Jordan Cimenski, an English teacher at Shoreline Middle School, has been named a recipient of a Mini Grant from the Provo City School District Foundation. The funding is intended to support innovative classroom projects by ensuring students have access to their own copies of full-length books for specific units.
Cimenski, who is a published author and a previous Provo Way recipient, noted that students require more practice with deep reading. She explained that a sudden curriculum shift had previously left English teachers without full copies of required texts, forcing them to rely on isolated excerpts.
By using the Mini Grant to secure full-length novels, Cimenski stated that students can more effectively learn elements such as plot, character development, structure, and theme. The availability of these books allows for various classroom activities, including book-unit projects, reading groups, role-playing, and creative applications like skits or book trailers.
The initiative aims to foster skills in empathy, context, and critical evaluation. According to the Provo City School District Foundation, the Mini Grant program supports these efforts to help shape students into better readers, thinkers, and citizens.
