My students need 23 copies of the book we will be studying in our personal narrative unit, Barack Obama's "Dreams from My Father."
FULLY FUNDED! Ms. Durkin's classroom raised $351
This project is fully funded
My Students
Help my students find their voices in writing! Give them the opportunity to learn from a strong role model they already respect.
My students are seniors in high school preparing to enter the world as young adults.
They are all African American and almost all of them come from low-income families. As most of them take 2 or 3 buses to school, it has been a struggle to get them to show up to first period on time. I find it takes a really engaging unit to draw them in. My seniors are also struggling readers. The class averages a 9th grade reading level. However, I've seen them interpret more difficult texts when the motivation to read was there. This book will both motivate and challenge them.
My Project
As I read their college application essays earlier this semester, I realized that they are still desperately struggling to find their voice. Thus, I decided to incorporate a unit on personal narrative in order to expose my students to the ways in which authors think and write about their own experiences.
My students need 23 copies of the book we will be studying in our personal narrative unit, Barack Obama's "Dreams from My Father." Given the strong example of Barack Obama, a figure my students look up to, students will be able to develop their own personal narratives. Recognizing and communicating where they are coming from is an important step towards the future.
Giving to this project is helping my students start to grapple with the important questions they will have to face as they plan their futures: "Who am I?
Who do I want to be? Where am I coming from? Where am I going?" Most importantly, this project has the potential to inspire my students who believe that because they are poor they will always be poor. Obama's message of hard work prevailing in the face of adversity may be just the push they need to go after what they want in life.
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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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. Durkin and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
