Take one step into my classroom and you will look into the eyes of 30 students representing nearly every race, religion, and socioeconomic background, all of which have an incredible amount of POTENTIAL! I am an 8th grade Language Arts teacher in a North Carolina public school. It is a high achieving school, especially despite the obstacles we face, such as a growing number of students in poverty and with limited English skills. I teach one honors class and two inclusion classes, in which half of the students in each have special needs ranging from mild learning disabilities to autism. All of the students, however, are given equal opportunities and learn side by side with one another.
I care for my students an incredible amount and know that every one of them has the potential to do wonderful things! However, many of the resources available to them are not suited to meet their needs. I am looking for literature that represents the diversity in my classroom. With access to books that the students can relate to, I feel it helps to prevent them from falling through the cracks into illiteracy and ignorance. Many of my students are already considered at risk as a result of being homeless, having learning disabilities, or coming from families that do not place a high emphasis on the importance of education.
I know I can continue to reach these children but I feel that I need literature that is of high interest to them. I am in need of 10 copies of "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," by Sherman Alexie. It received the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Excellence in Children’s Literature and the Barnes and Noble 2007 Best Book for Teens, among many others. Students are extremely interested in it as there are characters that they can relate to while also dealing with real life issues such as alcoholism, standing out, and breaking down racial and ethnic barriers. If they have access to these types of books, as I have seen from experience, they will become more excited about reading and choose to become lifelong learners.
Your help will ensure that my students get hooked on and understand the benefit of reading before it is too late. Struggling readers' eyes will light up with excitement as many of them learn to enjoy reading for the first time in their lives!
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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. Buescher and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.