Students in my classes read books of their choosing for the first 10 minutes every day. But making this happen is not as simple as telling kids to find a book and telling them to read. That method will result in a lot of fake-readers, daydreaming or checking their phones. It’s no wonder teachers who try to prioritize reading time give up if students aren’t using it to read.
So one of the first things I do with a new class is lay out reasons for building reading stamina. I’ve made a powerpoint that overviews reasons a person should consider becoming a voracious reader. One of the first slides invites students to examine reasons they have struggled reading in some way or another:
Because “tiny print” is the first reason that pops up on the screen, I can tell kids straight off that I don’t like books with tiny print. Given my druthers, I’d read everything in large print. Invariably, a few students agree they, too, don’t like tiny print. And we’re off!
I chime in with my inability to read with concentration if people are talking (distractions) and how especially in the evening, I find myself closing my weak left eye to prevent words from dancing around the page. And I’m not a fast reader. There is almost an excitement in the room as students share the things that have hindered their reading and realize they are not alone.
This communal confession bonds us as a class. We ALL have trouble reading at times, and we’ll work to become readers despite these struggles. This open acknowledgment is a subtle way of keeping the room fake-reading free. We may need a book with larger print, or easier words, or we need to suck on a lemon drop to keep from falling asleep, or switch books because this one is boring, or hold a notecard under a line of print to keep our place. No one is hiding their reading fears in Room #408, and that is the first step to moving forward.
I’d like to know if you can add to my slide of reading struggles. Do you or your students have reading struggles I've missed? Please share!
Next:
I chime in with my inability to read with concentration if people are talking (distractions) and how especially in the evening, I find myself closing my weak left eye to prevent words from dancing around the page. And I’m not a fast reader. There is almost an excitement in the room as students share the things that have hindered their reading and realize they are not alone.
This communal confession bonds us as a class. We ALL have trouble reading at times, and we’ll work to become readers despite these struggles. This open acknowledgment is a subtle way of keeping the room fake-reading free. We may need a book with larger print, or easier words, or we need to suck on a lemon drop to keep from falling asleep, or switch books because this one is boring, or hold a notecard under a line of print to keep our place. No one is hiding their reading fears in Room #408, and that is the first step to moving forward.
I’d like to know if you can add to my slide of reading struggles. Do you or your students have reading struggles I've missed? Please share!
Next:
Trap #2: Gimmicks or Grades?
No comments:
Post a Comment