Relevant YA Books That Speak to Students' Diverse Lived Experiences!
My students need twelve hardcover copies of "All American Boys" for a literature unit that will prepare all ESL learners in my classroom for the rigors of mainstream English in high school, college, and beyond.
My ESL secondary classroom is vivid, colorful, and productive - a place where reading and writing matter not only as a vehicle for academic success but as a tool for students to share their stories. All of my students are readers - my goal now is to pivot their literacy skills from good to great.
It is one of the most diverse schools in America; the lilt of Haitian Creole, Chinese, Vietnamese, Arabic, Khmer, Spanish, and Portuguese can be heard alongside English in our hallways.
This melting pot makes for diverse classrooms -- albeit with challenges facing many high-poverty schools. Over half of our students receive a free or reduced lunch. Teachers and administrators are generous with their money and time, going the extra mile to offer school supplies, snacks, after-school tutoring, and other supports so students can succeed. Students in my classroom are intermediate English language learners. They come from a myriad of home countries, each harboring its own cultural norms about schooling. Our classroom incorporates rigorous reading, writing, speaking, and listening activities that invite students to discuss their lives and home cultures while learning the fundamentals of academic English.
My Project
At the end of the year, I prepare students for their upcoming year in a mainstream English literature classroom through a dedicated novel study. To foster choice, I curate a selection of books - all centering around themes that come up in students' conversations and academic projects- and allow for a class-wide ranked-choice vote so that students can "own" the text as much as possible.
This year, my ESL IV students picked the text "All American Boys" by Jason Reynolds - a text that touches on police brutality, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the experiences of our youth.
Students will read the book in class and through a series of activities the reading will culminate in a community study about our surrounding cities. How do youth in our cities understand their racial identity and their lived experiences? Through a series of oral histories and more, students will practice research skills to culminate the school year.
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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. H. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.