Mrs. Agostino's Classroom Edit display name

Past projects 12

• Choice Reading for Lifelong Readers

  Funded May 4, 2021

  What a year this has been! From basically reimagining all of my classroom routines in August, to bringing some students back to campus in person in March, to saying goodbye to my seniors in just a few days, this has been a wild year of teaching. One thing that has stayed the same though, is my love for and continued belief in the power of choice reading. Across all my classes, both remote and in person, there was one constant: starting the class with quiet, sustained, choice reading. While they read, I pulled students individually into a separate Google Meet to confer about their books. This allowed me to connect with each student individually at a time when one to one connection was difficult to establish. I'm so grateful for the connections I built with my students over reading, and could not have done it without my classroom library.

  Next year I'm so excited to be able to return to all of these routines in person. Being able to offer students these new and compelling books right off the bat will get choice reading off to a great start! I'm particularly excited about Andy Weir's new book Project Hail Mary, because his other two books are constantly checked out. I'm also happy to add some new, meaningful non-fiction to my selves and plan to read Mediocre by Ijeoma Oluo myself over summer to prepare to recommend it to students.

  Thank you so much for your donations to our classroom library. During these unprecedented times, reading is one constant we can hold onto. Adding new, important books to the library is crucial for student success. We couldn't do what we do without donors supporting us. Thank you!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by SONIC Drive-In and 9 other donors.

• Reading is LIT!

  Funded Oct 8, 2020

  In the past, the best part of my teaching day has been the first ten minutes of each class period, when my students come in and quietly get out their books to read for ten minutes. At the start of this school year, I had to reimagine how this part of class would look. So, after some trial and error, the beginning of class now looks like this: students answer a fun attendance question in our Zoom chat, we do a quick minute of mindful breathing, and then they still get out their books and read for ten, sometimes even fifteen, minutes. While they read, I pull students individually into a separate Google Meet to confer about their books. Though this has taken a little getting used to, I am so happy to be able to continue this facet of class.

  I'm also happy to report that our new checkout process with curbside pickup is going well! I'm so excited to be able to offer students these new and compelling books. Project LIT titles have already been flying off the shelves, especially Dear Justyce, Nyxia, and Scythe. My hope is that students can learn about experiences different from their own through a fictional story, thus helping them build empathy.

  Thank you so much for your donations to our classroom library. During these unprecedented times, reading is one constant we can hold onto. Adding new, important books to the library is crucial for student success. We couldn't do what we do without donors supporting us.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by Chevron and 11 other donors.

• Books as Windows and Mirrors

  Funded Aug 11, 2020

  In the past, the best part of my teaching day has been the first ten minutes of each class period, when my students come in and quietly get out their books to read for ten minutes. At the start of this school year, I had to reimagine how this part of class would look. So, after some trial and error, the beginning of class now looks like this: students answer a fun attendance question in our Zoom chat, we do a quick minute of mindful breathing, and then my students still get out their books and read for 10 minutes, but with their Zoom cameras trained on their books so I can see what they are reading. Though this has taken some getting used to, I am determined to continue this part of our routine, because I believe so strongly in the power of using class time to read.

  Another crucial part of my class is conferring with students about their books. I plan to use Zoom to continue this facet of class. During conferences with my students, I will help them set goals for the year. In my experience, students often say they would like to "read more." My goal is to help them quantify what "more reading" actually looks like for them. I believe having the best, most engaging books in my classroom for them to checkout is a HUGE part of this process. I'm happy to report that our new checkout process with curbside pickup is now up and running! I'm so excited to be able to offer them these new and compelling books from a diverse group of authors to help them widen their world view and allow all students see themselves in their books. For example, Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes is about a young Black boy who is shot and killed by a police officer. It doesn't get much more timely than that. My hope is that my students can learn about experiences different from their own through a fictional story, thus helping them build empathy.

  Thank you so much for your donations to our classroom library. During these unprecedented times, reading is one constant we can hold onto. Adding new, important books to the library is crucial for student success. We couldn't do what we do without donors supporting us.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 3 other donors.

• Teenagers Will Read, If They Have the Right Books

  Funded Mar 2, 2020

  In the past, the best part of my teaching day has been the first ten minutes of each class period, when my students come in, and quietly get out their books to read for ten minutes. As next school year approaches, this is going to look very different, because we won't physically be in class together. However, I am determined to continue this part of our routine, because I believe so strongly in the power of using class time to read.

  Another crucial part of my class is conferring with students about their books. I plan to use Google Meet to continue this facet of class. During conferences with my students, I will help them set goals for the year. In my experience, students often say they would like to "read more." My goal is to help them quantify what "more reading" actually looks like for them. I believe having the best, most engaging books in my classroom for them to checkout is a HUGE part of this process. Though the checkout process will be different than it has been in the past, I am determined to get high quality, high interest texts into their hands.

  For example, One of Us is Lying has been a popular book in my classroom since I got it a couple years ago. I'm so happy Karen M. McManus wrote a sequel, and am even more happy that now I have it in my classroom for students! Additionally, Nic Stone and Tomi Adeyemi are brilliant YA authors, so I am thrilled to add more of their titles to the library as well.

  Thank you so much for your donations to our classroom library. During these unprecedented times, reading is one constant we can hold onto. Adding new, exciting books to the library is crucial for student success. We couldn't do what we do without donors supporting us.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by A group of anonymous donors and 3 other donors.

• The Hot List: New Titles for Our Classroom Library

  Funded Oct 26, 2019

  The best part of my teaching day is the first ten minutes of each class period, when my students come in, and quietly get out their books to read for ten minutes. They know this is how class starts, and most of them are eager to start reading. Some days, I read along with them. Other days, I pull students up to my desk to conference with them about their books. No matter the unit we are in, these ten minutes of choice reading are a constant in our class. I want my students to enjoy reading, and see it as something that fits into their daily lives, no matter how busy they might be.

  During conferences with my students, I help them set goals for the year. Many students say they would like to "read more." My goal is to help them quantify what "more reading" actually looks like for them. I believe having the best, most engaging books in my classroom for them to checkout is a HUGE part of this process. For example, books by Nicola Yoon have been very popular in my classroom already this year. When I told students that I had her husband's new book, Frankly In Love, one boy immediately checked it out. Additionally, some more reluctant readers are testing out some of the high interest young adult fiction with great success. The Grace Year and With Malice are both popular reads. Because of all this choice, most students report having read more outside of class than they did last year.

  Thank you so much for your donations to our classroom library. Unpacking the books and handing them out to students was an absolute joy. Adding new, exciting books to the library is crucial to encourage students to continue on their choice reading journey we started back in August. We couldn't do what we do without donors supporting us.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

• Apocalyptic Book Clubs

  Funded Oct 4, 2019

  Thank you again for your generous donation. All of these apocalyptic books have arrived in my classroom and are in the process of being checked out to students. Here's the plan for them: We just finished reading Lord of the Flies, where we focus heavily on the boys' failure to hold their civilization together. Our essential question was: what do humans do when they no longer have the rules of society governing their behavior? As we know, for the boys in Lord of the Flies, the answer to this question is that they completely lose sight of the norms of society and start killing each other. So now that we've read that, the plan is to read some more contemporary novels that can still help us answer the same question, but that don't all have the same level of violence and the same doom and gloom ending.

  First, we did a book tasting, where students got to look at all of the book options and rank their top choices. From there, I put them into groups and now they are in the process of checking out my copies to begin reading them next week. We will have some small group discussions about their books, and then will end with a full class Socratic seminar where students discuss the similarities and differences between their books and the similarities and differences to Lord of the Flies. I can't wait to hear what they have to say!”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by Chevron Fuel Your School.

• Paradise as a Kind of Library

  Funded Oct 10, 2018

  Thank you so much for your donation to our classroom. My students love our choice reading program, and our classroom library is a huge component of its success. Everyday someone in our class gives a book talk about a book they have recently read. Sometimes I give the book talk, and sometimes a student gives the book talk, but either way, the goal is to showcase our favorite books and inspire someone else to read them too. As soon as the shipment of books you donated came in, I read The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater and Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds. Both were fantastic, and I was so excited to get to book talk them to my students. As soon as I did, both books got checked out. I am especially excited about Long Way Down, because it is engaging content, but in verse form, making it more accessible to struggling readers.

  I like to say that books are the gift that keep on giving. Once one person reads a book, it gets passed on to the next person, then the next person, and so on. I believe so wholeheartedly in the importance of reading, and hearing my students talk to each other excitedly about books is one of my greatest joys as a teacher. Thank you form helping foster those conversations in our classroom with your generous donation.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by Chevron Fuel Your School.

• New and Novel: Books That Teens Will WANT to Read

  Funded Sep 7, 2018

  The best part of my teaching day is the first ten minutes of each class period, when my students come in, and quietly get out their books to read. They know this is how class starts, and most of them are eager to start reading. Some days, I read along with them. Other days, I pull students up to my desk to conference with them about their books. No matter the unit we are in, these ten minutes of choice reading are a constant in our class. I want my students to enjoy reading, and see it as something that fits into their daily lives, no matter how busy they might be.

  During conferences with my students, I help them set goals for the year. Many students say they would like to "read more." My goal is to help them quantify what "more reading" actually looks like for them. I believe having the best, most engaging books in my classroom for them to checkout is a HUGE part of this process. For example, The Couple Next Door, by Shari Lapena has been very popular in my classroom already this year. When I told students that I had her newest book, An Unwanted Guest, one boy immediately checked it out. Additionally, some more reluctant leaders are testing out some of the high interest young adult fiction with great success. One of Us is Lying has been flying off the shelf. So far this year, most students report having read more outside of class than they did last year.

  Thank you so much for your donations to our classroom library. Unpacking the books and handing them out to students was an absolute joy. Adding new, exciting books to the library is crucial in encouraging students to continue on their choice reading journey we started back in August. We couldn't do what we do without donors supporting us.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

  This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 12 other donors.

• A Classroom as a Reading Community

  Funded Oct 9, 2017

  This year has been better than ever in my classroom, as I continue to cultivate my library. When I first started asking for donations, I would take any book I could get. Now that I have been building for several years, I have the privilege of being able to pick and choose which books I would like to add. The set of books you helped donate have been a huge hit with my students.

  Book talks are one of the ways I showcase new books to my students. I start off by showing the cover and telling students a little bit about it. Then I tell them some specific aspects of the book that I liked, like the writing style, the perspective, or a theme that really stood out, for example. Finally, I try to compare it to other books or authors that the kids might know and give them a sense of what type of reader might like the book. Helping my students discover what type of reader they are is an important goal of mine, and book talks help to accomplish that in a quick and informal way.

  Here are some of the books I highlighted to my classes from the grant that you donated to:

  Genuine Fraud is E Lockhart's newest book, after her smash hit We Were Liars. As soon as I received it, I read it in one day, and then immediately gave a book talk on it to my classes. One thing I showcased to my class is that the book is told backward. It starts with chapter 18 and ends with chapter 1. Though it sounds like it might be confusing, I told them that it just helped make the plot more suspenseful and intriguing. It was immediately checked out after my book talk, and students have been passing it around ever since.

  Another great book you helped donate was The Fate of Ten, which is the latest in the I Am Number Four Series. I have several students who have been flying through this series, constantly coming back to me and asking for the next book. I am happy to report that the first of these students has made it to The Fate of Ten. He just checked it out yesterday. I was so glad to have the latest and greatest ready for him as soon as he was ready for it. It feels good to be able to put a book in a student's hand and know that he or she is going to devour it. Thank you so much for helping make that possible.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino

• Currently Reading: Helping Students Build a Reading Life

  Funded Mar 11, 2017

  Building my classroom library has been a labor of love. Over the past three years I have used as many resources at my disposal as possible to fill my classroom with books that my students will truly want to read. I started with donations from family and friends, and while this was a great starting point, it yielded more unsatisfactory cast-offs than high interest, young adult fiction. Next, I moved to our PTSA and Education Foundation grants, which were immensely helpful. However, it wasn't until well into my second year of cultivating the library that I discovered Donor's Choose, and it revolutionized the way I add books to my library.

  One of my favorite projects my sophomores do is the second semester research project. For the entire semester, students work in groups of four and choose a topic to research. The unit is designed to give students choice in what they read and a creative platform of discussion and technology tasks to present what they learn. This can be very difficult for students, who are typically used to being told exactly what to do and how to do it. This project requires students to think through the topic on their own, choose their own books, lead their own discussions, and ultimately write and answer their own research question. This project is not possible without having a wide variety of books on all sorts of different topics.

  One book in particular that came from this set of donations is Jodi Picoult's 19 Minutes. This is the story of a school shooting, told from multiple perspectives: from the mother of the shooter, to the detective, to a girl whose boyfriend was shot and killed. It examines not only the extreme grief that rocks the small town, but also the causes of the shooting in the first place. I had a group of girls choose to study gun control with an emphasis on school shootings, and this book was a perfect lens for them to start the project. They are now into the non-fiction and research portion of the project, but they still reference "Peter," Picoult's fictional shooter, because they see his character in the true stories the are reading as well. It is this type of rich fiction that makes a classroom library so powerful.”

  With gratitude,

  Mrs. Agostino