Classroom Champions: History teacher wants supplemental books for students

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - History is the foundation of Austin Lassiter’s honors and AP classes at Charleston Charter school of Math and Science.

Lassiter has been teaching at the high school for 4 years and says he got the history bug after college. He says he hopes to pass the very same love on to every student he teaches.

“The best part of teaching the class is to see them really embrace learning and reading and it’s not just for the curriculum or that that for a lot of them it’s the first hard college class they have taken,” Lassiter says.

To supplement what he teaches and to help his students gain a better understanding of our country’s past Lassiter likes to add additional books to his lessons, anything from President Abraham Lincoln’s famous Gettysburg address to books on the Civil Rights Era.

For his Donors Choose project, Lassiter hopes to give his students a personal copy of the books they’re learning about and reading.

He says giving his 17 students a personal book to keep gives more value to the lesson and allows his students to focus in on areas of the subject that stand out for them.

But he says the books come with a price tag.

“Books are not cheap and they range from $10 to $40 each. Some are college or grad-level texts I used when I was in school. For them to be able to build their own libraries, it really means a lot to me, and it gives them an opportunity to annotate, highlight, and mark it up. It’s theirs to keep so they can take ownership,” Lassiter said.

Lassiter says the current book for his Donors Choose project is Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963-65.

He says it’s a book that will help him teach more about the Civil Rights Era and help prepare his students for the AP College Board Exam at the end of the semester.

You can help this Charleston Charter teacher and his students by becoming a classroom champion right now and donating by clicking here.

All donations are tax-deductible. Donors Choose collects your money, then buys the items and sends them to the teacher. This ensures that your donation is used for our area teachers.

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