House vs. Home: Young Adult Novels Featuring Homelessness
My students need books about fellow young adults experiencing homelessness. These novels will help to validate the experiences and various living situations of my students. They will also aid in developing empathy and tolerance.
I teach 125 of the most amazing 8th graders in the entire world. For many of those kids, school feels like much more of a blessing than home.
At school, they feel warm, they feel safe, they feel loved.
My students come from a wide variety of backgrounds. I have students from a range of races, religions, sexual orientations, abilities, socioeconomic statuses, and experiences. Many of my students view middle school as a stepping stone that will help them get to the next level academically. Other kids, however, view middle school as their safe haven for the day. This project is for those students.
My Project
The kids in my classroom span a large range of living situations and experiences. Some students alternate between a main house and a beach house, while others aren't sure that they will have a bed that night.
My students who are currently battling homelessness and poverty need to have access to stories that will validate their experiences.
My students love to read, but they TRULY love building connections between themselves and the characters in their stories. My classroom library is beginning to fill up with books about athletes and superheroes and celebrities...but there are very few titles depicting the harsh realities that several of my students face on a day-to-day basis. My hope, in creating this project, is that all of my students will feel supported and validated, and that each student in my room grows in empathy through reading, sharing, and discussing these very real-world issues.
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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. V. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.