My students need 40 HIGH interest books that capture their attention and relate to their lives, while meeting them at their CURRENT, often low, reading levels.
"I hate reading."
"I've never finished a whole book."
These kids just haven't found the right book! Would you want to practice piano if you had to play songs you didn't like and couldn't read music? Kids only get better if they are MOTIVATED by stories that they relate to and can READ them!
Many of my students have been told they struggle with reading their entire lives.
Some of them have even been told they are bad readers. They don't read for fun. They don't like books.
Their backgrounds are mixed. Our overall school has about 45% free and reduced. I see a lot of students who were not read to as little kids and who do not have books or a reading culture at home. In fact, for many, school is not "cool" when they go home.
These kids want to be good readers. They want to read what their classmates are reading, but when they try, and fail, they are further discouraged.
My kids need books that are high interest, low level. They need books that look like middle school books, feel like middle school books, and connect with them like middle school books should. Unfortunately, most grade-level books that meet their interests are just too hard for their current abilities, and the books at their levels look and feel like "little kid" books.
My Project
The books I am requesting will be the basis of my classroom library of high interest, low level books. They will be available for students to borrow, take home, read, and return.
Students will also read these in class when they practice their individual reading goals on books they have chosen. This can ONLY work if they are actually interested in reading the book AND it is written at a level they can understand!
These books will provide my students the chance to fall in love with reading. So many times the biggest hurdle in teaching reading is the simple fact that these kids have never had intriguing, age-appropriate books.
Help me find THE book that will make these kids readers! I need variety because not every book works for every kid. In fact, one of the first rules I share with my students is that they don't have to finish a book! NOT all books are good! Donating will allow me to provide choice to find that perfect fit book.
The donations to this project will put books in kids' hands.
Plain and simple. As adults, many of us take for granted the ability to read. Unfortunately there are many kids out there who find the process of moving from word to word an exhausting battle. They have no idea that there are GOOD books out there, life-changing stories.
These books ARE available, but too often they're not in our libraries because they're "low level." Help me prove to my students that it's not them, it's THE BOOK!
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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. Sutor and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.