My students are a rare bunch. I teach mathematics to 133 8th grade students daily in Oscoda, Michigan. Even though around 90% of them are Caucasian, they come to me facing challenges I could never even imaged when I was a child.
Almost 10% of my students are considered homeless and many of them live in poverty.
We live in a rural town, which is a great tourist spot and houses many retirees. However, the Wurtsmith Airforce Base closed back in 1993, and a lot of the population left. Our town is still trying to recover from the loss twenty years later.
I am an avid reader and wanted to share my love of reading with my students, especially after hearing so many 8th graders last fall say that they didn't like reading because it was boring. That was enough to motivate me. I created a book club called the Lunch Bunch. My purpose was to get students who loved to read reading new and exciting material and students whose friends loved to read reading as well. Last year I had friends and family that purchased copies of "The Hunger Games" for my reading group. I can't even describe the conversations students had with each other or how many students asked for a copy later in the month.
My Project
I want to be able to give my students more of those experiences, but am unable to get funding from my district due to budget freezes and cuts to staff. Through my K-12 Literacy Specialist coursework, I am discovering how to get reluctant readers to enjoy reading. Students need to be able to read current novels that include their interests. They need to be able to make connections with characters that will motivate them to keep reading or wanting more. With the materials I have selected, I will be able to increase motivation with my 8th grade students in reading. I am requesting 10 copies of "Catching Fire", "Mockingjay", and "Pop". All three novels are recommended for reluctant readers. The first two are the second and third book in "The Hunger Games" series. The third novel is about football.
During the first two months of the school year, most of the conversations I hear my boys talking about involve football.
I am really trying to invite more males into our group, since a majority of them are female. Consider helping out the Lunch Bunch Please help the odds be ever in our favor!
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