Help me give my students a supporting text for our Black Lives Matter unit. Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes is at a level that all my students can access and engage with.
LMS is a Title 1 school located in SE Portland. We serve a diverse population of students who have to overcome many obstacles. 73% off students receive free or reduced price lunch. The diversity score of Lane Middle School is 0.75, which is more than the diversity score at state average of 0.37. Not only do they come with a diverse background, as any kid, they come with a diverse interest and ability level. If are students are so diverse, shouldn't the books available to them be diverse as well?
Year after year, students from all different backgrounds say our Black Lives Matter unit was their favorite.
When I inquire on the "why," they often say they loved it because it was a reflection of their reality, it was relevant, they never thought about it, they learned about issues in our community or it got them to question things they normally accept. They are curious students who want their education to reflect the world they live in. I love seeing the engagement, ownership of their learning, inquiry, community building, discussion and learning that happens because of this unit.
My Project
Black Lives Matter at Schools Week of Action consists of educators teaching lessons about systemic and structural racism, intersectional Black identities and Black history. I supplement the unit with articles, poems, lyrics and short stories for students to analyze but what it missing is a mentor book. This will allow us to ground our studies, learn shifting perspectives/character development.
A barrier I have come up against is there are no class sets of books in the District that address the needs not just this subject requires but students as well.
We need to read literature by black authors, at the students' level, if we want to do this work right
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