Madison Early College High School in Marshall, North Carolina on DonorsChoose

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Rather, I presented six books as representatives of one of the two genres and students chose from these. I had 4 students choose A Lesson before Dying. The assignment was to work in self-guided groups to create presentations as an end of the class assignment. I am attaching the assignment so you can look at it.\r\nMy students that chose to focus on this book came from a variety of backgrounds and brought to their group different perspectives. Two boys and two girls. One of the girls has an IEP for serious vision impairment, the other is from a Hispanic family. One of the boys is a recent transfer to our school (from Vermont) and has been diagnosed with Oppositional Defiance Disorder. \r\nThis diversity within the group made for some difficulty when it came to working together, but it was also vitally important when it came to the presentation of the novel because each brought a different understanding to the text.\r\nIn analysis, my students focused on imagery, symbolism and self-discovery (of both Jefferson and Grant Wiggins). These elements provided the structure of their presentation. One of the students sketched a number of key scenes (the church, Jefferson's cell, Wiggins' character's internal conflict) to share with the class as other members of the group outlined the basic plot and characters. These sketches are also attached.\r\nFinally, I have included photos of the individual portion of the assignment. Students were to create a one pager of the novel that focused on a specific chapter that they deemed to be important. The prompt asked each member of the group to include symbols in the border of the page, quotes and sketches that demonstrate character growth, depictions of setting and tone, and finally examples and explanations of the powerful writing found within the novel.\r\nPresentations are difficult for high school students. They struggle with standing up in front of a group of their peers and putting their own work up for inspection. This project was also especially complicated because of the communication required for successful group work. That said, I think the way I allowed for choice and celebrated diversity with these books was pretty successful.\r\nMy intention is to teach this book again (this time to a full class with a more structured, teacher guided curriculum) next fall, and I will certainly incorporate the highlights from this small group presentation in my planning. It's funny, as adults we are so sure that our students will struggle with certain elements and do well with others, and often we have things entirely backwards. 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About this school

Madison Early College High School is a rural public school in Marshall, North Carolina that is part of Madison County School District. It serves 270 students in grades 9 - 12 with a student/teacher ratio of 30.0:1. Its teachers have had 3 projects funded on DonorsChoose.

Equity Focus School

Support towards this school will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.

Public School

Grades 9 - 12

270 Students

9 Teachers

5734 US 25/70 Hwy

Marshall, NC 28753 View local requests

http://www.madisonk12.net/domain/220

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Ms. Vero, a DonorsChoose teacher for 9 years.

Kindergarten teacher at PS81 - Robert J. Christen School in Bronx, NY

Madison Early College High School Teachers on DonorsChoose

Mrs. Irby

Mrs. Long

Ms. Williams

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Madison Early College High School Demographics

76%

of students receive free or reduced price lunch

Source: the National Center for Education Statistics

of students are Black, Latino, Native American, or Asian

Schools in districts that mainly serve students of color receive substantially less state and local support than similar districts that serve primarily White students. Learn more about this gap, why it exists, and how you can help close it.

Madison Early College High School Support on DonorsChoose Last updated Dec 5, 2025

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