"I need a book!" is the cry I hear every day (sometimes a shout, other times a shy whisper). What kind? "A good book." To meet the interests of our diverse students, we need diverse books in our library and throughout our school.
My students come from all backgrounds and have a variety of identities.
We need diverse books that reflect the diversity of our lives. In particular, our African American young men need books that show the world they live in and map the possibilities of their future. This year our school district created an action plan for closing opportunity gaps and accelerating achievement for African American males. Providing books by African American writers and books that feature African American characters supports our district goal of culturally relevant and rigorous instruction.
My Project
Books by authors like Varian Johnson, Wes Moore, and Newbery Award winner Kwame Alexander will go into the school library and the shelves of language arts classrooms. This year we are emphasizing independent reading in a variety of genres, both fiction and nonfiction. These books will broaden the choices available to our students and improve the likelihood of every student having high-interest books to read. Through reading our students will improve their fluency and comprehension, increasing their academic success in all subjects.
"When children never see their culture represented .
. . in materials on the library shelves, they receive a resounding message that the librarian does not think their culture is important enough to feature in the library." (Jamie Campbell Naidoo) Providing these books, primarily by African American authors, shows our community that we value the lives and culture of African Americans.
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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. Amster-Burton and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.