In my classroom, the theme is "YES WE CAN!".
I teach a 2nd and 3rd grade Special Ed. The school is in a high-need community and a large proportion of the Special Education children are classified as "Emotionally Disturbed".
1. There were maybe 5 books in my room with African-American characters. BIG problem for about a thousand reasons. "Jamaica" is a wonderful series to remedy this problem.
2. Kids LOVE Arthur! I only had 1 Arthur book. Problem.
3. The other books are classics that teach community, self-confidence, and anger management.
Kids need to see themselves in the books they read. It is so incredibly important that characters sometimes look like them. The "Jamaica" books are so wonderful and will fill that need.
With a class of only 12 students, I also want to put a big emphasis on community building--thus my theme of "YES WE CAN". All of these books have a moral to the story, and serve to further character education. Students need to be taught to share, control their emotions, and have empathy.
Finally, all of these books are classics that almost all students in wealthier areas will read. When my students get to college, I want them to be able to reminisce about "Arthur" books along with their friends, and not feel left out.
My goal is to get my students on the path to college, and you can help! You will give my students books in which they can see themselves. You will give my students childhood classic. You will give my students the tools to build community and love. You will give my 12 students the chance to close the achievement gap!
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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. Ross and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.