Reading And Learning Together
The events surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement this summer made me think critically about my platform as a Middle School teacher and my ability to contribute to students’ thinking around racism and white privilege. I knew that the conversations in my classroom needed to address these issues more directly. I also knew that I would not be the only Middle School teacher who was thinking about this, and that, if given the opportunity, our students would readily participate in challenging discussions about the role we all play when it comes to racism. As an English teacher, I also know how incredibly powerful a good book can be.
To provide everyone in the Middle School with the opportunity to have uncomfortable conversations about race in a safe and meaningful way, I approached Mr. Ryan Bell and Mr. Rob Cranston with the idea for an extended Mentor Group activity: MS Reads. All the students and Mentors would read All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. This novel centers on an act of police brutality against a black teen named Rashad, witnessed by a white teen named Quinn. I have used the novel in the Grade 7 English program many times and it never fails to engage every reader.
We are now a few weeks in, and MS Reads has been really well received. We spend two Mentor Group sessions a week listening to the audiobook as a group, and one session a week discussing the text and the issues it raises. Using All American Boys as our base has given Middle School boys and faculty a safe way to discuss challenging topics. We now all have a common story to refer to, and it is pushing all of us to think critically about our own ability to contribute to the problem or the solution.
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To provide everyone in the Middle School with the opportunity to have uncomfortable conversations about race in a safe and meaningful way, I approached Mr. Ryan Bell and Mr. Rob Cranston with the idea for an extended Mentor Group activity: MS Reads. All the students and Mentors would read All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. This novel centers on an act of police brutality against a black teen named Rashad, witnessed by a white teen named Quinn. I have used the novel in the Grade 7 English program many times and it never fails to engage every reader.
We are now a few weeks in, and MS Reads has been really well received. We spend two Mentor Group sessions a week listening to the audiobook as a group, and one session a week discussing the text and the issues it raises. Using All American Boys as our base has given Middle School boys and faculty a safe way to discuss challenging topics. We now all have a common story to refer to, and it is pushing all of us to think critically about our own ability to contribute to the problem or the solution.
