MARIA SAMENGA
The power of reading and writing
SCHOOL: Tubman Elementary School, Washington, D.C.
CHALLENGE: Getting English Language Learners hooked on reading and writing
experience for both. The
older children get to read
aloud in a nonthreatening environment that lets
them feel the rhythm of
the language and hear its
beauty. The younger students gain from hearing
the stories read to them.
“Kids who have two
or three years of being
ine;ective can have the
trajectory of their lives
changed dramatically,”
says Samenga. “If kids
don’t have reading skills,
it’s going to a;ect them
their entire lives. So I want
to make sure they have the
skills to be successful in
the world.”
SOLUTION: Creating private writing-time periods and hosting publishing parties for students and their parents
Fourth-grade teacher Maria Samenga gets energized by the challenges she faces each day at
Tubman Elementary School
in Washington, D.C., where
40 percent of her students are
English Language Learners
and just 45 percent are proficient in reading. Samenga,
one of seven Excellence in
Teaching recipients in the
D.C. Public Schools in 2010,
says she’s devoted herself to
getting her students hooked
on reading and writing.
“Many of the kids haven’t
had success, and that can be
frustrating,” says Samenga,
33. “I love to read. I read all
the time. And it’s an amaz-
ing thing when my students
find that love of reading in
themselves.”
Samenga sets aside 15 to
20 minutes for student writ-
ing in each of her 80-minute
classes. She finds that stu-
dents read better after they
are more comfortable writ-
ing. And she celebrates their
writing, holding publishing
parties that are attended by
students and their parents.
“Students get to stand up
and read in front of every-
one else,” she says. “It’s
powerful.”
Samenga is always look-
ing for opportunities for her
students to read. Her Book
Buddies program pairs her
fourth-grade reading stu-
dents with 3- and 4-year-olds
with disabilities. It’s a positive
“If kids don’t
have reading
skills, it’s going
to a;ect them
their entire
lives.”
