As a teacher, I am always looking for ways to provide interesting, and exciting ways to fall in love with reading. In my classroom students spend a large portion of their day immersed with various narrative, and informational texts. The problem they encounter is finding text on their level.
If you were to take a sneak peek inside my ESL classroom, you would see 26 diverse, creative, enthusiastic learners pushing themselves to stretch and grow.
Not only do their appearances differ, but they come from varied backgrounds, and some even speak different languages at home. Students inside my classroom learn at different rates, read at different levels, and have unique interests. One thing they do have in common is the fact they are excited about learning. Everyday we look at our objectives, and work to find differentiated ways to reach those goals. We have worked hard to become our own little classroom community within our school of slightly over 750 students. Because of this unity, you will see students helping each other and learning from each other. They celebrate successes earned by others as well as themselves. Not everyday is perfect. In fact, most days aren't, but we keep working and supporting each other and doing our best to gain knowledge and get a little smarter!
My Project
Students become better readers by reading to self,reading with a buddy, and listening to reading. Not all students enjoy reading. Part of this may be the student has not found that “just right” book that interests him/her. Another part may be the student hasn’t found that “just right” book on his/her level. Day after day I see students choosing books that interest them, but the level is not a good fit. It’s discouraging for them when they open up the book and find it just beyond their abilities. They so want the independence to read that book, but are unable. If students in my classroom had an option to supplement our classroom library choices with "good fit" books downloaded on 2 Nook readers, they could have independence while reading something that interests them, as well as fostering responsibility for their own learning and growth. Nooks, would enable all students to read by themselves, as well as build fluency by reading with a buddy. Covers would be used to protect readers.
Students within my classroom love books, and love to read.
They also love technology. Nooks are a great way to combine all three of these interests. How amazing it would be for students to be able to access a "good fit" text that sparks interest and enables them to do this in a classroom environment that promotes the use of technology. When students experience small successes in reading, this will not only help a student feel self-reliant, but will empower them to become a life long learner.
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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 Mrs. Denning and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
