This project is part of the Black History Month celebration because it supports a Black teacher or a school where the majority of the students are Black.
My Students
Reading is far from fun and enjoyable to a struggling middle school student if decoding and fluency are barriers to comprehension. My job as a teacher is to eliminate as many barriers to comprehension as possible. Allow my students the opportunity to use more than one of their senses to comprehend!
My students are seventh graders who attend our Middle School in Connecticut.
Ours is an urban population nestled in a small suburban town. They are like many pre-teens and teenagers who are going through many changes all at once and who are concerned with fitting in. Beyond the obvious, they are students who are being pushed to their highest potential by their teachers. Some students may not feel as successful and I sometimes service students who may feel that they've failed in regards to reading and literacy. The challenge is encouraging them to be comfortable with taking risks and letting go of their self-fulfilling prophecy.
My Project
By incorporating a literacy center in my classroom, students will be able to focus on comprehension because listening instead of reading aloud will eliminate the decoding barrier (decoding would be addressed in a different setting). Students would be able to get hooked on a book and possibly be motivated to read it after school for pleasure. A listening center will be a great way for my students to practice their active listening skills, which always seem to be a challenge for hyperactive teenagers.
In addition to the literacy center, I requested a microphone, so that students could practice their decoding and fluency skills by privately recording themselves read and listening to what they've recorded. Each time they record themselvef, they should notice an improvement in their fluency, which can be a huge motivator. Classrooms should reflect the multimedia of the 21st century. Help my classroom do just that!
I strongly believe that having a listening center will have a major impact on my struggling readers' comprehension skills.
I am confident that barriers will be knocked down and my students will slowly develop into eager and able readers! Help me jump over my first hurdle! Thank you for your consideration.
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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 Ms. Richardson and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.