Mt Bethel Elementary School PTA Application

for Appropriations Grant 2022-2023

Please submit your request for use of the MBES PTA Appropriations Fund. Your appropriation request
will be reviewed by the PTA Executive Board. Requests will be evaluated based on adherence to the
PTA’s mission of “making every child’s potential a reality." Requests must be for instructional
purposes ONLY. Reimbursements will not be accepted.

Appropriations must correspond with PTA’s standards:

 Welcoming all families into the school community
 Communicating effectively
 Supporting student success
 Speaking up for every child
 Sharing power
 Collaborating with community

Suggestions that serve the student population as a whole will be given greater consideration than those
that serve a smaller population.

Submitted by: Katherine Ward Date:

Please check one: X Teacher Support Staff Administration __Grade Level Team

Email address: Katherine.ward1@cobbk12.org

Please describe the item or service and how it will benefit Mt Bethel students:
Mount Bethel has recently moved to a one-to-one device for students which has placed a major emphasis on
utilizing technology in the classroom. The county provides many different resources and different platforms
that teachers can use for instruction, independent activities, and differentiation. Majority of our programs are
geared towards reading and math, but not so much science and social studies. It seems that teachers are still
searching for a technology tool that is accessible for all four major content areas (math, language arts, social
studies, and science).

I did not feel comfortable writing this grant proposal without first asking colleagues what tools they would
like to have a subscription to or utilize in the future. After addressing different grade levels, the tool that
seemed to be mentioned quite frequently is IXL. IXL is an online learning platform that can be accessed on
the computer or on a mobile device. A membership to IXL provides users with access to the four major
content areas (math, language arts, social studies, and science). There are thousands of unique topics to
choose from, skills in multiple subject areas, and an adaptive learning algorithm that allows for personalized
learning. IXL is also aligned to Common Core Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.

Having the IXL membership would allow teachers to have additional platform that they can use in the
classroom. It is easy to differentiate, can be used across multiple content areas, and provides an adaptive
learning technology that varies the difficulty of the questions being presented to students based on their
performance on previous questions. In addition, having the curriculum on IXL align to standards is a huge
plus because then we can utilize IXL in small groups, independent time, and for remediation and enrichment
for our students.
The overall project goals include gaining access to IXL through an online subscription. The subscription
would cover grades 3-5, reason being that the science and social studies curriculum is geared towards
second through eighth grades, rather than math which serves pre-k to grade 8 plus algebra, geometry, pre-
calculus, and calculus, and language arts which serves grades pre-k to grade 12. After gaining a subscription
to IXL, I would like to roll it out to teachers immediately to be implemented in the classroom, then gather
teacher and student opinions on the program, looking at what they like and or dislike about IXL

Instructional Objectives:
 - Promote technology usage in the classroom
- Provide differentiated content for students
- Deliver material based on students’ needs
- Align to state standards

The data is easily trackable and can be used to determine whether students are mastering skills. The
diagnostics are done in real-time and allow for a personal growth plan to be developed based on students
understanding of the concept. The reports can be run individually or whole class by item analysis and
trouble spots.

The IXL platform is also geared towards special education students and teachers. For students, the content
can be differentiated for all ability levels. There are over 8.500 adaptive skills across the four content areas.
In addition, there is an audio feature that students can use for read aloud in all four content areas. For special
education teachers or those in the team-teaching classrooms, there are real-time assessments that give
teachers immediate insight into student understanding, and the IXL analytics can be used as progress
monitoring to help with IEPs and to support extended learning. For teachers and students, IXL consists of
grade-level content and allows for students to work at their own pace and adjusts accordingly.

This grant proposal is being written to advocate for teachers and students. The IXL subscription grants
access to a digital resource that can be used to determine understanding of state standards, while also
allowing for differentiation, assessments in real time, progress monitoring and documentation, and
demonstration of success as they progress towards mastery. IXL would allow for teachers to have a resource
that is user friendly for themselves and students, addresses all four major content areas, and provides an
immersive learning experience that is also adaptive.

The 3rd-5th grade teachers of Mount Bethel would love to be granted access to IXL for the 2023-2024 school
year. The program benefits both teachers and students and allows for standards-based learning whilst
incorporating technology.

How many students will this affect: 600 students Cost:

$14,000
- Equipment: 1-1 laptops provided by the county/school
- Materials/supplies: headphones with microphones
Admin Signature:

All MBES PTA Appropriations requests must be completed and returned FIRST to our PTA. It will be
reviewed by a MBES administrator and, in some cases, the administrator will need approval from
CCSD. Then PTA can review your request. Please be aware that these processes may take several
weeks. Please return this completed form with attached documentation to the PTA mailbox in the
mailroom or email it to co-presidents@mtbethelpta.org.

Requests will be continuously reviewed throughout the year as long as funding remains available. We
encourage you to submit your request early on to ensure that funds are available, even if the event or
product need is not until later in the year.

Thank you for sharing your ideas. You will be notified in writing of the executive board’s decision.
Questions? Email: co-presidents@mtbethelpta.org