After college, I taught 9th-grade English for 4 years at a charter school in New York City. My lifetime love of learning and desire to instill that love in other young minds led me to the classroom. It was my love of and belonging in books that led me to teach English.
Connecting Through Literature
The name of the course that I taught was “Survey of Great Books” – we read everything from Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers to Homer’s The Odyssey. The goal of the course was to introduce Freshmen to a wide variety of excellent literature that spanned centuries and genres. Student buy-in and engagement varied across these books. Shakespeare was rarely a favorite, and James Baldwin’s Go Tell it On the Mountain often received mixed reviews. The book that was consistently both my favorite to teach and that of the students to read, though, was Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. The book follows a teenage Nigerian girl, Kambili, as she navigates a difficult life at home and aims to develop her own sense of self. The fact that it was published in the 21st century rather than the 17th might have contributed to this student preference. However, what continually struck me was that students enjoyed it so much because they were often able to see themselves in the book’s characters and feel a sense of connection and belonging in books.
While this was not unique to this book alone, I felt that it was most pronounced with it. I enjoyed this aspect of being an English teacher, as I felt that my subject matter allowed students to connect their personal identities to it in a way that, for example, math teachers might not. As all of us who have gone through it before know, adolescence is a confusing time. I think many of my students found a sense of comfort in knowing that the feelings they were having – of being misunderstood, confused, or struggling to feel like they had agency – were not unique experiences. The character in their required reading felt the same! One student even expressed to me that reading a book with a character who had lived experiences similar to her own allowed her to put into words how she felt in a way that she was unable to do independently.
Conversations Around Reading
During this unit, classroom conversations were robust, and homework completion rates were high. Class discussion dove into the text rich with literature devices, but often expanded into students making connections to their own lives. I also often marveled at the fact that students shared aloud in class with more confidence and pride.
As a teacher, one of the most rewarding things is when students take “risks” – they raise their hand to share out but start by saying, “I don’t know if this is right but…” or “I don’t know if others had this same thought but…”. Intellectual risks mean students may feel unsure of their ideas but are sure that they are in a supportive environment that will be receptive to their thoughts regardless. This was also a trend I noticed that emerged during this unit but extended beyond it.
The Power of Books
Being able to see yourself reflected in any type of art, and in particular, literature, allows you to feel not only a sense of buy-in but also a sense of belonging in books. I believe this precisely to be the power of books. After all, books have characters, and (most) characters are humans with real thoughts and feelings. In a sense, every piece of literature is about the human condition, though some have stronger commentary than others. Feeling connected to a book can make students want to keep reading. It can help them better understand the world in which they live.
At WITS, we believe that literacy is the foundation on which all other learning develops. Our mission is to empower Chicago elementary students to discover themselves through reading while developing foundational literacy skills. One of our initiatives, WITS Summer Books, brings the WITS community together to raise funds that provide books for students’ at-home libraries, teachers’ classroom libraries, and WITS programs. Donate today to ensure that students not only learn to read but thrive emotionally and socially.
