The students at Paradise High School are a resilient group of young people. Over 60% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Our area has one of the highest rates of childhood trauma in the entire nation. Many struggle with getting the basic school supplies and transportation to and from school. Despite all these roadblocks to their education, they still show up everyday, ready to learn and excited to see their friends and teachers.
Then, on November 8th, the Camp Fire destroyed the town of Paradise, and its students were displaced and scattered throughout the county, state and nation.
As the fires died down, teachers and students began to create a plan to resume school, to regain some sort of normalcy. A return to the Paradise High campus was out of the question, as the air and even water were still too toxic. Paradise High would have to relocate.
Now, PHS is located in Chico, CA, in an empty office building near the municipal airport. Our students and teachers are as resilient as ever, but there have been some unanticipated roadblocks that have cropped up that we need help with.
My Project
We are asking for lapboards for our students. The lapboards will have a daily effect on students' ability to write and learn in class. Currently, the rooms we use do not have enough tables for students to sit around. In some cases, half of the classes use their notebooks to write on.
Having a comfortable surface to write, draw and place a Chromebook on will help students everyday in their education.
The lapboards are small enough to store easily, but large enough for full sized papers or a Chromebook/Laptop. When students are comfortable and have a place to write, they can focus on instruction, rather than struggling to find a surface to write/type on.
An added benefit of these lapboards is that when we do make it back onto our campus, the lapboards can come with us and be used again to help in overcrowded classrooms or allow students to work in places that are most comfortable to them.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Velikonia and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.