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Funding Our Classrooms Carolyn
Hornik
One of the difficulties
we, as teachers, face is limited funds for classroom
supplies. There is help out there. Monetary grants
and donations of needed supplies are available to
educators.
There are many community
resources we can turn to in order to procure materials.
Many local store owners are happy to donate materials
and goods. For example, carpet squares for our meeting
areas can usually be obtained for free just by asking
a local carpet dealer. Pencils and paper might be donated
by a local stationary storeowner. Publishers will sometimes
send sample books, CDs, and DVDs upon request for teachers
to examine before ordering. One teacher needed a supply
of M&M’s for a math lesson. She wrote to the
Mars Corporation and they donated individual M&M’s
packages for each student in the class. (If you are
a NYC teacher try Materials
For The Arts, they offer educators materials and
art supplies for free.) There are foundations, corporations
and government agencies that offer grant opportunities.
The web sites listed below
may be used to obtain information and applications
for many grants. It is advisable to begin by reading
the web sites that will guide an applicant through
the application process. Applicants can use the same
unit plans for various grant applications by adapting
the plans to fit the requirements of each grant.
Grant
Web Sites
Teachers
Network Grants page
Grant listings for educators and tips on grant writing. Updated
regularly.
An
Educator's Guide to Beginning Grant Writing
Donors
Choose
At this not-for-profit web site teachers submit project proposals
for materials, books, supplies or experiences needed in order to
boost student learning.
DiscoverySchool.com
A categorized, annotated list of
over 2000 sites to help educators enhance instruction
and support the curriculum through grant programs.
National
Geographic Society Education Foundation Teacher
Grants
mathSURF
List of government agencies, national and regional grants from
corporations and foundations, and state-wide grants from corporations
and foundations.
Houghton
Mifflin's Education Place
How to’s of grant writing and links to teacher grant sites.
International
Reading Association
Disney
American Teacher Awards honors teachers whose
approaches exemplify creative in teaching and who
inspire a joy of learning in their students.
Global
SchoolNet Foundation
Grants to teachers who incorporate
collaborative projects into their classrooms.
National
Science Teachers Association
Get information and an application for Toyota Tapestry Grants.
Grants of up to $10,000 each and a minimum of 20 "mini-grants" of
$2,500 each are available to K-12 teachers of science.
Grantsalert.com provides
lists of foundation and government grants for educators.
EduCyber.com
Valuable links to guide educators through the grant process and
web sites that provide information on available grants.
American
Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
K-12 teachers who develop or apply science, mathematics, and technology
into their curriculum may qualify for a grant of up to $200 per
individual request to supplement their learning programs. Each
school is limited to up to $1,000 per calendar year.
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