The students are focused on their drawing not only because they get to help design a real Nike sneaker, but because the finished product will raise money for Haiti, a country many of their parents or relatives call home.
The collaboration between Nike and the Boynton Beach school, where about half the students are of Haitian descent, was born out of a text message from a Nike shoe designer to his sister, who teaches at the school.
Immediately after the earthquake last Tuesday, Eugene Rogers was trying to think of a way to raise money to help rebuild the country.
He thought of the school where his sister, Kim Rogers, works as a science coach. It might be cool to get some of her kids to contribute to a shoe design that Nike could sell to raise money for Haiti.
But when the designer mentioned the idea to his boss, the idea grew.
"I have never had a project that elevated so quickly," Rogers said. "I'd share my idea with (a) manager and they would literally grab me and take me to the next person in the chain of command."
Soon, it wasn't a few kids who would contribute, but the whole school. And they'd do it under the guidance of a team of four Nike designers who flew in from Oregon to work with them.
For inspiration, the designers brought samples of leather in every imaginable color and even a couple of finished shoes worn by NBA stars, including LeBron James' size 16s and Kevin Durant's size 20s.
Each student got a paper outline of a shoe and a T-shirt. They were allowed to draw their own vision down to the plastic ends on the shoelaces, which can sport colors or even have words printed on them.
Principal Sharon Brannon said the project was a welcome outlet, especially for students who have not been able to make contact with family in Haiti.
"The hardest thing is the not knowing," she said. "This project is giving them a sense of being able to do something, which is so important. They all want to be able to do something."
Students were told about the project on Friday. Some spent the weekend drawing shoes. Nike designers will likely use a composite of the students' designs to create a shoe that will be sold to raise money.
It was not clear today whether the "Help Haiti Project" shoe will be produced in any numbers or if a few will be made to be auctioned. Ideally, an NBA athlete will wear the shoe to draw attention to the cause.
Fifth-grader Marcdalina Fervil, 11, thought of her aunts and uncles in Port-au-Prince as she designed her shoe. Her mother has not been able to reach them and Marcdalina is worried.
"My mom tells me not to cry and to hold my head up," she said.
Marcdalina calls her shoe Sponge Bob Slams Dunks. It incorporates the Haitian colors and the Nickelodeon character.
"I put my heart into it," she said.
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