Literature For All!

My Students

A typical day begins with our literacy block. We have groups writing, reading to self, working with words, and a guided reading group using a more challenging text. Our goal is to have students reading literature that engages them because they have a connection with the characters or a problem.

We are an inner-city school with students coming from diverse and multicultural backgrounds.

Some are new immigrants whose parents speak another language. Those students become the teachers for their parents; explaining and interpreting information from school. Other students have the educational support needed from home and are thriving in our differentiated classroom. Still others struggle everyday to keep up academically and socially with their peers. Some of their challenges include physical disabilities, social and emotional issues and learning disabilities. With all of our differences, our students have developed a great deal of empathy for other students and a tolerance of our differences. The life experiences our students bring and share in our classrooms are proof that learning is not just about text books. These experiences are helping our students to flourish as well rounded young individuals who are accepting and caring for others.

My Project

By implementing these two novels in our literature circles, the students will be able to engage in reading historical fiction and realistic fiction that will enhance their background knowledge of some important events in our history. The students will be able to work in a small group; discussing the books by having various jobs as a reader. They will have to focus on one aspect of reading for two days and then share their findings with the group. These jobs include: discussion director, literary luminary, illustrator, vocabulary enricher, connector and investigator. These jobs will give each student the responsibility to share their own findings with their small group. I have found that our quiet students are much more willing to share in a small group than with the whole class. The opportunity to be the one in charge of a specific area of the reading encourages all of the children to be prepared for class; so at least some of the reading is done each night.

Donations to this reading project will improve our classroom by allowing all the students in the class to read the same book at the same time.

In the small group, the children can discuss the book in a more in depth and personal manner and then we would be able to share some important vocabulary, themes, character traits or figurative language with the whole group to enhance our learning. I have found that fourth graders enjoy the independence involved in our literature circles.