Past projects 4
Propaganda and Purpose
Funded Dec 4, 2023Thank you very much for the generous donations to fund my "Propaganda and Purpose" project. Your gift provided Orwell's Animal Farm for use in three classrooms.
In my classroom, in particular, a group of reluctant readers were able to not only practice their fluency and inference skills, but they were also able to sink into propaganda analysis that was accessible due to the graphic novel genre. We were not only able to discuss persuasive tactics, but we were also able to critically question leadership through the lens of propaganda use. For many students, the intricacies of propaganda were new concepts to grapple with and I believe that the use of a graphic novel efficiently aided their comprehension.
Keeping instruction fresh with classically used academic texts can be a challenge. However, with new presentations, such as graphic novel adaptations, an old story can have new life for a new generation of learners.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ferguson
This classroom project was brought to life by Townsend Press and 11 other donors.Reframing Romeo & Juliet
Funded Mar 30, 2023Thank you so much for your support of our graphic novel adaptation unit. The goals for this unit were to analyze the choices made by a professional graphic novel artist as they adapted an existing text into graphic form and for students to create their own adaptation of an existing text exercising some of the artistic choices they learned about and analyzed from professional work.
Students worked in groups to analyze the adaptation choices made by Gareth Hinds as he adapted Romeo and Juliet to graphic novel. We looked at the original text, the graphic text, and a couple movie adaptations. In those analysis sessions, groups discussed the extent that key ideas/themes transferred between the various mediums. Students judged the adaptations for consistency, artistic choices, and accessibility to original story.
Overall, my students really enjoyed this project, particularly my students who historically struggled to finish long writing projects. The art was appealing for them.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ferguson
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 4 other donors.Poetic Prose for Pondering
Funded Nov 29, 2022I cannot fully express how much my students enjoyed the reading of The Poet X. Not only did it hit on many salient teenage topics such as struggles with independence, finding your voice, sexual awakening, challenging authority, but it's poetic form and cadence made the 357 pages feel "doable" for my reluctant readers.
We use small group discussions that merge into larger group conversations so everyone may have a voice about the text. Students are fostered through the process of creating questions that make for good conversation and those topics lead us into critical discussions about our world.
Earlier in the year we were able to host a guest artist to the classroom and my students were able to experiment with free verse. Using The Poet X has allowed us to return to some of the lessons introduced by our guest artist and consider, more deeply, how self-expression is an integral part of being human and being part of a community.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ferguson
This classroom project was brought to life by an Anonymous Classroom Supporter and 4 other donors.BIPOC Authors for BIPOC Students
Funded Oct 21, 2021I am late in sending this thank you - my apologies. Our unit using The Marrow Thieves was a success in a number of ways. Students actively engaged in the narrative of the Anishinaabe family running from those selfishly set to destroy them, their culture, and their all aspects of their humanity. Our intent was to call upon the intertextual connections students made to the text as a result of prior learning, use those connections to research more deeply the extent and nuances behind the connections and then practice building community through the cultivation and celebration of a literary community that listens and learns from one another.
We used this unit to capitalize upon the inquiry and independent work management skills students built over the year. In addition to our community readings of The Marrow Thieves, students were also tasked to develop questions to guide the discussion of their small groups formed as a result of common pace. After discussion, students reflected on what they learned from their group discussion and the new questions that formed as a result.
Many students had not read any substantial work from a Native American author and they showed their appreciation through their inquisitiveness. In addition, my Native students were actively engaged and eagerly shared their cultural knowledge for class discussions - those discussions were community building for many students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Ferguson
This classroom project was brought to life by Dollar General Literacy Foundation and 8 other donors.