I teach 6th grade Language Arts and 6th-8th-grade Reading Intervention. The students who share my classroom range from the highest-achieving to those most in need of inspiration in order to discover the love of reading and increase their achievements. They are spirited and culturally diverse middle schoolers, with equally-diverse learning needs. My students have big ideas, are eager learners, and have ambitious goals for their future, and I am passionate about my quest to help them meet those goals!
Critical readers are critical thinkers--in a rigorous environment where students are challenged to engage, question, and think with passion, students are preparing for life.
Every day, I am asked several times, "Mrs. Eastman, can you help me find a good book?" My students want to read, learn, and grow. As with most middle schoolers, they are beginning to broaden their horizons and become aware of issues in the world around them. Often, they find the issues they are most passionate about in the books they read, and, they too, know how important reading is to their future.
My Project
Humans are wired to enjoy a good story--and good stories are more meaningful when shared with a friend. It is through these shared stories that we can teach empathy, tolerance and a global understanding. This project would supply our 6th-grade students with multiple copies of extremely well-written refugee stories. Students will read these stories in book clubs (groups of 4-6 students) where they will apply reading strategies as well as discussion and communication skills necessary for success in the 21st century.
Reading these refugee stories helps students gain insight and understanding into the experiences and perspectives of their peers, their own families, and the fabric of America, a nation of refugees.
This project will impact the entire 6th-grade student population at our school, as the sets of books will be shared and rotated from teacher to teacher. In recent years, our school has been a magnet for students from many countries around the world, some of which are discussed in these books. Through this group work, students will delve deeply into themes affecting our world today making them better local and global citizens.
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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. Eastman and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
