Grandparents, parents, and children have all attended this small high school serving several rural communities in Central Illinois. The pride of the school and community is always clear as families and community members come together to support our students as they succeed in sports and activities, but what about those students who don't have the same means to participate in those things?
And even more importantly, when will we celebrate academic achievement for all students?
Not all of my students are the ones who are visible on a team or in an activity. And not all students have adults beyond their teachers pushing them to excel in academics.
Many of my students struggle to buy into the material taught. They are busy working to help their families or navigating the immensely difficult social world online or even at home. My school has a nearly 40% poverty rate, and we struggle to engage our students in the classroom. Teachers are expected to win our students' hearts over to learning, but this becomes impossible without proper resources or community support for an academic culture.
My Project
Shakespeare is often intimidating for students to learn and teachers to teach. In the summer of 2017, I traveled to England specifically to study Shakespeare and the theater.
I came back with many ideas to share Shakespeare with my students in new and approachable ways, and now I need resources to be able to do that well.
The books will allow students to actively read the text as we watch performances. Seeing the written words allows students to see Shakespeare's master craftsmanship of language. I have also requested the DVD of the 2017 Royal Shakespeare performance of Julius Caesar. I saw the performance last June and was riveted. I know that the students will appreciate being able to see master actors perform this essential classic.
We won't just study the play to study the play, however. The timeless themes will allow us to talk about following leaders, loyalty, and the power of rhetoric to persuade. We will be discussing our own beliefs as we read this text.
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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. Cope and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
