Hi friends and family! I am here to humbly request your help for the upcoming school year.

Update: THANK YOU! ¡MIL GRACIAS! You all have helped us reach the goal of $700 which means TWO CLASS SETS OF READERS FOR MY KIDDOS!!!!!! I’m upping the bar to $1,000 just this once… That would mean a THIRD reader for the whole class, or a CLASS LIBRARY of similarly new, relevant, engaging books in Spanish at a variety of levels so we can have free-reading time, book reviews, analyses, presentations, and MORE! I’m so grateful! ♥️

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In September, I restarted my teaching journey as a sub in my former school district. By October, I was asked to step in as a long-term sub for a Spanish class. In January, I was hired on as a full-time teacher again.

While I do have 5 years’ experience teaching Spanish, this position is different. This will be my first (full) year teaching Spanish for Native & Heritage Speakers. At my school, I will be the only teacher for this type of Spanish class.

(This teacher does a great job explaining the differences and similarities of native and heritage speakers: https://profenygaard.com/2019/10/06/are-your-students-native-speakers-or-heritage-speakers/)

Kids are kids and literacy is literacy, no matter the language. My goal this year is for students to read, read, read! However, in 2024 that is much easier said than done. Additionally, my students have extremely varied language-learning needs due to their unique experiences at home and in school. I need their buy-in to be able to help them increase their proficiency in Spanish (and English). How do you get buy-in from 130 teens?? To READ?? In 2024?? Well, here I am.

In the interest of increasing literacy in general, and specifically increasing literacy in my students’ native language, I am seeking assistance in purchasing a class set of 40 readers ($350) to use this year and in years to come. To be honest, I’d like to fully commit and get the second book in the series ($700 total).

These are bulk prices from the publisher, and a very typical cost for current readers. If it feels like a big pill to swallow – it is. I was very hesitant to make a fundraiser, but my department (of 14 language teachers) cannot afford to purchase even one set of books for just one classroom.

If I reach even half of my goal, 130 teens will have access to a reader this year! Woo hoo! If I reach the entire goal, we get to read two books as a class! Your financial assistance will help me and my students year after year after year. It will help boost my kids’ confidence with reading comprehension in Spanish and English. It will provide us with engaging content to discuss. It will encourage them to read more.

It is a challenge to find a reader that is relevant, authentic, engaging, level-appropriate, and affordable in the quantity necessary. This relatively new reader comes highly recommended by fellow Spanish teachers as a means to engage students in reading in the target language. I can’t wait to read a book all together this year!

I am so excited about embarking on this new teaching journey, but could really use some help making this year an especially good one for me and the kids.

Generally speaking, department budgets are tight, and I wouldn’t be able to equip my classroom for the year without spending too much of my own money. When it comes to teaching and learning, accessibility is key.

Any funds donated over the goal amount will go toward:

Purchasing a class set of the third (final) book in the series

Purchasing classroom supplies (tissues, pencils, etc.)

Offsetting purchases I’ve already made for the year (whiteboards, dry-erase markers, folders, etc.)

Thank you so much for your time and consideration! The kids are back in 14 days!!