Teen English Language Learners Want to Improve Their Writing
My students need pencils and printer ink to practice writing and print their completed writing projects.
$285 goal
Hooray! This project is fully funded
Hooray! This project is fully funded
My Students
Imagine how you would feel if you suddenly had to move to a different country, one in which everyone speaks a language you barely know. Now imagine that you have moved there before you even learned to read or write. Many of my students are in this situation every day.
My students come to this country for a variety of reasons and from many different places, but all of them share a desire to succeed.
They struggle to understand what their teachers are saying and attempt to learn from materials written for native English speakers. They speak Arabic, Bosnian, French, Spanish, Kunama, Lao, Farsi, Nepali, Vietnamese, and Pashto (among others) fluently but cannot read the textbooks because they are written in English. As their ESOL and Sheltered ELA teacher, I do what I can to inspire them to persevere, despite the frustration of being unable to read or express themselves the way they can in their native language or languages.
My Project
For the past few years, I have ended the school year by creating projects in which I request Black Warrior pencils and other important school supplies. They always arrive at the beginning of the following year and I get to greet the kids on the first day of school with fancy new pencils and other supplies. I extol the virtues of the Black Warrior pencil: The Best Pencils in the World, and describe them in hushed tones reserved for the most sacred of things. My students really get into it and in the days to come, frequently come up to whisper, "Can I have a Black Warrior pencil?"
My students often do not come to school with the basic supplies they need to learn.
This is just not something they have and I refuse to let something so small as a pencil stop them from learning each day.
When I tell them that people who don't know them bought these pencils and printer ink for them to help them learn, I see the change in them almost immediately. They are more thoughtful about what they write and I see them sitting and looking up, deep in thought, their Black Warrior pencil poised to add another brilliant thought to their paper.
Daily writing practice is essential for my students. They must practice their language every day in order to progress and grow their English proficiency. These pencils make them want to write, rather than dread writing. They truly are magical.
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