If you were to walk into any of my Language Arts classes, you would see intelligent and eager students from India, Mexico, Vietnam, Somalia, China, Korea, and the Philippines. You would see African American and Native American scholars asking thoughtful questions and encouraging others to participate in conversations. You would see transgender, queer, and LGTBQ allies exploring their identity and sharing their experiences with others.
RHS students embody love, compassion, kindness, and understanding.
They love stories that reflect their own experiences and challenge them to see the world differently.
My Project
This spring, students will select a book of their choice to read in small groups. They will have daily conversations about the themes, characters, and personal connections to the text. To demonstrate their learning, students will create a presentation expressing how their ideas of a particular group of people changed or developed based on the novel.
For students to feel valued in the classroom, they need to read literary texts that represent their backgrounds.
One of the main groups of students who are currently unrepresented from my class library selection are Latina students. To address that need, I've asked for copies of the 2017 novel, "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika Sanchez. The novel addresses cultural and social expectations of young women in such a thoughtful way that it was nominated for the National Book Award and is well-received by young readers. The other novels also address relevant issues that students face today. Angie Thomas' highly praised novel, "The Hate U Give" addresses female empowerment and social activism for positive change. Adam Silvera's "More Happy Than Not" explores the impact of grief, understanding one's sexual orientation, and the complexities of family dynamics. I know that the requested will provide opportunities for my students to see literature as a way to understand their own experiences, and to be empowered and inspired to share their life experiences with their learning community.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
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. Fox and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
