Books on Display––This posting was well-written, and fairly convincing. While I was skeptical of the "need" for a revolving bookcase, the teacher did a very good job of focusing on the students, how hard they work to overcome setbacks, and how having a revolving bookcase will allow them to better see the books and improve their interest in reading. I think by focusing on the kids and how it will help them rather than how it might improve the classroom aesthetically the teacher improved the chances of funding.
Storage Wars!––I think this request was very relevant and necessary, and that the teacher who posted it did an okay job, but could have done better by writing more smoothly. She did do an excellent job of explaining the specific needs of her students, but it felt more of just general information about her students rather than why those needs made needing a shelf pertinent. However, to be fair she did mention the necessesity of the shelf being sturdy because of some of these needs later on, so it was not all bad. The title was nice and stood out, but I think I the exact name of a tv show which is a borderline copyright issue potentially.
Programming Frenzy––Once again, I think this is a really relevant request that suffers only from poor writing. Programming tools is a trendy idea that lots of people can get behind on principle alone, so the project will likely still get funded, but it would have been even more powerful if it was free of grammar and mechanics issues and written compellingly. I know it sounds like a very nitpicky issue, but it matters. If a donor reads your post and thinks, "wow, they messed up that punctuation," to has to reread certain sections because it didn't make sense the first time, it makes a difference in their likelihood to donate.
5 Tips for Writing a Request
1. Catch their eye. The title and opening description need to scream relevance right off the bat. You want as many clicks as possible so that people read your entire request, so what they see in the thumbnail needs to pop.
2. Write well. Most of the requests are going to be important or do some level of good, and a lot of them may be asking for the same things, so it is vital that yours stands out. Compelling, coherent writing can make all the difference. If two posts have the same request, and one has serious grammatical issues and doesn't explain the need and potential use as well, the better written request will likely get more donations.
3. Talk about your students and how the need helps them, specifically. You want potential donors to know the impact they could be having on your students, not just the look of your classroom.
4. Use imagistic language. Help the donors to visualize the impact your request can have by describing what a successful funding of the project could look like, not just how it is now without the thing your requesting.
5. Stay focused. You only have the readers attention for so long, so be sure that any information about your kids or classroom is relevant to your request. Added details that are more or less irrelevant only distract from your purpose.
Storage Wars!––I think this request was very relevant and necessary, and that the teacher who posted it did an okay job, but could have done better by writing more smoothly. She did do an excellent job of explaining the specific needs of her students, but it felt more of just general information about her students rather than why those needs made needing a shelf pertinent. However, to be fair she did mention the necessesity of the shelf being sturdy because of some of these needs later on, so it was not all bad. The title was nice and stood out, but I think I the exact name of a tv show which is a borderline copyright issue potentially.
Programming Frenzy––Once again, I think this is a really relevant request that suffers only from poor writing. Programming tools is a trendy idea that lots of people can get behind on principle alone, so the project will likely still get funded, but it would have been even more powerful if it was free of grammar and mechanics issues and written compellingly. I know it sounds like a very nitpicky issue, but it matters. If a donor reads your post and thinks, "wow, they messed up that punctuation," to has to reread certain sections because it didn't make sense the first time, it makes a difference in their likelihood to donate.
5 Tips for Writing a Request
1. Catch their eye. The title and opening description need to scream relevance right off the bat. You want as many clicks as possible so that people read your entire request, so what they see in the thumbnail needs to pop.
2. Write well. Most of the requests are going to be important or do some level of good, and a lot of them may be asking for the same things, so it is vital that yours stands out. Compelling, coherent writing can make all the difference. If two posts have the same request, and one has serious grammatical issues and doesn't explain the need and potential use as well, the better written request will likely get more donations.
3. Talk about your students and how the need helps them, specifically. You want potential donors to know the impact they could be having on your students, not just the look of your classroom.
4. Use imagistic language. Help the donors to visualize the impact your request can have by describing what a successful funding of the project could look like, not just how it is now without the thing your requesting.
5. Stay focused. You only have the readers attention for so long, so be sure that any information about your kids or classroom is relevant to your request. Added details that are more or less irrelevant only distract from your purpose.