My students need to read memoirs that reflect their own experiences. One of the best is Justin Torres' autobiographical novel "We the Animals," which many of my students are eager to read in its entirety.
For the past 8 years, I have been fortunate to teach a diverse group of students from Red Hook and nearby neighborhoods in Brooklyn, N.Y. We are a Title I school, meaning the majority of our students are from low-income families.
At this progressive school, students achieve academically through writing intense personal narratives and completing comprehensive research and analytical papers in each of the core subjects.
The school also fosters their socio-emotional side through restorative practices instead of the more punitive discipline that students at some comparative schools may experience.
The result is a student body that is empathetic, impassioned, and enthusiastic about learning and social justice.
My Project
Each year the 12th graders in my class courageously embark on a personal narrative unit, sharing stories of the challenges and successes that have led them to senior year. Many students use these searing essays to help them gain acceptance to the schools of their choice, using the narrative to qualify for higher education programs (EOP and HEOP) that assist students with limited incomes who have faced obstacles that may have affected their GPAs.
I strive to introduce students to outstanding writing to inspire their own, and one of the best recent autobiographical novels we've found is "We the Animals" by Justin Torres.
Students see aspects of themselves reflected in this story of three brothers raised by a Puerto Rican father and Brooklyn-born mother in a working-class town in upstate New York. We've read isolated chapters in class, which has led to some fantastic pieces, and I've been hoping to teach the entire novel to give students a more authentic reading experience and to further inspire their own story-telling.
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