I hope you're enjoying your weekend!

Thank you all so so much for your quick responses! You are so good to me. I am always blessed to see y'all show up for the students in my care.

I want to be clear that no one actually told me I couldn't teach my Fire in Little Africa (FILA) curriculum. But here's what happened. I was trying to lesson plan with my team teacher, still trying to create a poetry unit, so I pulled FILA out (hip hop is poetry). I know that allusion is a common poetry/hip hop device (and standard) and there was another web resource that covered allusion, but the examples are always ancient Greco-Roman or Biblical.  In the song "Descendants," there's a very obvious reference to Black Panther's Killmonger, so I thought that with the combination of the web resource and the FILA track, I had my lesson ready.  I could engage students on multiple levels.  I realized, though, that the anger expressed in the poem/song demanding reparations - even though the lesson was about allusion and Killmonger - would only require one student's screenshot sent to the wrong adult to get me in big trouble. And I, who am often spoiling for a fight, was scared. 

I'm not proud of that. 

I'm hoping that having the resources to make some of these lessons available outside of my current classroom will give me the push to figure out a way to bring a few good poems to the students inside my classroom as well.  

I feel obligated to be honest here, too, because some of you have told me that you are willing to part with your money to help me out. I am filling out applications for remote jobs beyond the education field. I've been in quarantine three times since October, and my daughter and I do not like the way the school change this year affected our lives. I would love to create these resources for your family and the community on a continuing basis even if I leave the classroom. You'll get more information about how as the results of the Google form are compiled. 

Please click below and answer the questions I've put together. I'm sure I forgot something. If you know what it is, please add it in the ideas section or questions/concerns section.

Last but most importantly: for you lovelies who want to donate and those of you who are considering it, anything you send me for the time being is a donation. If you want products fast, donating to me is how to get them. I created an LLC, but I've not learned how to file anything under it, yet. When I do my taxes and see how much I owe the IRS for Opal then I'll know how to proceed. If you have education products you want, I'd love to provide them, but something more official than donations and the honor code will make that take a bit longer. I just want to be clear. 

CashApp: $NajahAma

Venmo: @NajahAma

PayPal email: najah.hylton@gmail.com (Please do not email this address)

Let me know in the questions/concerns if you need my phone number for Zelle.

I'm sure there's a lot more thoughts you have, maybe even things you'd like me to address. Please put them in the Google form. 

Happy surveying! You are wonderful and I appreciate you!

-Najah