My students are creative, hard-working students that crave knowledge and opportunities to be innovative. Our school is considered a "Title I" school. This means we have a large number of students that come from low-income families. Some come from hard-working and loving families while some come from foster homes and other high-risk situations. They are not always provided the same opportunities and encouragement from their community as students from other more affluent areas and neighborhoods. However, they are equally driven, creative, and loving.
My Project
This past year I watched students fall in love with reading again when they were offered engaging stories that interested them. We read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone the last three weeks of school, and many students left school searching for more books to read. It struck me that many of them are not introduced to the wonderful stories and characters that were readily available to me as a child. My dad read me many wonderful stories and brought me home books he knew I would enjoy. My students do not always have the same opportunities and encouragement to read, so I feel it is my duty as their teacher to be the person in their life who encourages them to fall in love with reading.
This year, I want to use novel study as a way of teaching students valuable lessons about social justice and humanity.
On my list of items are some of the books we will be using this year both in a whole class read setting as well as literature circles based on interests and reading levels.
Nearly 85% of the juveniles who face trial in the juvenile court system are functionally illiterate, proving that there is a close relationship between illiteracy and crime. In fact, more than 60% of all inmates are functionally illiterate. I believe that helping students become readers can tackle many of our societal issues. These particular book choices and the lessons that will accompany them aim at creating critically thinking students who are passionate about discussing and solving social justice issues. Access to these quality books is imperative for students to become life-long readers and learners.
Nearly all 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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