In this episode of Our Classroom, host Roberto Germán explores how emotion and identity serve as the gateway to authentic literacy engagement. Drawing from his presentation Reading with Purpose, Writing with Passion, Roberto invites educators to rethink what truly keeps students — especially reluctant and multilingual writers — from fully engaging with reading and writing.

Through student testimony, classroom strategies, and reflections from Blue Ink Tears, this episode centers literacy as a human experience before it becomes an academic one. When students are seen, heard, and affirmed, reading and writing transform from tasks into tools for expression, healing, and connection.

CHAPTERS

0:00 – Welcome to Our Classroom
1:10 – What Keeps Students from Engaging with Literacy
3:00 – Emotion as an Entry Point to Writing
5:00 – Identity, Language & Student Confidence
7:00 – Books as Mirrors, Not Just Texts
9:00 – Instructional Strategies that Humanize Literacy
11:30 – A Writing Invitation You Can Use Tomorrow
13:00 – Patterns Across Classrooms
14:30 – Teach in Truth, Lead with Courage (CTA)

Featured Student Voice

“When he talked about his feelings, it made me more confident to talk about mine.” — José Reyes, 9th Grade, Notre Dame Cristo Rey High School

Resources & Next Steps

Blue Ink Tears by Roberto Germán

Author Visits & Workshops: multiculturalclassroom.com

Follow: @multiculturalclassroom

Join the Community

Teach in Truth.

Lead with Courage.

Belong to a Community That Gets It.

Join My Classroom Gold — a community of educators committed to equity, truth, and impact.