My students need opportunities to connect literature to the every day world. The guest speakers in the library's annual literary assembly humanizes the people behind the words on the page, bringing literature to life.
FULLY FUNDED! Ms. Cheby's classroom raised $394
This project is fully funded
Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month
This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
Our school is an urban school in Los Angeles serving 1400 students through our comprehensive program and our VAPA and STEM-Multimedia Magnets. A Title I school, almost 75% of our students qualify for free or reduced lunches. Our students come from diverse backgrounds and have diverse talents and learning styles. About 70% of our students are classified as Long Term English Language Learners, thus many struggle to keep up with today's complex literacy demands. Additionally, we serve about 100 students with Individualized Educational Plans (IEPs) and about 100 students classified as Gifted And Talented (GATE).
In a world where students are increasingly bombarded with multimedia, they sometimes forget that there are creators behind all these messages.
By bringing in writers in different genres, the library is able to help students make connections between the texts they encounter and the intentions behind them. As the writers share their own experiences and processes with writing and publishing, students are also challenged to see themselves as creators of media, not just consumers. We are lucky to live in a literary-rich city with prominent writers who are willing to come to speak to our students and to share their work.
My Project
Funding this project will provide support for professional writers to come speak to our students about writing, literature, and culture. They will share their own relationship to literature and writing, information about the writing process and publishing, and make connections for students between writing as a tool for cultural dialogue.
This year's literary assembly -- with the theme of 3 writers, 3 genres, 3 ways to change the world -- will take place in the school auditorium in the Spring, allowing up to 800 students to benefit from this program.
Each author will speak and read from their writing. After, there will be time for a Q&A from the audience. At the end of the period, which is just before lunch, students will have the opportunity to purchase books and have the authors sign them as well as to meet and chat with the authors one on one or in small groups. Every year some teachers have students write thank you notes that reveal how meeting writers in person humanizes literature, which often is some abstract artifact for many students who have not met creators behind the pages.
Finally, this assembly provides a rare chance for our school community to gather to celebrate the written word through reading and writing.
More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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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. Cheby and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
