Past projects 9
Latin American Lit
Funded Nov 8, 2024Adding new titles by Latin American authors, as well as contemporary fiction in Spanish has been so rewarding this school year.
Students (mainly seniors) in Latin American Literature class have had a wider range of authors to select from when completing their independent reading projects. Students whose first language is Spanish, as well as students who are learning Spanish as their second language, have been excited to read books written by popular authors such as John Green, Holly Jackson, and Suzanne Collins, in Spanish.
I appreciate so many donors coming together to help ensure that students have access to reading materials that they truly enjoy reading!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by SONIC Foundation and 8 other donors.Nonfiction Refresh: Part 2!
Funded Aug 3, 2023Being able to add in new titles to our school library's nonfiction collection has made such an impact this school year - particularly with students in 11th grade English who have specific requirements surrounding independent reading assignments.
With "Nonfiction November" quickly approaching, I look forward to highlighting all the titles from this project's book list and encouraging students in all grades to read a genre they might not typically gravitate toward.
Because nonfiction writing helps students develop critical thinking and analytical skills, it is vital they incorporate nonfiction books in their reading lives.
I am grateful for all the generous donors who are helped see this project through to a successful end.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and 9 other donors.Nonfiction Refresh
Funded May 10, 2023Thank you so much for helping student library interns at Grant High School see their collection development project meet with success.
The books in our nonfiction section are quite dated and rarely checked out. So, when the 11th grade English Language Arts teachers developed an assignment that required nonfiction reading, I realized we needed to update that part of the school library collection.
I created an assignment for my student interns that provided the opportunity to learn the elements involved in purposeful collection development. Students took the assignment very seriously. They sought out starred reviews in journals and looked, in particular, for ones that noted "teen appeal." Because of this project, the students and I were able to meet the needs of the 11th grade ELA students with materials that were selected by high school students for high school students.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by SONIC Foundation and 13 other donors.Great Graphic Novels for Teens
Funded Mar 31, 2023Thank you all so much for generously donating to my Great Graphic Novels for Teens book project. The books on this list came from two trusted sources: the YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) 2022 Great Graphic Novels for Teens list and the New York Public Library's Staff-Recommended Manga Reads blog. I rely on these sources, as well as student input, when selecting new titles to add to the school library collection.
By far, manga titles are the most heavily circulated items in the school library. Often, students will come in before school starts and check out a few volumes from a series. Many will return at the end of the same school day so they can exchange what they got in the morning for subsequent volumes.
These books help instill a strong reading habit across a wide range of students. Be assured that the books you helped add to the library collection will be well read!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 11 other donors.Nonfiction That Doesn't Feel Like a Textbook!
Funded Mar 2, 2020I am overwhelmed by the generous donations given by both parents and anonymous donors to help this project reach its funding goal - and in record time, no less!
The nonfiction books that will now be part of the library collection are sure to be a hit with the students. I can't wait to share these titles during Reader Advisory lessons!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by A group of anonymous donors and 8 other donors.Mock Printz 2020
Funded Dec 4, 2019Thank you so much for helping students be prepared for the Half-Blood Printzes' 2020 Mock Printz Workshop, which was hosted at our neighborhood branch of the Multnomah County Library. Students read 11 titles and came ready to debate which of those titles deserved to be crowned the best book for young adults from the 2019 publishing year.
After much discussion and several rounds of voting, students chose Lovely War by Julie Berry as their winner. Three other titles (Dig by A. S. King; Queen of the Sea by Dyaln Meconis; and Thirteen Doorways Wolves behind Them All by Laura Ruby) were selected as honor books. Students were excited to see one of their honorees (Dig by A. S. King) chosen as the actual Printz Award winner during this year's Youth Media Awards presentation.
We are already looking forward to taking part in and reading books for the 2021 Mock Printz workshop!”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by An anonymous classroom supporter and 8 other donors.Let's Get Comfortable
Funded Sep 28, 2019This was an amazing project for students in three senior English classes.
They read through Bennett's book and held class discussions focused on themes that emerged. Students then chose specific themes to delve into more deeply.
The youth librarian from our neighborhood public library brought in supplemental reading material tied to these themes. She and I were able to collaborate on and share book talks with students and provided time for them in the school library to check-out books for their research projects.
The students, classroom teacher, and I were so grateful to have a class set of books to use. We appreciate all the donations that helped this project and learning opportunity meet with success.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
This classroom project was brought to life by District Partnership Program and 10 other donors.The Latest and the Greatest
Funded Dec 2, 2017The books from this project have been shared with students and staff alike both through book talks in English classrooms, as well as displayed on the library's New Books shelving unit.
Two of the most popular titles on this booklist have been Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah and We Were Eight Years in Power: an American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Both titles were included on a curated reading list for an AP Human Geography research project, and many students selected the titles for their assignment.
In our Latin American Literature course, Robert Bolano is one of the authors who students can choose for an in-depth author study. Our library was very grateful to receive The Savage Detectives and 2666 - two of the author's titles that we did not already own.
Perhaps the title that I, personally, had the most fun sharing was Animals Strike Curious Poses by Elena Passarello. To encourage 9th grade English students to increase the number of pages that they read each month, I shared a reading challenge from the Pop Sugar website that included the prompt: choose a book with song lyrics in the title. Most of the students were not familiar with the song that the book's title references, but they were interested in hearing about this nonfiction book which has now gone on to be nominated for an Oregon Book Award.
I so appreciate being able to share well-written, critically-acclaimed books with the students, faculty, and staff I work with at Grant High School.”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle
What Happens Next?
Funded Oct 9, 2014When our Donors Choose project was fully funded, boxes of books began to arrive with various titles from our wish list. My student library assistant interns were always excited to unpack boxes to see what had arrived in each shipment. One of the projects they worked on this semester was the creation of a book display promoting the newest books in our collection. Another project involved creating bookmarks letting students know all the books within a particular book series.
The book display has been a huge success. Students are able to see, at a glance, all the books for a particular series and checkout the one they need to read next. Because the book display shelves sit next to the study hall area of our library, the books have been heavily used for recreational reading .
Thank you all so much for making a lasting contribution to the literary lives of Grant High School students”
With gratitude,
Ms. Battle