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This teacher needs your help!

Mr. Van Arsdale from Eagle River, AK is requesting lab equipment through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

See what Mr. Van Arsdale is requesting

Bone Boxes

Help me give my students the reference materials they need to better understand forensic anthropology.

  • $1,393 goal

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Hooray! This project is fully funded

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My Students

I teach at a small comprehensive high school in South Central Alaska. About half of my students have lived in Alaska all of their lives. The other half, almost all military transfers, have been in the state for less than two years. My classroom is a melting pot of students who have a deep sense of place, but little sense of the world and students who have a wide sense of the world but very little sense of place. Some come from far away and others have never left home. They are mixed in ethnicity, income, and family beliefs. Most have chosen Forensic Science because they haven't enjoyed science and are afraid of the challenges that physics and chemistry might bring.

Wrapping hard core science with a veil of forensic mystery is a proven technique to motivate kids in a STEM field who have never liked or done well in science.

Forensic science is best learned at the lab bench, where students can approach a crime scene mystery, with a scientific approach.

The acquisition of supplies to enable these hands on experiences for my students is a key part of what I do as a classroom teacher.

My Project

Thanks in part to the television show Bones, the most popular unit in my Forensic Science class is the unit on Forensic Anthropology. I believe forensic science, as a class, provides a high interest veneer to teaching multiple science topics to a group of students who have struggled in traditional science classes. A study of bones fits this mold well.

To facilitate this process, I borrow bones from a local collection, mix them up and place them into boxes for each lab group.

Each box has a back story of where and how the bones were discovered, and a series of potential missing persons from the area. Students must measure and analyze their bone collections in order to determine if they have a match to any of the missing person reports provided.

What I need is better measuring tools and reference samples to help students better determine height and gender of their potential missing persons.

Mr. Van Arsdale Eagle River High School Grades 9-12

More about Mr. Van Arsdale

Eagle River, AK View local requests

More than a third of students from low‑income households Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more

100 students impacted 1donor

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
Comparative Human Bone Set 1, Male • Carolina Biological Supply Company $346.50 1 $346.50
Comparative Human Bone Set 2, Female • Carolina Biological Supply Company $346.50 1 $346.50
Carolina Osteometric Board • Carolina Biological Supply Company $142.20 2 $284.40

Materials cost

$977.40

Vendor shipping charges

 $146.61

Sales tax

 $14.66

3rd party payment processing fee

$14.66

Fulfillment labor & materials

$30.00

Total project cost

$1,183.33

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$208.82

Total project goal

$1,392.15

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $1,392.15

1 Donor

-$1,392.15

Donations toward project cost

-$1,183.33

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$208.82

Still needed View calculationHide calculation

 $0.00

Our team works hard to negotiate the best pricing and selections available.

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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Van Arsdale and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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