Fun Facts

If given the opportunity to study at Boston University I will be:

1. a student of the oldest African-American Studies Department in the country.
2. studying where Martin Luther King, Jr. received his PhD.
3. studying where Howard Zinn received his degree

If you want to know about some of the classes I could possibly take go here

I am beginning my studies early! I have started making a timeline and making a list of authors I must read before I go to school. The idea of me at such a "big" school is really intimidating and I am trying to prepare as much as possible. Any suggestions of must reads? I gotta be smart enough.

The first week of my Human Rights Unit has gone over great!
My students are choosing between the following books for Literature Circles:

In the Time of Butterflies
Cereus Blooms at Night
The Inheritance of Loss
The Grass is Singing
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Year of Wonders

All of these novels deal, in many ways, both directly and indirectly, with violations of human rights on some scale. Each week I am handing out supplementary material (Bios, testimonies, documentary film clips, excerpts from novels, etc) that also deal with individual people groups (immigrants, children, women, GLBT, etc.) rights and having my students connect their novels to the supplementary material to their novels. This week I introduced ideas of Natural rights and Civil Rights, cultural perspectives, and responsibilities of the individual. I am asking a lot of question and my students are answering them based on previous knowledge, experiences, opinions, and thinking critically about consequences of acting and not acting, responsibility, and knowledge seeking.

It rules so far. I am pretty pumped. So many people have offered me suggestions for material and I really appreciative. I have so many great people in my life...all teachers in their own way.