young adults are expected to just "pick this up". The home environments of most of my students are not conducive to developing these skills. Many of my student's parents don't use banks, don't plan for retirement and don't understand the basics of investing. My students are eager to learn this information. They all plan on graduating from college. They will all have careers and earn a solid income. They want to have the proper skills to be financially independent.
These books will help my students develop solid savings and investment strategies; it will help them learn how to manage their college debt. The lessons in the book will help them manage risk via insurance; it will ensure that they have the knowledge to plan properly for retirement.
In short, these books will be referenced over and over again throughout my student's lives. The financial literacy lessons in the book will help my students live productive and prosperous lives. You've allowed me to share this essential knowledge with some very deserving kids.
Thank you for supporting us.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
This classroom project was brought to life by PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. and 4 other donors.Help Bring Financial Literacy to Harlem!
Funded Apr 6, 2015Thank you so very much for your generosity and kindness in funding this project.
Today, I had the pleasure of distributing a copy of Rich Dad Poor Dad to every student in my AP Statistics and AP Microeconomics classes. They were delighted. Just getting a brand new book to keep is reason enough to celebrate for my students. This book, which explains how to manage ones money, is invaluable to my students.
Personal financial literacy is not included in the high school curriculum. Most young adults learn this knowledge from their parents. My students live in circumstances and households where this skill set is not necessarily understood nor passed down from generation to generation.
These students are bright and eager to learn. They have goals and ambitions in life. They will become productive members of society. The tools in this book will help them to manage their own finances properly so that they can live a life of financial independence.
Thank you for providing the resources to help me teach these wonderful students about financial literacy in our last unit of the year.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Create Statistics Spirit in Harlem!
Funded Apr 28, 2015The T-shirts are here! The t-shirts are here! Woo Hoo! They look GREAT!
I can't wait to distribute them tomorrow to these wonderful students! The kids took the AP Statistics exam last Wednesday and they knocked it out of the park! They came back deliriously excited and said that the real exam was 'easier' than my mock exams! I am confident that they performed very well!
These t-shirts that say "I rocked AP Statistics" on the back will help these wonderful students show their pride in their accomplishments.
Thank you for making this possible!”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau
Analyzing Superfreakonomics in Harlem!
Funded May 5, 2015The books are here! Last Friday, the students took their AP Microeconomics exam and knocked it out of the park! They came back confident that they had scored well earned college credit for the course. We won't know the final results until July but I am VERY confident that this group of kids performed very well.
The Superfreakonomics books are here and we are excited to get creative with some of the economic concepts that we studied in this course and "put the freak in economics".
The first project, that the kids have already started, is to read the chapter on global warming entitled "What do Al Gore and Pinatubo Have in Common"? This chapter address negative externalities which is a concept covered in the AP Microeconomics curriculum. The students have a critical thinking writing assignment to complete for next week.
Our class has a subscription to The Wall Street Journal and the students are having fun finding articles that relate to this chapter. We continue this process of analyzing the chapter first and then finding relevant current news article covering the same issue.
Thanks so much for helping me to enrich the lives of these amazing young thinkers.”
With gratitude,
Mrs. Viau