Encouraging students to read is a constant struggle because of the number of other entertainment options for them to choose from. Therefore, I am always looking for better books and bigger ideas to bring students back to the beauty of the written word.
Most students are freshmen at a Class B school in the Midwest.
The district is a K-12 campus several miles from a town, and approximately 30 minutes from the city. The students come from nine small communities in the rural area. Although a number of families farm, several parents commute to jobs in the city. Thus, it is a mixture of those who live and work in the country and others who love the country life but work elsewhere.
The freshmen class is approximately 160 students, and I instruct over 100 of them in English 9, which combines reading and writing units and is a requirement for graduation.
My Project
This book will allow the English teachers to work with the science teachers to provide a comprehensive unit which incorporates learning in both disciplines.
Students are bombarded with lessons in numerous classes and have to demonstrate an understanding for each teacher. This leads to less in-depth learning because they are not immersed with the material across content. In addition, the assessment piece is sometimes lacking because students have to demonstrate their learning for multiple teachers at the same time. Thus, their work may not be as fully developed as it could be.
This project will enable teachers and students to work collaboratively to learn both content areas: language arts and science. Plus, students can demonstrate their knowledge by creating ONE project to meet the assessment needs of BOTH classes.
The purpose of this project is to show what can be done when teachers and students work together to create positive and engaging learning environments.
The hope is to use the project as a model for future endeavors in our classrooms, the district, and other schools.
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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. Coady and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.