The Bullard Education Foundation recently visited all six Bullard ISD campuses to award more than $58,000 to fund innovative teaching grants.

From Staff report

The Bullard Education Foundation recently visited all six Bullard ISD campuses to award more than $58,000 to fund innovative teaching grants.

Each year, teachers across the district apply for grants to help them initiate fun and innovative programs not covered in the regular operating budget.

This year’s grants include virtual reality projects, floral design programs, classroom learning materials, STEM materials and more, with a grand total of $58,235.69

Campus Wide

Jennifer Carlile

Swivl — a Reflective Practice to Promote Research Based Instructional Techniques: this grant will allow teachers to reflect on their instructional practices through technology and data.

High School

Stu Dildine, Jamie Dildine, Diana Russell, Jacy Brown, Stephen Hindman and John Harden

The Dapper Pelt and Co: this grant will show the value of leatherworking as an additional way to use the agricultural byproducts and turn that into a potential money maker.

Meagan Harris and Andrew McCorkindale (Food Culinary Science)

On Fire for Learning: this grant will help students utilize outdoor spaces and cooking with grills to provide alternative spaces to hone culinary skills.

Jamie Dildine and Stephen Hindman

The Prickly Pear Petites: this grant will allow students to create flowers ready-made for purchase for staff, students and parents.

Stephen Hindman

Bee’s Knees Sunflower and Pollinator Research Garden: this will broaden the understanding of planting native pollinator plants and what effects they can have on an entire ecosystem.

Jamie Dildine

Precision Flower Cutting: this grant is to provide equipment that is used specifically in the industry inside safe operating procedures. It will allow students to cut flower stems not only safely but with commercial grade equipment.

Jamie Dildine

‘Bark, Bark’ Your Hands Are Cold! For the veterinary science program, it will provide realistic consistent, hand-on training practice of caring for a dog. This training dog will allow them to practice what they learn throughout the year.

Amy Bickerstaff (H&P STEM Grant recipient)

Virtual Reality in Architecture: this design program will allow the student through the use of goggles to walk through the projects they are designing.

Middle School

Jodie Albritton (H&P STEM Grant recipient)

Totally Hovering Over BMS: students will design a project-based plan for their drone. They will equip the drones with instructions to carry out their missions via coding.

Vanessa Dockter

How Much Pressure Are You Under? This grant will purchase blood pressure cuffs and stethoscopes to teach the students how to actually take blood pressure and why it’s important to be quiet when the nurses are taking manual blood pressure.

Amanda Enright

Relaxation Station: this will create a sense of calm and comfort in a space that all while teaching self-regulation skills.

Diana Russell

How Does Your Garden Grow? Using an aeroponics unit instead of soil or a planter and soil will provide a unique way to grow a full garden inside the classroom without using soil. There are ways to grow healthy fruits and vegetables at home or in small areas.

Jacy Brown and Diana Russell

Student Run Egg Laying Business: students will develop an egg laying business. They will budget, develop a finance and marketing plan to go from incubating the eggs, caring for the hens to eventually receiving their first eggs.

Lawren Phillips, Andy Gee and Christopher Cook

Real Works Career Exploration: the grant will purchase kits to help students explore various career paths. They will get hands-on experience into unique jobs/careers.

Karey Moore and Amanda Stork

Achieving Master with Models: this grant will allow students a way to explore the natural world with 3-D models that they can manipulate.

Britney Wylie and Senoya Driskell

Take It Outdoors: outdoor learning environment to help combat moments of burnout. This will provide space to enjoy fresh air and learn at the same time.

Intermediate School

Kenya Johnson, Lisa Langston and Ashleigh Harrison

Our Changing Earth: students will focus on landform formations and changes to the Earth’s surface. They will explore, inquire and discover specific scientific and engineering practices related to Earth Science.

Jennifer Whitehead

Mastering Concrete and Pictorial Understanding in Mathematics: this will increase the mathematical growth of Tier 3 students to master basic stages and concepts through modeling and pictorial representations.

Nick Kunzman, Marissa Ledkins and Elijah Coppock

Pedometers with a Purpose: the most underutilized form of reducing depression and anxiety is through physical activity. Students will create and monitor fitness goals, creating positive social intersections through encouraging and motivating one another.

Early Childhood School

Jennifer Tyler

Light Up PreK: this grant will add a light table and light table manipulatives to the classroom. This will incorporate play-based activity to practice letters and numbers providing a fresh way to enhance learning through play.

Lindsey Durant

Ninja Warrior Course: expanding the Ninja Warrior Course that was first awarded via BEF grant in 2019. Adding rope climbing, crawling through a tunnel and different balancing challenges.

Primary School

Emily Smith and Jennifer Acker

Math and Movement: movement during learning leads to knowledge retention. Students will see an automaticity of basic math facts and skills.

Merritt Stewart

Rugs Alive and Seats to Thrive: Rugs Alive is an interactive classroom rug that comes to life with the mobile Rugs Alive app. Each of the 26 animals come alive when matched allowing students to walk around the animals and explore them from all sides.

Terri Brown, Donna Burnley, Melissa Crowell, Beth Gardner, Merritt Stewart and Lindsay Wheeler

Playaway Wonderbooks: hearing and seeing words at the same time can improve reading success rates. Playaway Wonderbooks are a fun and innovative way for students to read and listen to quality books at or above their independent reading level.

Melissa Crowell, Kathryn Ford, Chelsea Perrin, Alicia Rhodes and Melody Self

The Osmo Genius Starter Kit Learning Stations: the grant will purchase kits that will provide targeted practice in literacy and math facts. It will also bridge the gap for struggling learners with fun games and immediate feedback as well as challenge stronger students so that everyone is growing and learning while having fun.

Elementary School

Heather Seib, C’aaron Stephens, Christy Taylor, Melissa Roberts and Megan Henley

Camp Tyler 4th Grade Experience: a day out at Camp Tyler to build relationships and trust in each other. Students will gain GROWTH (Grit, Relationships, Ownerships, Whole-child, Total, Having Fun) in multiple areas.

Heather Seib, Melissa Roberts, C’aaron Stephens, Christy Taylor and Megan Henley

STEAM Centers: student-led STEAM centers that will provide hands-on learning to maximize learning and retention of skills.

Amie Dean and Andi Quesenberry

Helping Students Find Their Words: this grant will allow the speech team to purchase new speech and language test kits 7 protocols above and beyond what they are already using.

Emily Smith and Lisa Seaton

Mice, Mice Baby: this grant will allow all students to have a mouse for their Chromebook enabling them to highlight text and use the drag and drop features easier as now required on the new STAAR assessments.