Teach with Your Heart: Lessons I Learned from the Freedom Writers

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Teach with Your Heart: Lessons I Learned from the Freedom Writers

4.09 of 5 stars 4.09 · rating details · 444 ratings · 80 reviews

In this memoir and call to arms, Erin Gruwell, the dynamic young teacher who nurtured a remarkable group of high school students from Long Beach, California, who called themselves the Freedom Writers, picks up where The Freedom Writers Diary (and the movie The Freedom Writers) end and catches the reader up to where they are today. Teach with Your Heart will include the Fre...more

Hardcover, 265 pages

Published January 9th 2007 by Broadway

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Mar 28, 2009 Andrew Sydlik rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: those who want to see the power of literature, those who think racism and classism aren't a problem

Shelves: nonfiction-social-issues, nonfiction-writing, nonfiction-biography

This memoir about a high school English teacher's experiences at a forcefully integrated California school is both touching and disturbing. It reveals the ways in which race and class still split people apart and trap them in poverty and violence. With the other teachers and administrators largely being bigoted and uncaring, and the students being rebellious and mocking, Ms. Gruwell faced much adversity. Male students sexualized her rather than respected her, and both her white colleagues and he...more This memoir about a high school English teacher's experiences at a forcefully integrated California school is both touching and disturbing. It reveals the ways in which race and class still split people apart and trap them in poverty and violence. With the other teachers and administrators largely being bigoted and uncaring, and the students being rebellious and mocking, Ms. Gruwell faced much adversity. Male students sexualized her rather than respected her, and both her white colleagues and her racially diverse students thought her idealistic and naive.

Yet, rather than give up, she sought to understand them. She asked about their personal lives, and began learning about rap and sports to be able to compare them to things in literature and history. But when a drawing gets passed around caricaturing a black student, it reminds her of Nazi drawings of Jews, and she berates the class on their making a joke of stereotyping. "This is how a holocaust happens," she shouts at them.

"Holocaust? What's that?"

That's right. None of them had heard about the Holocaust. When she asked how many of them had been shot at, everyone raised their hand. Gruwell learned how some had lost as many as a dozen friends to gang violence. “I’ve seen as many bodies as a mortuary,” Maria quips. Others attested to being brutalized by police, victimized by parents and other adults, ridiculed by teachers, and constantly fighting with rival gangs. Some faced racial prejudice in stark ways—one classmate lost a friend to a white-supremacist gang, who put his body inside a basketball hoop to intimidate other minorities. It turned out that a fellow white student had a brother who was part of that gang, though he rejected his brother’s racism and struggled to form connections with other students.

When she requested books such as The Diary of Anne Frank and Zlata's Diary, she was turned down, told that it was a waste of time, that her students were "too stupid" to understand such works, and would only ruin the copies. Gruwell used her own money to buy them from Barnes & Noble.

The students not only connected to stories of the Holocaust and war-torn Bosnia, they became extremely moved and got to meet Zlata and Holocaust survivors. Publicity began to build around Gruwell's activities, such as taking students to a screening of Schindler's List and the Museum of Tolerance. Unfortunately, this brought more hostility down on her, as angry phone calls came to her home, one caller even saying, "If you like black people so much, why don't you marry a monkey?" And Gruwell finds she has to sacrifice much in her personal life to stay dedicated, such as her husband divorcing her because of all the time she spent apart from him.

While it is clear that Gruwell sacrifices much to help, spending virtually all of her free time staying with students after class to help them with homework, driving them home, or working two additional jobs to afford books and field trips--one can also clearly see the humility and genuineness of her actions. Perhaps defiant and challenging at times, she never hesitates to remark how she shakes in terror at speaking in front of others. Nor does she fail to fret about her appearance or lack of experience in the efforts she dives into. The point she makes rings home a message of hope: though uncertain and limited, powerful things can happen with passion and love.

She does not hesitate to outline the many benefactors that helped her along the way, whether parents who volunteer to run fundraisers, or businessmen who donate thousands of dollars to send her and students overseas to Europe to visit Auschwitz and Bosnia.

There are many surprises and emotional moments that spring up in this astonishing tale, which is more the memoir of a family than of a person.

One of the reasons I like this story so much, aside from it being a tale of hope, is that it shows the power of literature to affect lives in a positive way. Some may dismiss this as a romanticized story of a white person saving the lowly minority, but lives were changed in real ways here. Also, she describes how her students touched her and others as much as she did them.

She got the students to collect their thoughts in what came to be published as the "Freedom Writers Diary," which is a good companion piece to this. These 2 books were used as inspiration for the movie "Freedom Writers," a rather good dramatization of the events and personalities involved.(less)

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Apr 27, 2012 Emma rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-that-suck

This book pissed me off.

From what I gather, not having been familiar with the subject matter before reading this, Erin Gruwell was a break-away hit teacher (I know, right?) in an inner city school who won the hearts of her tough, racially diverse students by caring about them and believing in them and by acquiring and spending thousands of dollars to give them the very best, from brand-new books to a trip to Europe.

This book is her memoir.

I think I'm already inclined to be twitchy about the "ide...more

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Mar 21, 2010 Elena rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is an interesting, engaging read about the Freedom Writers teacher and the major impact she made on the lives of so many of her students. While I thoroughly enjoyed reading her memoir, I am only giving it three stars because it is so idealistic and unrealistic to teach in that way. Gruwell sacrificed her marriage, and worked a second job to buy supplies for her students. Her interactions with the kids were definitely inappropriate, including driving them home, and taking them to Sarajevo, w...more

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Sep 12, 2009 Bree rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: absolute-must-reads, memoirs, non-fiction, own, 5-stars

I got this book from the administration in the high school where I am the librarian. While I don't teach I do have the unique opportunity to talk to students outside of a classroom setting. I even have TA's that come help me do librarian stuff. Sometimes I get TA's that just need to talk and a few of them have shared with me their stories, slowly at first, haltingly, but eventually after a few stops and starts I get to hear about their lives. Lives that are in many ways so different from my own,...more I got this book from the administration in the high school where I am the librarian. While I don't teach I do have the unique opportunity to talk to students outside of a classroom setting. I even have TA's that come help me do librarian stuff. Sometimes I get TA's that just need to talk and a few of them have shared with me their stories, slowly at first, haltingly, but eventually after a few stops and starts I get to hear about their lives. Lives that are in many ways so different from my own, but similar in a way that all of our stories are similar they are just looking for somewhere to call home. I hope that my library is that way for anyone that comes in to browse.

I might not teach, I might not have the opportunities to touch the lives of students on such a grand scale as Erin Gruwell has, but anyone who has the opportunity to teach can implement many of the things that Erin has made such a part of her classroom and life in regards to students, any students. This is a powerful book on the spark that lies within each of us, a spark that just needs a little fuel and the right person to get it started, someone who believes in us and supports us and makes us feel a part of something.

If you ever wonder why you started teaching, why you are a parent, or on the need for good teachers, this is the book to read. You will see what a good teacher, an engaged and caring teacher can do for her/his students no matter the subject matter. You will see that all students, ALL students are worth teaching and no matter who we are are or where we come from we all deserve to have a good education. Who knows what some of your students or children will become if they are just engaged in their education. Who will we inspire?

At the end of the book one of Erin's students, Maria, in a speech before the opening of the Freedom Writers movie says, "Life taught me at a very early age to see the world for what it is, but the lessons I learned in Room 203 taught me to see the world for what it could be. My only hope today is that we can one day recognize our ability to serve others, and by doing so we will make a difference. Today is the day that our passion and our dream will be one. Because now without a doubt we know that we have the responsibility to grab a young kid by the hand and teach him or her how to find their rightful place in the world."

We are all teachers of some sort. Again, who will you inspire?

Note of caution: Don't read this book on your lunch breaks in an area where people will see you, reading this book will result in spontaneous tears and sniffling(less)

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Feb 06, 2013 Stevie Lewis rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read a lot of negative reviews about not only this book, but Erin Gruwell as well.

I found this book truly inspiring. As I am about to begin my teaching credential, I am full of enthusiasm. From my experiences in education (I am a teacher's aide at an elementary school) I understand that sometimes senior teachers do not share this enthusiasm. In the first couple of pages she reminiscences about walking into the teachers' lounge and not feeling welcomed, which I feel I can fully relate to. One o...more I read a lot of negative reviews about not only this book, but Erin Gruwell as well.

I found this book truly inspiring. As I am about to begin my teaching credential, I am full of enthusiasm. From my experiences in education (I am a teacher's aide at an elementary school) I understand that sometimes senior teachers do not share this enthusiasm. In the first couple of pages she reminiscences about walking into the teachers' lounge and not feeling welcomed, which I feel I can fully relate to. One of education's biggest failures is that they cannot seem to get their employees to work together as a unit. Employees get jealous of each other, and criticize other teachers for spending their own money, and going that extra mile to make education a rewarding experience for their students. It makes me sad that there are teachers out there that do not support each other out of pure jealousy.

Before reading this book I had only watched the movie and never truly understood why Erin chose to move on after her kids graduated. I too believed that she had "sold out." After reading this book, I understand why she chose to move on. I feel that the work she is doing today to educate students, teachers, and even businesses is admirable. As much as I think that there would have been so many other kids that could have benefited from her, there was no need to stay at a school where other teachers did not appreciate her and made her feel as if she was a bad teacher for believing in kids that were meant to fail.

Finally, I'd like to address what some of the reviewers said about Erin sacrificing her marriage for her job. Only a man with insecurities would leave a woman like Erin Gruwell. In my eyes he could have been there supporting her, and that would have made their marriage work. She shouldn't have felt afraid to tell her husband about what was going on in her classroom. I remember watching a movie about a Utah teacher, Stacey Bess, who taught a group of homeless kids called "Beyond the Blackboard." My mom had told me about the movie and was in the middle of mentioning something about her husband when I interjected, "Her husband left her?" My mom said no, her husband helped her by starting a little league for the children. Erin's husband was the wrong kind of person for her.(less)

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Sep 12, 2009 Sara Liebman rated it 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed The Freedom Writers Diary, so I picked this book up in order to add context to the students' stories. I wanted to know who and what was behind these young peoples' voices. Turns out Erin Gruwell is not nearly as interesting or as talented a writer as some of her students. I am oddly compelled by this story, probably because I am a teacher and the thought of a teacher bringing about what Erin helped bring about helps feed my passion for education.

On the other hand, I'm not sure I think...more

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Mar 10, 2009 Ji rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, stories-of-hope

Such a heartwarming memoir that gives the reader a frank look on some of the challenges existing in teaching, yet triumphs over these challenges. The author's belief in her students and passion for her career are contagious. Before I read this book, I didn't know why she ended up divorcing, etc., but getting a glimpse of her perspective and hope, I learned why. I, too, tend to bring work home and spend much time in my spare time, because I have a strong conviction in what I do. Despite some of t...more

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Sep 14, 2011 Megan rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read this book immediately following the Freedom Writers Diary. While that book is written from the perspective of the students, this is the story of the teacher's journey. She is an amazing person! I wish I could have that kind of dedication and talent with students. Her story challenged me to think about how I can be better at my job.

The one thing that bothered me about her is that she basically devoted her entire life to her job-- to the point where her marriage broke up and she was in fina...more

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Jan 09, 2011 Debbie Moore-hargrove rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After reviewing the movie and reading the book, it inspired me as a teacher to care more, give more, and encourage my students to reach for the stars.

I have so much compassion for my students and teaching to make sure they progress, graduate and achieve their goals in education, careers and lives that I let them know and try to stay in touch with them even after they leave my class to assure them they are still important, special and valuable in my life and I trust they feel the same about me an...more

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Dec 14, 2008 Michelle rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: education, nonfiction

I'm a sucker for these inspirational teaching books, I guess....

It's a good story, and I definitely admire how devoted Erin is to her high school students. However, it doesn't seem realistic for most teachers to fund raise for extravagant field trips to Washington, DC and guest speakers from as far away as Europe!

The deterioration of her marriage made me wonder if it's possible to excel at one's work while maintaining a quality relationship with one's spouse and children. I want both as much as...more

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Aug 07, 2011 Urban Teacher rated it 5 of 5 stars

Erin is both a mentor and friend, so I am a biased reviewer, but I will say that as I read her memoir, she affirmed what I believe deep down: follow your heart. As teachers we often lose our way when we are compelled by the powers that be to analyze data and group and label students. Erin fights against that and shows us through her side of the story that being armed with instinct and love is a far greater weapon. A classroom built upon trust and community will always yield the most profound res...more

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Jul 17, 2011 Jess rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: class, diary-memoir, race

This book is about Erin Gruwell's teaching experience in an under privileged school district. I'd recommend reading it after reading The Freedom Writer's Diary. I liked it lot because I can relate to Erin and her experience. Plus, I think she's a great role model and has brought to light the issues some youth face. She also had the ability to take her student's experience and turn it into something positive...encouraging her students to write to give voices to youth. Although I loved the Freedom...more

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Jun 04, 2010 Clementine rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, memoir, non-fiction

Erin Gruwell's memoir of her time teaching at Wilson High School in Long Beach, California, is an emotional read. She started as a young student teacher and taught for five years, working with some of the toughest kids that the district had to offer. Teaching English and moving up each year with the same students, she was able to build an unusual rapport with her students that intensified as they went on field trips and had amazing opportunities to meet important historical figures like Miep Gie...more Erin Gruwell's memoir of her time teaching at Wilson High School in Long Beach, California, is an emotional read. She started as a young student teacher and taught for five years, working with some of the toughest kids that the district had to offer. Teaching English and moving up each year with the same students, she was able to build an unusual rapport with her students that intensified as they went on field trips and had amazing opportunities to meet important historical figures like Miep Gies and Zlata Filipovic.

This reviewer had been eager to read a memoir of Gruwell's time in the high school classroom after reading The Freedom Writers' Diary (a compilation of Gruwell's students' diaries) and seeing the film based on the book. There were several questions I had about Gruwell and her teaching that I hoped to have answered by this book.

Gruwell's tone and writing style is fairly informal throughout the book, and perhaps simpler than most readers might expect for an English teacher who taught at the collegiate (as well as high school) level. It is clear that some issues are still painful for her (her divorce is spoken about in an almost detached way, and she always refers to her spouse as "my husband" and never by name), but she is able to give the reader enough detail about the students so that they care about what happens to them.

It is a short book to cover five years in the classroom, and some readers might be disappointed that she seems to only hit the major events, choosing not to focus on the day-to-day activities inside the classroom. While this reader would have liked to see a bit more insight into the everyday minutia of room 203, it is understandable why Gruwell chose to focus on the major accomplishments of her classes.

For the most part, this reader's most burning questions went unanswered. Perhaps the most important question is why Gruwell doesn't teach anymore, and that is largely unanswered. But it is still an inspirational read, and recommended to fans of memoirs and commentary on education in general.

For the most part, the questions went unanswered.(less)

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Dec 07, 2008 Marie rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who likes to read memoirs or inspiring stories

Shelves: nonfiction, memoirs

I recently saw "Freedom Writers" (the movie with Hilary Swank), which was based on this memoir and Erin Gruwell's experiences teaching underprivileged kids in Long Beach, California. Gruwell is actually a controversial figure--take a look at some of the negative reviews on Amazon to see what I mind. I've also seen some anti-Gruwell comments on web sites as well. I think all her critics are being totally petty and ridiculous.

I found this book to be very inspiring and beautiful. I wouldn't describ...more

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Oct 31, 2009 Becky rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a very interesting true story. I'd never heard about it before a friend loaned me the book. It's amazing how showing a little faith in someone can empower them. My only complaint and a warning about it, though, is that the language is true to life. Because she taught teenagers from some of the toughest ghettos in CA, the book is sprinkled with swear words and occasional inappropriate references in places that she quotes them (and herself at times).

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Oct 10, 2007 Eva rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

This is an amazing story of what people can do when they are committed to something. I read this after watching the movie The Freedom Writers. They were both just as powerful and wrenching. The Freedom Writers were students who lived daily with poverty and violence, who believed they lived in a war zone in sunny California, who were ignored and belittled by their teachers. Until young, idealistic Erin Gruwell became their English teacher and taught them the influence of words and the power of ho...more

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Oct 28, 2010 Cheryl rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Teachers

This is very much about Ms. Gruwell. I couldn't help but feel bad for her because her life was so out of balance. She's a totally energetic and focused person, but because of her talents with her students, she forgot about her husband, which is quite sad. She was over the top in what she accomplished with her students though--so I really admire how she used her social connections to travel with her students.

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Sep 13, 2008 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars

The teachers in my children's school district are on strike, and one of the issues is being able to make changes in a district-wide set curriculum. I've been fascinated with Erin Gruwell since watching the movie The Freedom Writers, and when I saw this book yesterday (yes, yesterday!), I knew I wanted to read it.

This is a wonderful memoir, detailing the author with all her human ups and downs, successes and failures, and what she learned over the years, since starting work as a student teacher i...more

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Apr 07, 2013 Laura rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: teachers

I saw the movie "The Freedom Writer's" and fell in love. Then I read the freedom Writer's Diary and fell in love with that book too. Teach With Your Heart brought the movie to light. Erin certainly worked hard to make her projects a reality. A good read for those who feel stuck in a teaching-rut.

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Jul 09, 2012 Ashley rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: teachers, principals, etc.

Shelves: 2012-reading-challenge, education, memoirs

This was a really inspiring memoir. Erin Gruwell shows that with dedication and determination, a teacher can make a major difference in children's lives, especially those that come with a challenge. This also shows how important education is and why we need so many good teachers. I definitely recommend this book, especially to those who teach. Erin has another book out that I want to read. I got to get it.

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Aug 26, 2008 Logan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: own-bought-ebook

I thought this was sweet and inspiring. This book tells the story of how Erin Gruwell started teaching the students who would go on to become the Freedom Writers, accomplished authors, college graduates, motivational speakers and fellow teachers. She writes about struggling to work two jobs to pay for field trips and special learning opportunities for kids the system wanted to throw away. She talks about meeting Steven Spielberg and Hilary Swank, as well as her terror at giving speeches to thous...more

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Jul 01, 2008 Terry rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, education

This book, as I said in my review of Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, is execrable! Her willful ignorance of the lives of her students is inexcusable and maddening, as is her hypocrisy when she is angered by her neighbors' reactions when she takes her students to her hometown. And most of her success is based mainly on her ability to hook up with a local millionaire who subsidizes her class and their books and field trips. How nice for her. She offers very little day-to-day examples of how she tu...more

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Jun 03, 2011 Sheri rated it 4 of 5 stars

Teach With Your Heart gives a more in depth look at many of the experiences that Erin Gruwell and her students wrote about in The Freedom Writer's Diary. It's an inspirational book!

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May 25, 2007 E rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: urban teachers

Shelves: urbaneducation

this has totally re-energized me and refuled my passion for teaching and for staying in the game and keep on challenging all the things that needs to be changed so that my students can really get a meaningful education.

it's a quick read and gaves a little more background to the movie and gives me a better understanding of how exactly she implemented her currirulum and how much of her life she dedicated to her students...and also how she has continued her relationships with them after high school...more

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Jul 14, 2012 Melissa Maffei rated it 4 of 5 stars

A great inspirational book for teachers. I would reccomend the book, but not in a professional way. More as an easy inspirational summer reccomendation to help teachers plan their year.

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Jan 19, 2011 Kelley rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: wish-i-had-a-copy

This is a great book! If you are a teacher or thinking about being a teacher you should read this book!

I also just finsihed the movie and it was pretty good!

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Jan 12, 2010 Kirstie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, biography

I've never read Freedom Writers, but I found this book to be very enlightening. Only problem, it sets the bar pretty high for incoming teachers!

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Jan 30, 2013 Tani rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: education, made-into-movie, memoirs

This book is inspiring. It makes me so excited to be a teacher! Thank you, Erin, for letting us into your heart and your classroom.

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Jul 15, 2009 Desirae rated it 5 of 5 stars

Yes, most would consider this another "teacher book," but the way she cares for her students and the lengths she goes to for them is inspiring.

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Oct 23, 2010 Val added it

Erin Gruwell is an amazing model for teachers everywhere. I was changed as a person and as a teacher after reading this book.

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