Can you imagine walking into a new country, not knowing the language, customs, or traditions and being expected to perform to grade level standards? That is what happens everyday in my first grade classroom.
My urban school has over 60% ESL students and yet they are expected to read in English the same as everyone else in the state who have lived here their whole lives.
25 different languages are represented in the school; Russian, Spanish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Burmese, and Somalian are in my classroom. In First Grade, the students have to make the most amount of progress in reading than in any other grade. While I am working on decoding and comprehension with my students who can read, the newcomers to the country are zoning out and not learning much by being immersed in the classroom. They really need a one-on-one teacher, but with our failing tax systems and plummeting budgets, that cannot happen.
My Project
My students need 2 portable DVD players so they can watch letter recognition DVDs. In the past I have asked my newcomers to play easy reading computer games. This gives them a break from having to process and try to figure out what is going one when they do not speak English. The downside to this is that all of these games give directions in English and many of the students, especially those who came from a refugee camp, have never used a computer before. My idea is to set them up for a half hour a day with LeapFrog's Letter Factory or Preschool Press' Meet the Letters. These are movies designed for ages 2-5 that teaches letter names and sounds to children who are learning to speak. By watching the movies on portable DVD players, other students can access the computers and the newcomers can check them out to watch at home as well.
Closing the achievement gap is so important.
By donating to my project you will be helping me teach my students who are brand new to this country and give them some confidence as they learn English.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Heinlein and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
