"People would stand in line for days and pay hundreds of dollars if there were a pill that could do everything for child that reading aloud does; It expands their interest in books, vocabulary, comprehension, grammar, and attention span. Simply put, it's a free oral vaccine for literacy."-J. Trelease
My students have so much potential that they aren't aware of.
They are bright individuals that are growing up in homes filled with challenges, yet still come to school ready to learn and explore new ideas. My students live in a high poverty area where each student receives a free breakfast and lunch every day. They are energetic individuals who are eager to learn and full of questions! They are incredibly smart, even though they may not realize it.
My students came to school this year reading below grade level. Reading aloud to them, along with class discussions about what we are reading, has significantly improved their Lexile scores over the school year. This, in turn, has made them better readers. Next year, I would love my future students to be able to have this same opportunity. I would also love to have more books to read to them.
My Project
Every class begins with a read aloud. I've always used class sets of books during this time. However, the options provided by the school are nonexistent after we moved buildings and most of the the books I currently have are in very poor condition because of wear and tear over the years they've been used my classroom. I'm requesting two class sets of books for my students to use as I read to them: twenty five copies of The Lightning Thief and thirty copies of The Giver. Our current copies of these books are tattered and falling apart from being well loved by students. As we read, we discuss the events that are unfolding, as well as tie it to what we are currently learning about in our Reading Workshop. Being read to helps increase fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, grammar, and it increases students' interests in books. I've seen all of these areas improve within my students since providing class sets of books during read aloud, and would love to give my future students more opportunities for this growing to happen within my classroom.
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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. Castle and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.