I teach at an innovative and award-winning, (KN-12th) dual-language, public charter school in Delaware with a diverse school student population (40% minorities and 50% low-income). All of our students study the Greek language and global studies. Our school is located on the outskirts of Wilmington. I truly love working at a diverse school with a focus on global citizenship!
I teach Food Studies, African American History, Advanced Placement Human Geography, and U.S.
History to 10-12th-grade students. I am also the KN-12th-grade garden coordinator, co-advisor of the garden & cooking cooking club, and one of the leaders of the Green Team on campus. Our school is a participant in the Eco-Schools program and we are currently pursuing five pathways: sustainable foods, waste and consumption, energy, schoolyard habitat, and healthy living. Our school is one of only a few schools in Delaware and in the country to receive the Eco-Schools USA Green Flag award for excellence in environmental action and learning. Our Green Team has worked incredibly hard to implement several major projects to educate our students about how to be environmental stewards of the planet. For example, we now have a school vegetable garden with 24 raised beds and chickens.
My Project
I teach a high school student population that is highly interested in studying African-American history and culture. Many of my students, including my students of color, have a limited knowledge of this history. I am incredibly passionate about this content and I want to make it a dynamic course by utilizing graphic novels that feature black historical figures. I am currently one of only a few teachers in my state teaching a formal course on African-American history and culture.
We do not have a high school library and all of my students have limited access to culturally responsive literature.
All students need to see inspiring, courageous characters that look like them in literature. The main characters in most picture books and young adult novels are not diverse. They're usually straight, white, and able-bodied. Students whose lives and cultures are not treated as important are less likely to invest in the overall learning process, whereas those who are empowered and feel valued will be ready to learn, even if that connection is made through something as simple as literature.
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