Last spring, students in Ms. Hostetler’s 4th-grade class at San Miguel Elementary School participated in a literacy unit called “Taking Action.” The goal of this unit was to develop persuasive writing skills in a business letter while simultaneously learning to use our voices to “take action” in our community. As a result, students learned how to apply persuasive writing to a letter format and were able to voice their opinions about what they believe needs to be changed in the world.
One of the final projects for this unit was writing a persuasive letter to an important figure involving a community issue. Students had to choose an issue and match that issue with a logical recipient. Letters were mailed to a variety of people and organizations ranging from Principal Esteban Ybarra, Superintendent Michael Gallagher, the World Wildlife Foundation, Mayor Larry Klein of Sunnyvale, Governor Gavin Newsom, and President Joe Biden. Two of the students wrote to the office of President Joe Biden about homelessness and the environment. This August, both students received responses from the President! Ms. Hostetler coordinated with their current 5th-grade teacher to surprise the students and present the letters to both 4th and 5th-grade classes. Please enjoy the photos of our proud students, their teachers, and administrators.
Article submitted by San Miguel Elementary Teacher Michelle Hostetler.
