"Reading changes your life. Reading unlocks worlds unknown or forgotten, taking travelers around the world and through time. Reading helps you escape the confines of school and pursue your own education." - Donalyn Miller
I love coming to work each day and seeing how excited my students are about books and reading; I want to keep this momentum and excitement for reading going by providing my students with exciting books that they're interested in.
I teach 4th grade in a small, rural town. 4th graders are at an amazing age where they are more mature, but still excited about learning and school and I believe that it is my job to help foster this love of learning and exploration.
My Project
Every day we have independent reading where students learn how to pick books that they love. I believe that choice is so important when it comes to fostering life long reading skills. I spend a lot of time and resources learning about my students and helping them to grow as readers. I recommend books based on student interest; You should see the students' faces light up when I hand them a book with a handwritten note telling them I found this book especially for them. Because my students change every year the type of books that they enjoy reading change from year to year, so I'm always trying to keep up with their interests.
We have an ever growing list of books we need in our class library and the majority of books on this list were chosen by my students.
As you can tell from the books they've asked for my class loves fantasy books this year! The Wings of Fire series has been wildly popular in my classroom so far and I would love for students to have access to the entire series.
I've also asked for a couple of audio books that help engage some of my reluctant readers or readers who aren't as confident in their skills. These audio books help them access grade level texts that they are interested in and help them to gain confidence as a reader.
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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. Rapstad and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
