#1: "Starbucks Comfort in the Classroom, Without the Coffee of Course!"
This application really drew my attention because I strongly believe in giving students the options of the environment in which they learn and complete their work. Seating is one of these options to give students. The beginning of the application was a lot about the way that the school and the students in the class made the TEACHER feel. I thought this was something she could have left out, or worded differently, because it was a lot about her and not the students. While I'm sure that the students do make her feel that way, the application donors are probably geared more towards the student's feelings. Another thing she may could improve was the picture. The picture was relevant to the application but seems almost as though she just took it without considering what a "good quality" picture is. I thought it may come off as unprofessional. However, she did do many great things. I loved the way she compared the seating in Starbucks to the seating in a classroom- having the choice of where to work. This also made for a great title. I thought this application was pretty good...just may need a few changes.
#2: "Technology in our Math Class"
This application is by a middle school teacher in Norman who is asking for an iPad to use in her math classroom. The first thing I noticed that was wrong with this application was the picture. It seems to be a picture of students work but it is unclear what exactly the work it and doesn't necessarily correlate to the application. Then, when I began to read her statements, they were very wordy. It was unclear exactly what she was asking for. She did give good background information as to why this iPad was so important to the classroom. She started off by explaining how her school was high poverty and suffering from budget cuts, which is something that could grab the donor's attention.
#3: Fire Up Our Classroom!
This application is asking for a class set of Kindle Fires. The first thing that caught my attention was the title, I thought it was very creative and easily drew attention. When I began to read the application, I was very impressed with the writing that the teacher created. Her writing sounded very professional and appealed to the emotion of the reader. She talked about how her students came from low-income households and how she wanted to influence them to get out of the poverty circle. She ended her application with a very powerful statement, which I thought was also very creative. One thing that I would change about her application is the picture. It is just a picture of her chalkboard and doesn't have much to do with the application. This is something that she could improve to make her application better.
5 Tips:
1. Make sure your picture is good quality and relates to the application. This is important because it will catch the attention of donors and make you as a teacher look professional.
2. Have a creative title. This is likely the first thing that donors will look at, so you want to make it good!
3. Make sure your writing is not too wordy. You want to elaborate on what you are asking for, but do not make it too wordy to where the reader is confused as to what you are asking for.
4. Make sure the application is student centered. Donors are donating for the benefit of the students, so make sure that your application is focused on them.
5. Give example of how you will use what you are asking for in the classroom. This will help donors see how important your application is and show them that you are serious and passionate about using it in the classroom.
This application really drew my attention because I strongly believe in giving students the options of the environment in which they learn and complete their work. Seating is one of these options to give students. The beginning of the application was a lot about the way that the school and the students in the class made the TEACHER feel. I thought this was something she could have left out, or worded differently, because it was a lot about her and not the students. While I'm sure that the students do make her feel that way, the application donors are probably geared more towards the student's feelings. Another thing she may could improve was the picture. The picture was relevant to the application but seems almost as though she just took it without considering what a "good quality" picture is. I thought it may come off as unprofessional. However, she did do many great things. I loved the way she compared the seating in Starbucks to the seating in a classroom- having the choice of where to work. This also made for a great title. I thought this application was pretty good...just may need a few changes.
#2: "Technology in our Math Class"
This application is by a middle school teacher in Norman who is asking for an iPad to use in her math classroom. The first thing I noticed that was wrong with this application was the picture. It seems to be a picture of students work but it is unclear what exactly the work it and doesn't necessarily correlate to the application. Then, when I began to read her statements, they were very wordy. It was unclear exactly what she was asking for. She did give good background information as to why this iPad was so important to the classroom. She started off by explaining how her school was high poverty and suffering from budget cuts, which is something that could grab the donor's attention.
#3: Fire Up Our Classroom!
This application is asking for a class set of Kindle Fires. The first thing that caught my attention was the title, I thought it was very creative and easily drew attention. When I began to read the application, I was very impressed with the writing that the teacher created. Her writing sounded very professional and appealed to the emotion of the reader. She talked about how her students came from low-income households and how she wanted to influence them to get out of the poverty circle. She ended her application with a very powerful statement, which I thought was also very creative. One thing that I would change about her application is the picture. It is just a picture of her chalkboard and doesn't have much to do with the application. This is something that she could improve to make her application better.
5 Tips:
1. Make sure your picture is good quality and relates to the application. This is important because it will catch the attention of donors and make you as a teacher look professional.
2. Have a creative title. This is likely the first thing that donors will look at, so you want to make it good!
3. Make sure your writing is not too wordy. You want to elaborate on what you are asking for, but do not make it too wordy to where the reader is confused as to what you are asking for.
4. Make sure the application is student centered. Donors are donating for the benefit of the students, so make sure that your application is focused on them.
5. Give example of how you will use what you are asking for in the classroom. This will help donors see how important your application is and show them that you are serious and passionate about using it in the classroom.