ince becoming a teacher, I have learned that students get more involved with the learning process when they can make a personal connection. They always want to know how it all relates to them, and they want to know the answer to "so what?".

Whenever I have given out a research assignment involving Black History Month, my students all want to do their assignments on either Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. or Rosa Parks. I have to strongly encourage them to explore and discover other contributors to our history.

I am proposing an annual Black History Month documentary project that will require my students to go out and interview senior citizens to get a first-hand account of the Civil Rights Movement. For this project we will need two digital camcorders. We will have two groups of students who will go out and interview seniors in our neighborhood. The other team will go out and interview seniors in care homes and senior centers.

The students will be responsible for developing interview questions, scheduling and conducting interviews, videotaping, editing and organizing a showcase to premiere the documentary.

This project can also be duplicated to educate students about other ethnic groups at our school.

The cost of two Canon digital cameras, two firewire cables, and two Memorex DVD 120-minute 50-Pack Spindles is $1,533, including shipping and fulfillment.

This [source ] and all other proposals at DonorsChoose have been submitted by public school teachers who seek resources that will help their students learn. Jeff is now at Frick Middle School in Oakland as the Opportunity teacher and plans to create lots of opportunities for his students which we will share with the community.