Being a teacher can be a thankless job. Living in the midst of one of the largest school district crises our country has ever seen, I truly feel for my friends who give so much of themselves in the classrooms. I try to offer small ways to help both students and teachers, because I know that teachers change lives.
Teachers spend money every year out of their own pocket, especially in underfunded areas like Philadelphia. According to one recent survey, teachers spent an average of $448 of their own money each year – and that seems like a low estimate compared to what I have seen. It is often up to the parents and teachers to just provide paper! And I know when my son starts elementary school I will be dropping of cases of recycled paper just so the kids have something to write on.
Office Depot has partnered with Adopt-A-Classroom – a nonprofit organization that connects donors with teachers to enhance the learning environment for students – to raise awareness about all teachers do in the lives of their students. You can help these teachers doing innovative things by donating to a teacher highlighted in these videos of a teacher in your local community.
This is David Vixie, a teacher in Paradise, California. He believes that learning should extend outside the walls of the classroom. David teaches his students to learn from experience and provides them with new adventures every class period. His goal is to help students think differently, and come to their own conclusions.
You can donate to a teacher or register your classroom on the Teachers Change Lives Web site.
With school districts across the country in dire straights, every penny counts – and can help a stressed out teacher fuel life-changing work.
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.