No, it's not really a book club. It's much better. Let me explain.
I started this blog during the 2010 season, mainly because my friends were tiring of reading thousand-word emails after every Stanford game. In the two years that have followed I've written more than 200,000 words here about Stanford football, and I've enjoyed every minute. Some of you out there have possibly read all of those 200,000+ words, and I can't thank you enough. Writing for you has been an absolute joy.
There have been times, though, when it's been work. There have been times when I've thought about monetizing this site in some way, either through ads or by placing a simple PayPal donate button in the corner of the page. I've resisted all that, but recently another idea popped into my head.
I write this blog during the wee hours of the night, but by day I am a mild-mannered middle school English teacher -- ironically enough, at a place called Stanford Middle School. I teach all types of students, some of whom might end up at Stanford University one day, but today I want to talk to you about a group of 8th grade students that is close to my heart.
My seventh period class is made up of the 23 lowest readers in the school. Many of them had not read a book on their own before coming into my class, but in their second year in my room -- third year for a handful of them -- many of them are seeing the light and discovering the joy of reading.
It's difficult to find high-interest reading material that's still accessible to my students, all of whom are reading two or more years below their grade level. Once titles are identified, school budgets make it difficult to put books in the hands of these suddenly eager readers.
This is where you come in. If you've ever read something here and thought, "This is a good as something I might find behind another site's paywall," or if GMC is a daily stop for you, please consider clicking on the link below. It will take you to GoMightyCard's Amazon Wishlist, and you'll be able to buy a copy (or more) of The Hunger Games to donate to my class.
No, it won't pay for my webhosting fees, but it will do something much more important. It will keep a student's love for reading alive. Thanks for reading.
Here's the link: GMC's Amazon Wish List
UPDATE: I could not be more grateful. In less than 48 hours, my readers have come together and provided my students with an ENTIRE class set of The Hunger Games! I thank you, and my students thank you! If you'd still like to contribute books to my classroom, I've updated the Wish List with some other titles. Thank you from the bottom of my Cardinal heart!
