As a high school English teacher, I never expected students to wail, “We have to read?!” Yet I have heard this cry more than once in my five years of teaching, and each time I feel a little more dismayed that reading has become a dull and mandatory activity rather than an exciting and voluntary one.
My students are from a growing district in Indiana.
They know how to go through the motions and receive good grades, but in many cases they lack internal motivation and a love of learning. I see great potential in these students, and am eager to foster a craving for literature and lifelong learning within them.
My Project
This year I will be teaching senior composition classes. Although I have purchased books for my classroom library in the past, I have catered them toward the ninth graders I taught in the last few years. With a new school year on the horizon, I have new clientele, and need books that will not only engage this older demographic, but will be catered to their interests and needs. For this reason, I am requesting 25 modern adult/young adult bestsellers.
In the high school composition classes I teach, I stress independent reading in addition to the reading already in our curriculum.
I do this because studies consistently show that reading improves writing. I do this because I want to remind students that reading does not have to be drudgery, that it can transport us to places we never imagined existed. I do this because I cannot imagine anything better than nestling into a corner with a brand new book and opening my mind to another world.
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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 Mrs. Finley and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.