My students need to see themselves in books by reading titles such as Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut, Hey Black Child and Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History.
The students who will be a part of this project are fourth graders in a semi-urban community. They have energy, creativity and enthusiasm, yet some find it difficult to feel connected to the learning process. I am the Reading Interventionist at my building so I work with a diverse group of students who struggle with reading and writing. Many of the students I teach view reading as a chore. However, with exposure to powerful children's literature which reflects their life experiences, I have seen this slowly start to change.
Working with small groups of students to spark a love for reading while building up all the skills they need to be successful is great privilege.
Many students at our school fall into the lowest poverty range and school is sometimes a negative experience. It is my mission to change that. Our school is committed to increasing the connection between life and learning, to show our students that thinking, creating, reading and writing are all a part of something larger than just their report cards or test scores.
My Project
We will spend Black History Month taking a journey through some of the best pictures books written or illustrated by African Americans in 2017. I am asking for 6 copies of every book so each student can hold these beautiful treasures in their hand while we try to determine which of these eight texts is the best of them all! We will be holding our own mock Coretta Scott King Awards! Named for Coretta Scott King, wife of Martin Luther King, Jr., this award recognizes outstanding African American authors and illustrators, and is awarded for books about the African-American experience that are written for a youth audience. We will set these books up on a bracket (think NCAA basketball tournament!). Two books will face off until we are left with our grand champion. Before voting on each pair, students will engage in rich discussion about the message, craft, artwork and any connection they may have to each text. To conclude this project, students will present their favorite title to their homeroom and create a video book recommendation.
My students need to see themselves in the books they read.
Of the 12 fourth graders I teach, 7 of these students identify as African American. People of color only accounted for 22% of children's book characters in 2016. In fact, just 71 of the 278 books about African-Americans were actually written and/or illustrated by African Americans. These are startling facts. I have made it my mission to diversify my classroom library and expose my students to books representing all humans. This project will bring eight incredible texts into the hands of students who need to find those books that they just can't put down and those characters that remind them of themselves or their best friend.
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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. Haney and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
