Title I funds can pay for almost anything that strengthens instruction for students who need extra academic support, from additional staff and tutoring to instructional materials, technology, professional development, and family engagement. The key is that every purchase has to add to what the school already provides and connect to a documented student need. According to the U.S. Department of Education website, the Title I Grant program is meant to provide funding to disadvantaged Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) to improve their academic achievement. The most common of these, Title I - Part A, "...provides financial assistance to LEAs and schools with high numbers or high percentages of children from low-income families to help ensure that all children meet challenging state academic standards." Key takeaways Title I, Part A funds extra instruction, staff, materials, technology, and family engagement for students in schools with high numbers or percentages of children from low-income families. What the money can pay for depends on the program type: schoolwide programs can upgrade the whole school, while targeted assistance programs serve students identified as needing extra help. Classroom tools such as poster printers and die-cut machines can qualify when they're tied to a documented academic need and add to core instruction rather than replace it. What is Title I funding, and what can it be used for? Title I funding is federal money that the U.S. Department of Education provides, through states, to school districts and schools with high numbers or percentages of children from low-income families. The Department's Title I, Part A program page describes it as support for extra instruction in reading and mathematics, as well as special preschool, after-school, and summer programs. As these funds are meant to improve instruction and provide additional academic support and learning opportunities, they are often allocated towards reading or mathematics curriculum, supplemental programs to reinforce and extend the regular school curriculum, or additional staff members to lead and teach the students. The Department's guidance on schoolwide programs gives examples in each of these areas: Instructional staff: Schools can fund additional staff, including instructional coaches who provide school-based professional development. Supplemental instruction and tutoring: Funds can pay for after-school tutoring and increased learning time for students who need more support. Instructional materials and technology: Schools can improve the quality of instructional materials and buy devices and software students use to access digital learning materials. Professional development: Training helps teachers and staff strengthen instruction for the students Title I serves. Parent and family engagement: Activities that increase family and community engagement help families support learning at home. Schoolwide vs. targeted assistance programs How a school can spend its Title I funds depends on which of two program models it runs. Your school improvement plan or your district's Title I coordinator can tell you which one applies. Schoolwide program: Under ESSA, a school where at least 40 percent of children are from low-income families can run a schoolwide program, and a school below that line can operate one with a waiver from its state. Schoolwide programs are designed to upgrade the entire educational program, so purchases can serve every student in the building. Targeted assistance program: Schools that don't run a schoolwide program use Title I funds for children who are failing, or most at risk of failing, to meet challenging academic standards. Purchases need to serve those identified students. Title I allowable expenses and what's not allowed The rule that shapes nearly every Title I purchase is "supplement, not supplant." Federal law says Title I funds can only add to the money a school would otherwise receive from state and local sources, not replace it. In practice, that means Title I can't cover costs that state and local funds would pay for anyway. Federal cost rules also require every expense to be necessary and reasonable, and they don't allow entertainment or social activities unless those costs have a specific program purpose. Typically allowable Typically not allowable Extra reading and math instruction, tutoring, and increased learning time Core instruction that state and local funds would otherwise pay for Instructional materials and technology tied to a documented student need Purchases that aren't necessary or reasonable for the Title I program Professional development for staff who serve Title I students Entertainment or social activities without a specific program purpose Parent and family engagement activities Services for students with disabilities and English learners that must be paid for with non-federal funds Rules vary by state and district, so confirm allowability with your district Title I coordinator before you place an order.

It's the end of the calendar year, and most teachers are looking forward to their winter break - that week or two during the holidays where it's time to recharge their batteries and relax, then come back refreshed and ready to charge towards preparing students for the next level.

Most of us have experience with "hot" lamination. You plug these machines in, wait for them to warm up, smell the hot plastic (which is a good indicator it's "ready"), then run your papers through to preserve projects, posters, reusable handouts, etc. And while this does typically work for the finished product you need, there is a better way - and we'll tell you why. Cold Lamination. Requiring no electricity, powered by a hand-crank and lasting longer than their hot counterparts, here's why you should consider a cold laminator - the lesser-known, more efficient alternative...

Register Now for Glow and Grow ! A Professional Development Web Series Delivered to Your Inbox featuring Dr. Melissa Hughes, Expert on Whole Brain Teaching & Learning and Carman Le, MAT, Education Development Specialist at VariQuest Live Now! Student Engagement. Inclusivity. Critical Thinking. Parental Involvement. Student Achievement. Recognition. These are the basic needs of schools nationwide. In this 6-part professional development web series developed by VariQuest, you'll receive one ~10 minute video each week in your inbox, which will start with Dr. Melissa Hughes, expert on Whole Brain Teaching & Learning, addressing one of these 6 needs and how brain function processes affect what we as educators are trying to do in our schools, then hear from Carman Le, Education Development Specialist at VariQuest, on how you can implement this neurological research in your classroom and school building through hands-on activities, teaching methods, or staff training. Here's what you can expect each week...

We at VariQuest® are passionate about engaging every learner in reaching their potential, and thus we're dedicated in our efforts to make every VariQuest product easy-to-use, efficient, and full of features and benefits important to you, our nation's educators. And that's why our VariQuest Perfecta® STP Series Printers come fully equipped with a built-in scanner to support and improve your classroom-centric and school-wide communication. We believe that scan-to-print functionality makes your life easier - allowing the ability to enlarge small images up to 36" banner size, or minimizing a 24" poster down to student handouts. We're not all graphic designers, able to recreate and resize images on the fly - but we want to help you act like one! So now you may be thinking, that SOUNDS like a great feature, but what types of things would I actually DO with it? We picked the brains of some former and current educators to come up with a "top 10" list of ideas to get you psyched about scan-to-print in your school...but the possibilities are endless!

We talk a lot about STEM, or practicing curriculum within its relation to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, so today let's amplify the E for Engineering, as it relates to projects across all subject matter where students design, build, and test a solution to a problem. The Engineering Design Cycle encourages students' critical thinking, and learning by failing or doing, which is increasingly how the working world is progressing towards innovation. Divide your students into groups, give them a problem to solve, and have them complete the 6 steps of the Engineering Design Cycle, illustrated in this great poster created in partnership with STEM Fuse, for your classroom or makerspace!

featuring Dr. Melissa Hughes, Expert on Whole Brain Teaching & Learning Tuesday, July 24th at 10:00am CT We often think of student success in terms of ability and skill acquisition, but recent research tells us that’s only part of it. A student’s mindset is a powerful driver for motivation to learn, resilience with challenges, and developing a love for learning. Join us as Dr. Melissa Hughes, expert on whole brain teaching and learning, leads a free professional development webinar on how mindsets develop and how they impact student achievement - to improve engagement and achievement in your classrooms! Presented by Dr. Melissa Hughes, we'll be exploring neuroscientific findings and offer tangible strategies for parents and teachers to effectively nurture a growth mindset. We hope you can attend this free professional development webinar event hosted by VariQuest!

Effectively reaching students whose exceptionalities run the gamut of intellectual, communicative, sensory, behavioral and physical is a continuous challenge faced by educators. As schools move toward the ideal of an Individual Education Plan for each and every student, experts agree that differentiated instruction, which integrates the regular use of visual aids and manipulatives, is making learning meaningful and engaging for more students than ever before. We at VariQuest know how important research-based instructional strategies and educational aids are for special education, and we want to give you every tool possible, so we've created a free eBook dedicated to successful strategies in working with students with exceptional needs - and we'd like to share it with you! Boosting Success for Exceptional Needs Students contains...

With an emphasis on CTE programs in schools on the rise, so too are student-based enterprises - where students can brainstorm ideas, design and develop products, market their offerings, monitor inventory, balance finances, and nurture patronage - covering many of the 16 Career Clusters and developing students' real world skills. Such is the case at Higgins Middle School in Peabody, Massachusetts, where the students are tasked with running a multi-service print shop fully equipped with VariQuest® Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Tools.

By now, you've probably heard about "makerspaces" and how they're being added in schools across the country - encouraging students of all ages to explore, create, build, tinker, and experiment through hands-on learning. (For a refresher, check out our blog, "What is a Makerspace?") STEM (Science, Engineering, Technology, and Math) learning is important to us here at VariQuest, because we know it's important to you. And a makerspace is a great solution for creating an environment conducive to this methodology - with the space being as high- or low-tech as your imagination (or funds) can reach! As your first step, how about a free ebook, helping you consider what's necessary to build one in your school? Well, we've got that, right here for you! "How to Build a Makerspace: A Guide for Educators Striving to Build Student Success Through Hands-On Learning" will discuss...