The cost of 67 books in 8 different titles, including Berenstain Bears' New Neighbors, I Am Rosa Parks, and Freedom Summer, purchased from Barnes & Nobles and AKJ Educational Services as well as school supplies purchased from Office Depot is $545, including shipping and <a target="new" href="http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm" onclick="g_openWindow('http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm', 300, 800, 'fulfillwindow');return false;">fulfillment</a>.
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.
This semester, I had the unique opportunity to participate in a professional book club as part of a graduate level class. We read powerful pieces by various authors that challenged our perceptions and forced us to reflect on the world we live in. The final project for the class was to write a book club unit to use in our own classrooms. I discovered through hours of research online and at local libraries that there is a plethora of literature for children dealing with racism and prejudice. From picture books to chapter books to poetry, I found amazing, thought-provoking works suitable for young readers.
The focus book of the racism unit I wrote is "The Friendship" by Mildred D. Taylor. It is the incredible story of a black man's "friendship" with a white store owner in the south in the 1940's. Other books in the unit help to introduce some of the more difficult themes in the story. I chose easy picture books and poetry to accomplish this. One of the picture books uses white and black birds to talk about racism while The Berenstain Bears use bears and pandas to represent differences. I am grateful and delighted that authors address topics that are difficult for children in a variety of ways.
In order for me to do this book club in my classroom, I need classroom sets of the books within the unit. The students learn about racism through reading, writing, and talk. Journals are an integral part of the book club as well. I would really love to put this unit into action in my classroom. With your donation, I can use these books to begin teaching children that racism and prejudice are hurtful for everyone and that change starts within each person. We can all make a difference, one step at a time.
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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. Terstriep and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.