Yesterday, I pointed to a project in my Donors Choose challenge that was running out of time:

Reading Is a Discount Ticket to Anywhere

I require my students to read four books each grading quarter, and often times the books in our High School Library are above the students’ reading levels or are so dated as to be of little interest to my students. As I build a diverse classroom library that will entice students to read, I would like to expand that by providing books from genres that I know are of high interest to my students: realistic fiction and suspense. Diverse selections of young adult fiction will allow my students to gain confidence in their reading skills as they self-select books that are both interesting to them, as well as varying reading ability levels. Offering such a variety of select titles will encourage students to expand their book choices, and ultimately their love for reading.

Reading provides the frameworks for success in every field. Strong readers will ultimately be strong writers, strong in other subject areas, and strong thinkers. Without reading, a child can expect little success in life, as these skills are needed from everything to reading directions to enjoying a novel. Self-selected literature is the way to garner student interest in reading.

Several of you donated, Zhuge, DuWayne, Sarah, Stephen, Rebecca. Contributions big, small, and in between came in. They’ve put us more than halfway there. The total left to fully fund this project is just $213. That is completely reachable.

Won’t you please step over to the project and give even just a little bit to help get these kids their books? Don’t forget that Donors Choose will match you at 100% (on another project of your choosing). I still have some matching funds to contribute as well. Right now, small donations are not so small.

Come on. Let’s finish out the Freethought Blogs Donors Choose campaign with one more success and one more set of happy, well-educated kids.

Update: Thank you! Thanks to Allison, Steve, Cathy, and Josh, this project is now fully funded. I’ve had to give the rest of my matching donation to another project. I chose this one from Challenger School in Glendale, AZ:

Life As We Knew It – Integrating Science and Literature

My students need 40 copies of young adult novels, Life As We Knew It, to support integrating science and literature. In Seventh Grade students learn about space, eclipses, and tides as part of their science standards. I would like to provide them an exciting novel in reading that integrates these ideas as a major part of the plot. I feel this will provide students with an understanding of how information from science can be used to enhance literature. This novel will allow us an excellent opportunity to reinforce science in our reading class.

Your support will help me provide my students with access to an exciting novel. The book illustrates to students how understanding science is used in other areas of life. This novel provides an excellent opportunity for my students to build literacy for high school while reinforcing science standards.

I love projects that make science relevant and that promote cross-disciplinary thinking. Science isn’t a “thing.” It’s a part of our lives and a critical means of understanding our world. This project is also getting close to its deadline, with only nine days left. With my contribution, which is part of your contribution, it will only take another $223 to fully fund this project.