My students need the novels "Sing, Unburied, Sing" & "The Astonishing Color of After" so they can read new-release novels that uniquely match their varied life experiences.
My students are individualists. Every interaction is defined by their continuing struggle to define themselves and their purpose within the context of a social and school setting. This drive means that my classroom is full of individuals yearning for expression. In every class, I am amazed at these students' capacity for self-expression and for their empathy and affirmation of each other. My classes demand that each lesson given is accompanied reasons "why." Regimented 'sit-n-git' learning is not the prerogative of these scholars.
A classroom in one of the most diverse school districts in the country requires ideas and representation that exceed our students' most radical ideas about engaged learning.
Currently, the idea of serving these remarkable students is by issuing a blanket text for a blanket population is unthinkable. This classroom and the wider world have taught us that diverse populations require diverse solutions. I ask for your help in providing that lesson to them.
My Project
Groups of four-six students will participate in Literature Circles by reading and discussing a novel together. With our library’s copies of Laurie Halse Anderson’s "Speak" and Sherman Alexie’s "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian", students will be able to pick from the requested four new release titles. The unit will incorporate a mix of reader response protocol, structured analysis and discussion, and comparisons between their novel and the ones other students are reading. At the culmination of this unit, students will write an original pastiche (here, a short narrative based on connective themes like 'overcoming adversity', 'familial identity' and 'grit' that imitates the style their author uses).
The selected novels will enable all students to not only affirm their identity and see others but also find commonalities in American teenage experiences.
The novels’ protagonists are all American teenagers from diverse ethnic, geographic and socioeconomic backgrounds. These authors have been lauded for tackling difficult subjects such as loss, Islamophobia, and incarceration with humor and grace.
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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. Lewis and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
