My students need books that represent them. In the cart are several examples of novels with African American Male and Female leads, and Hispanic Male and Female leads.
Students at Van Siclen Community Middle School are expected to be dedicated, hardworking, energetic, responsible, and collaborative. In my class, they work hard to refine their writing, explore their creativity, and encourage each other, as well as respect themselves, their space, and others.
I work with about 65 students in eastern Brooklyn.
I teach sixth grade English/Language Arts and Humanities; however, ages range from 10 to 14. Many students speak two languages and even recall their trip to New York from their original country. I have students originally from the Dominican Republic, Bangladesh, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago, Haiti, and Jamaica, to name a few. The culture is vibrant, diverse, and exceedingly tolerant. In my years as a teacher, I have never worked with a group so dedicated to working hard. They put forth their best effort, always. As a school, we have high expectations for our students. They have dreams for themselves and already want the best for themselves and their families. Our school culture is safe and nurturing to bring out the best in our students, but we also maintain clear rules and procedures to help bring structure to their lives. This is our second year as a new school; the students are excited to continue to build it with us.
My Project
I currently have over 500 books in my classroom library. Unfortunately, only a small percentage reflect the students in my classroom. Less than 25 of those 500 books have main characters that reflect the culture, race, and background of the students I teach. I want to give my students strong literary role models who they can look up to and share experiences with. I want my students to enjoy reading because they feel that they can relate. I want to give them the message that their story is also worth telling. The books will be used during independent reading time during the class (approximately an hour total during the school week and at least an additional hour at home), where students are allowed to choose books to explore their own interests. Continuing to encourage students to read at their level and through their interests will help create lifelong readers.
This project will change students' lives by giving them positive literary role models, opening their minds to new experiences and cultures, and help them realize that their story, too, is worth telling.
Students can and will begin to break down racial barriers as we deconstruct the inherent whitewashing of literature. Students will see that their heroes and heroines can be like them, and stories can be about their interests and adventures as well.
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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. McNelly and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.