Chromebooks for Students

My name is Carrie O'Donnell and I am a 4th grade teacher at Valley Vista Elementary School in Petaluma, California. I am asking for your help in funding a project of mine that I believe will have a lasting impact on our students and the environment for years to come.


I have set out to raise $6,800 so that I can purchase 25 Acer Chromebooks and the teacher management console, which will allow me to essentially "drive" my students through important lessons in math, language arts, science and social studies on the student's own small computers at their desks! These new computers would replace the old, slow, space-invading desktop computers that are there now.


My 4th grade classroom is equipped with 6 of the slowest, bulkiest computers still in existence! We do a lot of creative writing in 4th grade and I feel that it's important for students to begin to use computers as a tool in their writing process. With only 6 computers students have to take turns on the them, leaving the majority of the students left to do other work. This makes for writing projects that can span over months! Our computers also take up valuable table space; space that I could use for hands-on projects such as models and artwork.


I would also like to use these tools as a way to decrease the amount of paper my class consumes each day in curriculum provided and teacher created worksheets. I will be able to scan the daily worksheets and make them editable for my students to fill in electronically! They will be able to send their documents to me where I can correct them and email them home to their parents! The amount of paper saved alone will be monumental!


My intention is not to remove pencil and paper learning from my students. They will have plenty of opportunity to practice their writing and penmanship daily. I feel that by migrating some of their practice work to an electronic medium will give them more much needed practice using a computer and keyboard, thereby strengthening their skills as they advance into higher grades with greater demands on their technological skills.


Also, with the many free educational applications there are available to us, my students will be able to practice things like spelling and math facts when they have completed their assignments. They will even be able to access a library of books that they never would have had available to them!


Update: I have raised enough money to purchase 13 Chromebooks! We have been putting them to use as often as we can, incorporating them into daily instruction in math and writing. The kids absolutely LOVE THEM and have inspired them to even do practicing at home! Thank you to all of you who have helped make this dream a reality! We're not done yet, however. A full class set would be 30 Chromebooks (really 33 since that is the amount of students we could potentially have).


Please help me make a difference for my students, and potentially thousands of others in years to come.


Thank you!
Carrie