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Ms. Hendrix from Bangor, ME is requesting books through DonorsChoose, the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

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Fully Funded

Ms. Hendrix's classroom raised $379

Bringing the Middle East to Rural Maine

My world literature students need help learning about the world outside of Maine. A class set of Marjane Satrapi's personal narrative, "Persepolis", about growing up in Iran, will help them recognize the universality of the human experience.

Ms. Hendrix Bangor High School

Bangor, ME Grades 9-12

The Middle East is thought by many to be a problematic region. However, for the students that enter my classroom, the Middle East is often not thought about at all, least of all in any academic or informed way. If students do think about the region, their thoughts are more influenced by media stereotypes than by firsthand knowledge or serious study. In fact, in a recent class of twenty four seniors, only two could accurately identify Iraq on a map. Aside from the student whose father is in the military, those students had only a vague notion or understanding of the current crises in the region at large. This comes as no surprise as our curriculum gives students little opportunity to practice or develop a sense of global literacy. Our school and district has not shied away from offering courses in Italian, Latin American, or Asian Studies. We have integrated content relating to China, Japan, and several African nations into the curriculum. However, there has been little effort to systematically educate our students about the people and cultures of the Middle East region. This lack of concerted study is detrimental to our students given the popularity of our JROTC program and the number of students who come from financially disadvantaged backgrounds and see the military as the only way to find their college education. These students are often shipped out after graduation to a region about which they have an incomplete understanding, primarily informed by their own biases. This has to change, and soon. There needs to be a concerted effort to provide resources that can inform our students about the people, culture, history, literature, and religions of the Middle East region. This information needs to be deliberately integrated into our curriculum, where students can have opportunities to study, think, reflect, participate, and ultimately act. The English curriculum at my school encourages just that. As I attempt to capture the immense diversity of our world, it is painfully clear that this diversity can only be examined through literature, as my community in Maine is a predominantly white community, and our students have little opportunity to look diversity in the face. I need literature that will give my students a clear picture of Middle Eastern cultures and people in a way that does not serve to reinforce already entrenched stereotypes. In their final year of literature study my senior students consider World Literature. As seniors, my students explore global issues, cultures, philosophies, and societies, looking for connections to their own life or experience. There is a focus on the universality of the human experience. It is my hope that a classroom set of Persepolis will allow my students to study the literature of the Middle East. I owe it to my students to provide an opportunity to engage in texts from a region that will surely continue to influence the history, economy, and philosophy of the world. Ultimately, my goal is to develop a unit that will be made available to all World Literature teachers and students at my School. If my request for these texts is approved I will develop an educational unit, present it to my department for approval, and offer teacher workshops and resources to help in its implementation. When my students apply for college many of them will be leaving Maine for the first time. They will experience a wider and much more diverse world; they will become global citizens. As such, I am hopeful that this text will help broaden my students' understandings, introduce them to new possibilities, new understandings, new resources, new ideas, and ultimately help them make the transition to the world outside our small community. My students need all the help they can get in order to see that the world does not look like Maine; it is much more varied and rich. This literature can help students see that richness and learn to be more culturally understanding individuals. That is a skill that can certainly help them prepare for college and the world beyond.

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

More than half of students from low‑income households

25 students impacted 8 donors

Project tagged as

Bangor, ME
Grades 9-12
Literature & Writing
Literature & Writing
Social Sciences
Traditional School
Books
More than half of students from low‑income households

Ms. Hendrix Bangor High School Grades 9-12

This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

Bangor, ME View local requests

More than half 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

25 students impacted 8donors

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Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes

Materials Cost Quantity Total

Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood Marjane Satrapi • Barnes and Noble $10.36 25 $259.00

Materials cost			$259.00
Vendor shipping charges			$25.90
Sales tax			$12.95
3rd party payment processing fee			$3.89
Fulfillment labor & materials			$9.00
Total project cost			$310.73
Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms			$68.21
Total project goal			$378.94
How we calculate what's needed
Total project goal			$378.94
5 Donors			-$189.47
Donations toward project cost			-$155.37
Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms			-$34.10
match offer			-$189.46
Match offer toward project cost			-$155.36
Match offer to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms			-$34.10
Excluded support for DonorsChoose			-$0.01
Still needed View calculation Hide calculation			$0.00

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Project Activity

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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. Hendrix and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.

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This teacher needs your help!

Bringing the Middle East to Rural Maine

Project tagged as

Boost your odds

Top rated for efficiency and transparency.

TEACHERS, FEELING INSPIRED?

Where Your Donation Goes

Where your donation goes

How we calculate what's needed

Project Activity

Project Activity

DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.

Help teachers & students in your hometown this season!
Use code HOME at checkout and your donation will be matched up to $100.