Kindergarten teacher Carolyn Freeman gets $170 from her school for classroom supplies each year — a budget quickly drained by basic items like pencils and crayons for her students, more than 80 percent of whom come from low-income families. So when she wanted $300 for phonics materials, Freeman turned to the Internet, where a philanthropic Web site — DonorsChoose.org — is making teachers‘ wish lists a reality.
The wish list is long and varied: a karate program in North Carolina, an incubation kit so students can watch chickens hatch in Los Angeles, a classroom Jeopardy game for students in Mississippi, film-making equipment for a Texas school and phonics materials and ballet barres in Indiana.
The program also eases the burden on teachers, who often pay for classroom supplies themselves. A 2003 National Education Association survey found that teachers spent an average of $443 of their own money annually.
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