Help me give my students in the building access to the same literature at the same time in order to engage in cross-curricular & cross grade level discussions.
We are a rural K -5, elementary school located in Northern IL. Our district consists of one elementary school and one middle school. Our students vary in their learning abilities, needs, and backgrounds.
My students enjoy hearing about experiences beyond our classroom walls.
They love to engage in conversations with students different than themselves. When we make connections, it's exciting to hear their discussions with students from other communities and backgrounds. I'm the Media Specialist/Tech Coach in my building and help facilitate connections through Pen-pals, Zoom, cooperative tech tools and other avenues.
It is important to me that I do anything I can to help the students see and appreciate as many cultures and perspectives as possible. We try to take virtual field trips to make the experiences even more memorable. I try to provide books that spotlight different backgrounds, needs, and families. I like to provide books that allow students to see themselves in literature as well as learn empathy for others in different circumstances. Learning is fun, and it never stops when we are able to go beyond our own experiences.
My Project
My goal is provide a reading experience that goes beyond the classroom walls. I am excited about getting a copy of this book to all classroom teachers, Specialists, Specials teachers, and Administration. For an entire month, the entire school will be reading the same book. The gym teachers can make connections with students in their gym class. The Principal can add comments during announcements. Siblings can discuss the book at home with their families. I will add challenges and activities throughout the month that students can participate in- discussion boards, games, and projects to extend their thinking. The Global Read aloud project was started by Pernille Ripp in an effort to use books to bring us together.
This past year we have had to rely on community to defeat a common enemy.
This year's Global Read Aloud books are tales of struggle and triumph, tales of finding your own strength, tales or relying on others. We need to continue to gather around books to rebuild our school community which has taken such a hard hit. I can imagine passing any student in the hall and asking them how they are enjoying 'Dragons in a Bag'? We need to make connections with our students and to have something in common gives us that starting point.
The second book I am requesting is targeted for our higher readers and older students. Although it is my intention to have everyone participate in the Dragons in a Bag Global Read Aloud, I would like to challenge some of my readers and classrooms to read 'The Jumbies' and connect with older students in other parts of the world. I plan to help facilitate some partnerships with other schools and allow for deeper discussions.
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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. Dekorsi and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
