Reading is Power

"Why is this class important?"

This was the prompt that my fifth grade students on a 2nd-3rd grade reading level had to respond to first thing on Friday. It sounds like a fluffy question if you don't know them. I asked it because I know how much they want to find meaning in everything they do--particularly when it comes to school.

After two minutes for response time, I asked them to share out. "This class is important because reading will get me into any college I want to go to," said one student. "This class will help me read the menu when I get to start dating," said another. One of my students, Sharita (whose name has been changed here for privacy) jumps from homeless shelter to homeless shelter, but never complains. "This class will help me live anywhere I want to live," she said. "It will help me be anything I want to be."

"Absolutely," I said. "All of these are great answers. You know another reason this class is important? Your answers touched on it...This class is important because reading is POWER."

I went on to explain how once you can read, there is no stopping you. You can get into any college, be confident on dates (haha), move to a better neighborhood or stick around to change your neighborhood for the best. We went on to read about Mary McLeod Bethune, a black woman who decided at a young age that she would learn how to read. Her mission became teaching other black children and adults how to read. Afterward, we had a discussion about race and education in the U.S. Half of the class knew that not too long ago, your skin color determined whether or not you would learn how to read. The other half had no idea. We talked about the "white kids in the suburbs" (according to one of my students) and how they get to go to Ivy League schools. I asked why my students couldn't go there, and no one had an answer for me. "Exactly," I said. "If you work hard and want to go to Harvard or Yale, you can go, too."

At the end of class, I had them respond to another prompt: "What did you learn today?" Sharita wrote, "Today I learned that I can do anything I want to do, no matter how much money I have." (Mary McLeod Bethune started her school with $1.50 in her pocket.) My favorite response came from Jaquan (whose name has also been changed): "Today I learned that Mary McLeod Bethune started a school for blacks, and that reading can change the world."

I hope I am effective enough as a teacher to give them the power that is reading. I can't wait to see them change the world.