Grants

Wow!  When I first started teaching, I had no idea how much of their own money a teacher can put into her classroom.  It is overwhelming.  It starts with a little here and a little there.  But those small receipts add up to a big tab.  Adopt a classroom states that teachers spend an average of $1200 per year.  I do it for the same reason I teach, I want children, all children to succeed.  I want to see a non-reader turn into a book worm.  I want to see someone that hates to get out of bed, jump up and wake their parents up so they will take them to school.  I do not want a child to not want to come to school because they don't have the supplies they need.  So, what do I do, I buy some extra supplies to make sure that doesn't happen.  I know I am not alone. 
However, there are some things that most teachers cannot afford to buy for their classrooms.  Grants are the solution. In the past, I have tried to get a Sonic Limeades for Learning grant.  It was easy to fill out and I spread the word to my fellow teachers, students, and community by asking for their 'codes' from their drinks.  Sadly, I was not successful.  This program was geared toward getting your friends and family to donate to your classroom wish list.  My school and my community was a high poverty area.  The codes were not enough to get the science equipment I had asked for.  I hate asking my friends and family to help.  However, when this is available again in the fall, I will sign my new class up again.  The application is simple and quick.  My classroom motto is you never know what you can do until you try.  Even though I tried and failed, there is a second part of trial: failure is when you stop trying. 
Looking at all of these other options, I was relieved to discover many grants that do not rely on asking for help.  They are simply projects out there waiting to find someone to give to.  Target  has a wonderful grant program.  I love to see that there are projects funded in my area from them and they offer grants for fieldtrips and classroom literacy.  Edutopia also has valuable resources to help you understand the ins and outs of grants and grant writing.  Writing a grant can be intimidating.   But there are so many free resources out there to provide us with step by step instructions and samples of successful grants that have been written.  Edutopia offers a webinar and Powerpoint to help gain a better understanding of the grant writing process. 
I am going to keep trying to find resources for my students.  My new school has an even higher poverty rate.  According to DESE, in 2012, my building has an overall free and reduced population of 93%.  This allows me to access even more grants than before.  My goal is for students in my classroom to have access to technology no matter what their socio-economic status may be.  I want to provide them the same fighting chance to be successful in our ever changing world.