My students need 5 more sets of great young adult literature. They have read at least four books already, and my choices or offerings are starting to get limited. Help!
This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.
My Students
I believe in a differentiated classroom where students progress with materials that are at their level of challenge. These books include: Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, The Lover's Dictionary, Where Things Come Back, and Clean.
Most of my students are reluctant readers.
However, by giving them books like these with themes that interest, challenge, and engage them, I have been able to convert them into daily readers. Currently, my students average a chapter a night, seven days a week. In order to keep up this habit, I need your help.
My students are racially diverse from a low socioeconomic background. Most of my students require free or reduced breakfast and lunch, and come from homes where reading has not been a priority.
The students started the year as non-readers or reluctant readers, so their reading level was very low. Typically most of my incoming eighth graders had a Lexile level of 700L. Their textbook has a Lexile of 1200L.
They read challenging books targeted to their reading ability. By working in this way for half a year, we have steadily increased the Lexile scores of my students and turned them into daily readers who are accountable for their reading.
My Project
Each of my students are given a Lexile number of his or her current reading level, and chooses a book from three or four that are around that Lexile level. For example, if my Lexile is 1000L then I may choose to read The Hobbit, Nothing, or The Monstrumologist. As the student, I look at all three books and pick the one I am most interested in.
Once a student has his next book, he has to read a chapter a night, Monday through Sunday. Everyday in class, he has a discussion with other students that are reading the same book or completes a multiple choice test on the chapter read. The aim is for students to improve their discussion skills using literary texts and terminology and testtaking skills while demonstrating comprehension of text, all the while building the habit of reading.
This is my third project through DonorsChoose, and I keep asking because it is working.
My students love the books. They clearly are reading them and discussing them. As their teacher, I've seen that the students are more deeply engaged in the content and better utilizing their academic vocabulary to explore the themes and character motivations that compel the students to read. Please consider supporting, and enlisting your network of friends to this great cause.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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 Mr. de Beer and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
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