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This teacher needs your help!

Mr. Shieh from Flushing, NY is requesting other through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

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Bringin' Songwriting Back: Rock Bands in Music Class

My students need a set of guitars to use so we can form small "garage bands" for songwriting and improvisation.

  • $430 goal

Hooray! This project is fully funded

Hooray! This project is fully funded

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Keep the momentum going! Make a donation to Mr. Shieh for his next project!

My Students

We're ready to make our own music! My 230 students have begun developing skills on all sorts of instruments, but music class also needs to include songwriting and that amazing flow musicians get from improvising with each other in small "garage band" groups.

My 230 students are pioneers--literally.

Our school is only one year old, and every student in the school is in music class, learning an instrument, for sixth and seventh grade. It's an extraordinary space, where students from across one of the most diverse districts in New York City come together to make music. This means, of course, that everyone enters music from a different background, and some of our deepest learnings happen when we experiment--trying to create the songs and beats that we each love on our instruments or with our voices. I have budding rockstars, rappers, divas, classical virtuosos, and even some composers. Most recently, students covered (and rewrote!) various protest songs to perform at a community presentation in Brooklyn on activism and the environment.

My Project

When I set out with this school, I didn't expect students to get into songwriting so quickly in sixth and seventh grade! I thought we could slowly fundraise for guitars over the next couple years, and create some garage bands in high school. I was wrong. By the end of our first year at this school, I had several students eager to create their own beats and songs--and the two or three students who were lucky enough to have a guitar at home were the envy of their peers. "When can we get guitars?" has been a recurring question from excited students. Guitars provide a terrific backbone for the songwriting process: they provide a steady rhythm and harmony over which a group can experiment and improvise. Five guitars (with cases so we can store them properly!) will allow me to divide my 30-student classes into five "garage band" groups of six--a solid size for the kind of creative work we're eager to do.

One of the greatest responsibilities with creating a new music program for a new school is to really make something responsive to today's students.

Very few schools have invested in a music curriculum that includes songwriting, and the possibilities of moving forward with this kind of design are extraordinary. The impact will not simply be felt by these eager students, but also by a music education community that is seeking ways to innovate and reach all children.

Mr. Shieh Metropolitan Exped Learning School Grades 6-8

Equity Focus

This project directly supports students at a historically underfunded school. Learn more about our Equity Focus.

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

More about Mr. Shieh

Flushing, NY View local requests

More than half 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

230 students impacted 14donors

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes
Materials Cost Quantity Total
RA-090 Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar • Woodwind & Brasswind $49.99 5 $249.95
Acoustic Guitar Gig bag • Woodwind & Brasswind $14.99 5 $74.95

Materials cost

$324.90

Vendor shipping charges

 FREE

Sales tax

 $0.00

3rd party payment processing fee

$4.87

Fulfillment labor & materials

$35.00

Total project cost

$364.77

Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

$64.37

Total project goal

$429.14

How we calculate what's needed

Total project goal

 $429.14

12 Donors

-$421.33

Donations toward project cost

-$364.77

Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms

-$56.56

Excluded support for DonorsChoose

-$7.81

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. Shieh and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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