My students need graphic novels and age-appropriate fiction series to inspire and encourage a love of reading.
FULLY FUNDED! Mrs. S.'s classroom raised $426
This project is fully funded
Celebrating Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month
This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
I teach students from all over the world, literally---from Honduras to Afghanistan. I am delighted by their intelligence and kindness every day, and often say that they make me feel very hopeful for the future.
Though I'm encouraged by so much of what my students show me, I am often concerned by their attitude towards reading.
92% of the students at my school qualify for free or reduced price lunch, and 68% are English language learners. Very few of them had access to English books as little children, and nearly all have struggled from an early age to approach reading level benchmarks.
Even very bright students coming from these backgrounds often stall out in school due to lack of resources that adequately educate and stimulate them. As their teacher, I'm dedicated to providing opportunities within our classroom that will encourage students to thrive.
My Project
Most of my students are reluctant to view reading as something worthwhile, and I can't blame them---reading, for them, as been viewed mostly as a series of redundant literacy exercises, short reading passages that hold little interest for them, and above all an opportunity to think of themselves as "below grade level."
My students WANT to read, but they need more options than the reading passages they get in school or the few (battered and nearly always already checked out) graphic novels in the school library.
I need financial help creating a robust classroom library that will be attractive to my students. I chose a variety of graphic novels and chapter book series for my students that I knew they would love. I made my choices based on conversations I've had with my fourth graders and by noting their reading habits (the single Wimpy Kid diary in my classroom library last year was in constant circulation!).
The majority of my students are English language learners, and it can be a particular struggle for them to slog through reading that they consider uninteresting. It is so important that my students have access at all times to books and series that encourage them to rethink what reading can do for them. I don't want my students to go into middle school ready to write themselves off as readers, and want to provide them with stimulating and age-appropriate literature with a variety of themes and subject matter.
"The simplest way to make sure that we raise literate children is to teach them to read, and to show them that reading is a pleasurable activity. And that means, at its simplest, finding books that they enjoy, giving them access to those books, and letting them read them."
More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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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. S. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
