![Ms. Heydorff in her office explaining her role when working with ASB. ASB really took the lead on [ASD] and I was just there to support and give them assistance in any way they needed, said Ms. Heydorff.](https://westridgespyglass.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Image-e1713072272110-828x1200.jpg)
MLK to Malala: A History of Westridge’s All School-Read
From left to right: “Letters from Birmingham Jail,” Malala’s Magic Pencil, “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination,” “Cinderella’s Stepsisters,” Introduction to House on Mango Street, “Crying in H Mart,” and “Gate A-4.”
As the new year rolls in, the time has come to celebrate Westridge’s 7th annual All-School Read. On this occasion, students in 4th through 12th grade read the same chosen literary piece, creating connection within the Westridge community as well as emphasizing the importance of literature.
Upper School English teacher Ms. Katie Wei, on behalf of English Department Chair Ms. Tarra Stevenson, said at the schoolwide 2023 All-School Read assembly, “Studying literature gives us a glimpse of how one person, the writer, sees the world. But by putting that work into the world, it’s an opportunity to see if that one experience resonates with any of the rest of us, which is a wholly unifying experience.”
Here are all the literary pieces Westridge has read for the All-School Read thus far:
2016-2017: “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
Author: Martin Luther King Jr.
Type: Letter/Essay
2017-2018: Malala’s Magic Pencil
Author: Malala Yousafzai
Type: Picture Book
2018-2019: “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination”
Author: J.K. Rowling
Type: Harvard University commencement speech
2019-2020: “Cinderella’s Stepsisters”
Author: Toni Morrison
Type: Essay/Barnard College commencement speech
2020-2021: Introduction to House on Mango Street
Author: Sandra Cisneros
Type: Vignette
2021-2022: “Crying in H Mart”
Author: Michelle Zauner
Type: Essay
2022-2023: “Gate A-4”
Author: Naomi Shihab Nye
Type: Poem
