Young people like to read — if they’re given access to good books and if they get to choose what they read.
Even though I believe in libraries and physical books, I’ve found no better way to motivate students to read than by trusting them with a Kindle.
That’s why, ever since beginning The Kindle Classroom Project more than two years ago, one of my goals has been to acquire a class set of Kindles.
Imagine if every ninth grader in a class had access to a Kindle at all times. And what if those Kindles each contained a library of close to 150 good books? What would happen to those students’ reading lives?
Please spread the word! Think of someone you know who loves reading, or who believes in education, or who cares about equity. And then challenge them to donate $10. DonorsChoose makes it easy: You can pay by credit card, PayPal, or by clicking on a button that lets you pay through Amazon.
It won’t be easy to fund this project (it’s the largest project I’ve ever asked for), but I figure that the time is now.
After two years of generous contributions from generous donors (friends, family, and total strangers!), it’s time for a big push. It’s time to meet the goal!
Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions or concerns.
I’m happy to announce that my little form over on the Contribute page has elicited some very generous donations. As a result, I was able to purchase the following books this week:
Here’s what’s even better: Each of these titles was requested by a Kindler. It’s my policy, after all, that student requests come first.
Our Kindle library now has 138 high-interest titles, thanks to loyal Iserotope readers and generous contributors who care about young people and their reading lives.
If you know someone who would like to build our classroom library, please direct them to my Amazon wishlist or the Contribute page.
There has been a lot going on with the Kindle Classroom Project. Here are some updates:
1. Two Kindles stopped working.
It had to happen eventually. One Kindle became unresponsive — in other words, the device was stuck in screensaver mode. Another Kindle’s screen cracked, probably the result of excessive pressure caused by a ninth grader’s bulging backpack. I won’t lie: These Kindle casualties frustrated me. But after a few days, I regrouped. And now I’m back with added energy, determined to get to my goal of a class set of Kindles.
2. One Kindle was replaced free of charge.
Amazon prides itself on excellent customer service. But the company does not want to spend its money replacing broken Kindles. Nevertheless, I contacted Amazon several times (on the phone, via chat), explained my situation, and pleaded with the representatives to send me replacement Kindles. It was a no-go on the Kindle with a cracked screen, but the unresponsive Kindle was deemed worthy of replacement. It arrived yesterday, and all I had to do was to send back the broken one, which I did — along with the other broken Kindle and a letter suggesting that Amazon should replace that one, too. (Yes, I will keep trying.)
3. One Kindle was donated.
As you may have seen in this post, Snip.it found out about The Kindle Classroom Project and decided to donate a Kindle to the cause. This was the first-ever contribution from a company. I suppose my next step should be to approach Amazon and see what they can do!
4. I’m no longer accepting the first-generation Kindle.
Right now, there are 15 total Kindles in circulation. Unfortunately, the two first-generation Kindles are not holding their charge, are not syncing well, and are not easy for students to use. I’m finding myself fixing those Kindles as much as I see students reading them. So unfortunately, I must say no to people who would like to donate their first-generation Kindle.
5. Therefore, our Kindle fleet stands at 12.
Kindle 2: 2
Kindle Keyboard (my favorite model): 6
Kindle Touch: 2
Kindle: 2
My goal is 24, a full class set. Last year at this time, we had seven. Yes, the progress is slow-going, and sometimes I wish that some random person would swoop in and contribute 30 Kindles. But on the other hand, I am appreciative of the process and of the people who have donated.
6. It’s time to dream big: I just posted a new DonorsChoose project.
There is a rumor that I may receive two Kindles this week from generous donors. That means that I’m about 10 short of a class set, and that’s why I’ve posted the $960 proposal. Yes, it’s a big (and daunting) ask, but the good news is that a generous donor has already gotten the process started, so we’re already down to $860. Tell your friends!
7. I’m scouring Craigslist for Kindle donations.
People like to sell used (or stolen?) Kindles on Craigslist, so my latest strategy is to email these people and ask them to contribute their Kindle to my students. No takers yet, but I’ve just begun — and only with the Bay Area for now. It’s pretty easy: Just write a pitch email and send. We’ll see if this technique is worth pursuing. I figure that if someone donates a Kindle for every 20 emails I send, that would be a great response.
8. I’m coming up with more ways to contribute.
I’ve found that many people want to help out, but they don’t have a Kindle, and donating the money for one is just too much. So I’m trying to come up with more ways that people can contribute in smaller amounts. My Contribute page needs an overhaul. Here are some ideas about ways people can donate:
Donate a Kindle,
Donate on DonorsChoose (to a specific project or in general),
Update: To make things easier, I’ve created the Kindle Classroom Project page! It’s easy to donate a Kindle there and to make a contribution!
Do you have other ideas? I’d like to engage as many people as possible, including former students, parents of former students, and parents and current students. It would be nice, for example, if a large number of parents could make a $10 donation; after all, this would purchase a Kindle ebook that all students could read forever.
There’s much more to update you about — for example, about how one Kindler read five books in one week! — but I’ll stop here for now. As always, I appreciate Iserotope readers and the many contributors to The Kindle Classroom Project. More to come!
Beginning today, Google Plus is now available to middle schools and high schools using Google Apps for Education.
This means teachers can easily create a virtual learning environment and social network for their students — in other words, an academic Facebook. More important, access to Google Plus means access to Google Hangouts, possibly the best group video chatting service out there.
Here are some other reasons that I think this is a big deal:
1. Teachers can hold virtual office hours.
We all know that students don’t like to do homework. But what if teachers were sometimes available to help? Google Hangouts lets up to 15 people to video chat at the same time. I’m not suggesting that teachers should give up their evening time, but if we’re grading papers or planning lessons, we can also be free for students’ questions. Also, video chatting might be a better way to communicate than texting.
2. Students can work in study groups.
In Google Plus, you can create circles however you like. Students working on a group project can send updates, messages, photos, and videos just to their peers. Or they can open up a Hangout and talk to each other live.
3. Google Plus can become an interactive class blog.
Teachers can add assignments. Students can respond. Students can share their thoughts — to a peer only, to the teacher only, to part of the class, or to the entire class. It’s an easy way to share photos and videos. You can add events, too.
No, it won’t look as good as a WordPress blog, and it won’t be as organized, but it’s much easier for students to use. It’s a very informal space for student expression. (Although it’s not a direct competitor to Edmodo, which focuses on education, I worry that Google Plus on Google Apps for Education may take away some of its business.)
Google Plus will likely be an incredible tool for teachers. But there are some very serious concerns. Schools typically block Facebook and other social networking sites because they don’t want students sharing inappropriate content or socializing with or bullying their peers. By allowing Google Plus and making the service available to all students, schools are opening themselves to an array of problems.
It’ll be interesting how schools using Google Apps will react to the availability of Google Plus. Will they say there’s no way, or will this be an opportunity for teachers and students to use technology responsibly and to become more technologically literate?
This kind of thing — this kind of generosity — isn’t supposed to happen, right?
For the last few months, I’ve been using Snip.it, a great service to “collect the best of the web.” It’s the host of Iserotope Extras, plus I clip other articles into collections for safekeeping and sharing with my friends.
So just a few days ago, I decided to write a little post (see below) about how social studies teachers could use Snip.it to promote independent reading.
Then came the surprises: A few hours later, Ramy Adeeb, the founder of Snip.it, retweeted my post. Then Snip.it did the same. And that wasn’t all.
The next day, I got an email from a representative at Snip.it to let me know that the company wanted to donate a Kindle to the Kindle Classroom Project.
And it came today. Here it is — along with a Snip.it T-shirt and a handwritten thank-you card and signatures from everybody at the company!
Over the past two years, I’ve received generous donations from friends, family, and total strangers. But never has a company contributed until now.
I am very appreciative of Snip.it for caring about reading and about the academic lives of urban public high school students of color who will be the first in their families to attend college.
I am hopeful to begin a project next semester that encourages students to explore their interests in nonfiction and current events and to share their best content with their peers using Snip.it.
Young people like to read — if they’re given access to good books and if they get to choose what they read.
Please spread the word! Think of someone you know who loves reading, or who believes in education, or who cares about equity. And then challenge them to donate $10. DonorsChoose makes it easy: You can pay by credit card, PayPal, or by clicking on a button that lets you pay through Amazon.
