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Goal

Our goal is to support our School Improvement Plan (SIP) for goals 1 and 5, Goal 1 states, "...80% of of students in the ninth grade will obtain a scale score of 950 [...] or an SGP [student growth percentile] of 55 as demonstrated on the STAR [Reading] test [given in August and December 2017, and April 2018]." Goal 5 states, "80% of teachers will effectively implement a variety of at least 3 WICOR [Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization, and Reading] strategies each 9 weeks' grading period [...]."
To achieve this goal, we would like to purchase relevant independent reading books that Springbook recommends to get students to read MORE outside of class; these suggested books are related to what we're teaching in class so they'll complement the curriculum and get students to think about what we're learning even outside of class. We would also like to purchase a class set of a required text.

By providing our English 1 teachers with fiction and non-fiction books for their personal classroom libraries, it will encourage reading and support our school goals. Additionally, these titles are fiction and non-fiction books that our SpringBoard curriculum recommended as outside reading to coincide with the "coming of age" theme for the 9th grade book. What's better than having students not only read outside of class, but also have them read about the things we're learning about!

By also providing our English 1 teachers with class sets of the novel "To Kill A Mockingbird," it will enable ALL students to have access to the book during unit 3 of our SpringBoard curriculum; therefore, increasing their reading which is related to both school goals.  

What will be done with my students

All English 1 students will be have daily access to the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" to use in class during our novel study in unit 3 in our SpringBoard curriculum. We estimate starting unit 1 at the end of December 2017/beginning of January 2018. Students will be able to read, find evidence, interact, and participate fully when they have the text in their own hands. (As of now, they would have to share a book with 1-2 other partners or read a book that is missing pages or worn out; not to mention that we do not have enough books for our two English 1 teachers to have class sets. We barely have enough usable books for our English 1 Honors teacher to use.)

All 9-12 English students have an outside reading requirement each 9 weeks; assessments for this involve Accelerated Reader testing, 1-pagers, and using www.Whooo'sReading.org. Having a classroom library of books that are at their reading and interest levels is KEY to getting reluctant readers to be full-time readers during the entire school year. We want to create an atmosphere of reading and learning; what better way to have this happen then to have classroom libraries with books that are relevant to what we're discussing in class.

English 1 teachers will track checkout of books from the classroom libraries to ensure books are being used, returned, and in good shape for 9th graders to use the following year. The impact this year will be for roughly 150 students and that's only for this year; multiply the number of 9th graders reading in and outside of class year after year and that makes for a good investment! The impact reaches to each student attending our school in four years! We cannot put a price tag on that.

(Supporting anecdote: For the second nine weeks, students were told to select a book from the Springbook recommended list as 1 of their outside reading books. Students researched what the books were about and then went to the library to check them out. Some were really excited about their new book; for example, 3 Latina students saw the book "Once Upon a Quinceanera" and were really excited about reading it, however, when they went to the library, it was not available. They were disappointed to find this out and had to select another book that was less relevant to them. Had these students had access to that book, imagine their reading engagement. When students have books that are relevant to them and accessible, it makes a difference in their intrinsic reading motivation and their reading levels.)

Additionally, as of 10/12/17, of the 44 fiction and nonfiction titles on this grant proposal, our school library only has record of 22 of them in inventory. There is a need to add these titles; providing them in classroom libraries would ensure they would be checked out and read.

The following three ELA Standards will also be greatly impacted through this grant for books in the English 1 classrooms.
(1) LAFS.9-10.RI.4.10, "By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 9–10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range."
(2) LAFS.9-10.RL.4-10, "By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 9–10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range."
(3) LAFS.9-10.W.4.10, "Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences."

All students took the STAR Reading Assessment in August 2017. Based on the data, 35% of our current 9th graders are meeting the 950 or higher scale score that is set as goal 1 above. We have our work cut out for us in assisting our 9th graders in strategies to improve their reading. All students will take the STAR Reading Assessment again in December 2017 and April 2018. The results from these tests with our 9th graders will show the impact this grant has made on them compared to where they started in August 2017.

If students have books that are relevant and accessible to them, they will more likely read them and thus their reading score will likely increase; this is a win-win for the students, our school, and in turn our district. In our vision for the Walton County School District we want to be recognized among the top school districts in the state of Florida. The ripples that can be felt from receiving this grant could travel far and wide across Walton County and the entire state of Florida!  

Benefits to my students

First, some students are overwhelmed when they walk in to our Library Media Center to find a book. They have no idea where to begin. With a classroom library, the teacher can support his/her students in locating a book that will grab their interest and be at their appropriate reading level. I see this as a win-win for teachers and students alike to take away frustration and undue stress from everyone.

Another benefit is that students will not have to purchase the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" for their own use. A majority of our students come from low socioeconomic homes and additional costs to benefit their education are not always something that can be budgeted for.

An additional benefit is that we can save paper by not making copies of the novel from PDF form. We will cut down on our paper consumption and paper costs, which is always a concern for school districts.

Lastly, the benefit for the two English 1 teachers will be that he/she has the materials needed to teach unit 3 with fidelity. The knowledge that his/her personal money will not be needed in the classroom for materials will take the burden off of the teacher and his/her family. Too many times teachers just pay to have what the students need without being refunded. This grant will alleviate that burden and enable the teacher to teach and students to read more!  

Budget Narrative

We are requesting 70 copies of the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. These would be split between the two English 1 teachers (35 per teacher). This would allow for a class set (25) plus 10 additional copies per teacher that could be checked out if students were absent and needed to make up their reading outside of class.

Additionally, we have requested an assortment of 44 fiction and non-fiction titles in this grant. We are asking for two of each novel so that each English 1 teacher could have one of each title in his/her classroom library, The titles are recommended outside reading materials by our SpringBoard curriculum for the units we will be studying this year (1-5).

The fiction and non-fiction titles (in no order) are listed below. Please note the titles that have the "**" before each are titles that our school library does NOT have in their inventory.

The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
**Finding Fish by Antwone Q. Fisher
**Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin
**Trouble in Mind: Black Southerners in the Age of Jim Crow by Leon F. Litwack
**Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock by David Margolick
Marching for Freedom: Walk Together, Children, and Don't Your Grow Weary by Elizabeth Partridge
**Life is Not an Accident: A Memoir of Reinvention by Jay Williams
**Simeon's Story: An Eyewitness Account of the Kidnapping of Emmett Till by Simeon Wright
Catalyst by Laurie Halse Anderson
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher
**Shifting through Neutral by Bridgett M. Davis
We Beat the Street: How a Friendship Pact Led to Success by Sampson Davis
Tears of a Tiger (Hazelwood High Trilogy #1) by Sharon M. Draper
**Foul Trouble by John Feinstein
If I Stay by Gayle Forman
**Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina Garcia
Eragon (Inheritance Cycle Series #1) by Christopher Paolini
Jim Thorpe, Original All-American by Joseph Bruchac
Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA by Julia Alvarez
Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
**The Dance Boots: Stories by Linda Grover
**A Map of Home by Randa Jarrar
**Living Up the Street by Gary Soto
**The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
**Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida by Victor Martinez
**Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Kinsley
Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar
**Our Lady of the Nile by Scholastique Mukasonga
**Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
A Child Called It: One Child's Courage to Survive by Dave Pelzer
**Dirt Bikes, Drones, and Other Ways to Fly by Conrad Wesselheoft
**Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People by Monica Brown
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
**The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child by Francisco Jimenez
Code Talker: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two by Joseph Bruchac
Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes
**Coming of Age in Mississippi by Anne Moody
The Scar Boys by Len Vlahos
**Last Days of Summer by Steve Kluger 

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