I teach English language learners at the high school level. My students are some of the most hard-working people I have ever met, striving to learn English, become successful readers, and graduate from high school. They come to school ready to learn, dreaming of a brighter future for themselves, their families, and the world. Their attitudes towards learning continue to inspire me, as a teacher, every day.
Many of these students are becoming literate for the first time in their lives, and they are doing it in a second (or third) language.
Most are refugees coming from Asia, Africa, and Central America. They have faced challenges that many people, myself included, can never truly understand. However, they are resilient and are making their dreams possible through education. They understand the value of literacy and need exposure to age appropriate books at their level to continue growing as students. Many aspire to graduate from college in the future, and literacy is the first step in achieving that goal.
My Project
I am working to create a literacy environment for my English language learner students. A Long Walk to Water is a book about Sudanese refugees - a highly engaging, level appropriate book to inspire a love for reading. The Fact Tracker series will help them learn how to read nonfiction books, reading to gain knowledge, as they will do throughout their lives. This book is the base for a long-term project they will complete, giving them power over their learning and confidence as readers!
The book boxes will help my students always have a variety of books to read during reading time without wasting a minute!
They will fill their box with a variety of books from our classroom library, making it easier to continue reading from day to day without finding new books every day, building a better reading stamina. Having a place to keep the books they are reading is an essential part of starting to read chapter books.
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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. Hafner and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
