Help me ignite the fire for reading in my students!
This year I have a class of students who seem to be uninterested in reading. They would much rather play video games and watch TV. I want to change this, and with your help, we can ignite the fire for reading in my students!
I teach in an inner-city school where 80% of the population qualifies for free and reduced lunch. Our school is even more challenged this year, as we face deep, heavy budget cuts and there is no money to buy ANYTHING! But my students are so wonderful...they learn and thrive despite the challenges they face on a daily basis; all the challenges you would expect in an urban setting. They come to school everyday ready to learn and I need your help to ignite this fire for reading!!
So far this year I have begun reading out loud everyday. We started with a wonderful book called "The City of Ember," and the students are hooked...it is a wonderful story and they beg me to read more each day. The author has written 3 more novels to this series, so the next thing I want to do is read "The People of Sparks," the second book in the series, together as a class. This is why I need 32 copies. By this time, it will be December and I can introduce "literature circles" to them.
In the educational world, we call it "Literature Circles," but you might just want to think of this as a Oprah's Book club, elementary school style!!. It works something like this: the teacher presents 5 or 6 novels to the class and the students choose what book they want to read in groups of 4 of 5. In each group, students are assigned roles, such as the "summarizer" or the "vocabulary finder". The groups meet once a week to read and discuss the book, as well as complete a series of assignments related to the selection. This is why I need several sets of 5 books.
I want to follow up in the spring with another class novel called "The Land I Lost" which is a wonderful collection of stories from a man who grew up in Vietnam before the war. Many of my students are from South East Asia and will connect to this novel. By the end of the year, I hope my students' view of reading will change forever; from a small spark to a raging, burning bonfire!! And with your help, we can ignite that fire right now!!
Nearly all students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
Shimmershine Queens Camille Yarbrough
• Barnes and Noble
$5.39
5
$26.95
The Road to Memphis Mildred D. Taylor
• Barnes and Noble
$6.29
5
$31.45
The Skirt Gary Soto, Soto Gary, Eric Velasquez (Illustrator)
• Barnes and Noble
$5.39
5
$26.95
Jesse Gary Soto
• Barnes and Noble
$6.25
5
$31.25
Who Put That Hair in My Toothbrush? Jerry Spinelli
• Barnes and Noble
$6.29
5
$31.45
Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane Kate DiCamillo, Bagram Ibatoulline (Illustrator)
• Barnes and Noble
$8.99
5
$44.95
Road to Paris Nikki Grimes
• Barnes and Noble
$6.29
5
$31.45
People of Sparks (Books of Ember Series #2) Jeanne DuPrau
• Barnes and Noble
$5.39
32
$172.48
Prophet of Yonwood (Books of Ember Series #3) Jeanne DuPrau
• Barnes and Noble
$5.85
5
$29.25
Shadow of a Bull Maia Wojciechowska
• Barnes and Noble
$2.69
5
$13.45
The Land I Lost: Adventures of a Boy in Vietnam Quang Nhuong Huynh, Vo-Dinh Mai, Vo-dinh Mai (Illustrator), Dinh Mai Vo (Illustrator)
• Barnes and Noble
$5.39
32
$172.48
Water Buffalo Days: Growing Up in Vietnam Quang Nhuong Huynh, Jean Tseng (Illustrator), Mou-Sien Tseng (Illustrator)
• Barnes and Noble
$5.39
5
$26.95
Materials cost
$670.51
Vendor shipping charges
$67.05
Sales tax
$48.61
3rd party payment processing fee
$16.76
Fulfillment labor & materials
$17.00
Total project cost
$820.00
Suggested donation to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
$180.00
Total project goal
$1,000.00
How we calculate what's needed
Total project goal
$1,000.00
17 Donors
-$964.71
Donations toward project cost
-$820.00
Donations to help DonorsChoose reach more classrooms
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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. Stoermer and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.