Routman/Reading Essentials/Ch. 3 “Share Your Reading Life”
I have always LOVED teaching
reading, and it is truly the best thing ever to get students to fall in love
with reading. After reading this
chapter, I realized that I need to take a look at my own reading life in order to
help my students see the enjoyment that reading can bring.
One thing that is abundantly clear
after reading Routman’s chapter in Reading
Essentials is her overwhelming love of reading. When I came to the end of this chapter, I
couldn’t help but reflect on my own love of reading and how it has, sadly,
diminished over the years. This fact is
largely due to the time constraints of a busy lifestyle. I can’t help but think that time constraints
and busy lifestyles could also play into the reason why students may not have a
love for reading like they may have once had.
Since time is so precious in today’s
busy classroom, I realize that time is the best thing I can give to my students
in order for them to discover a love for reading. They need time for independent reading with
books that they select. They need time
to reflect. They need time to share
their books with others. If given
adequate time, I know a genuine love for reading can begin to grow.
After reading this chapter, I
discovered two take-aways that can help me with this issue of time. For one, not assigning reading logs for
students to keep up each week could be a great way to get a few minutes back
each day. Those extra minutes could be
used for independent reading time and not wasted passively writing titles and
page numbers on a piece of paper. This
is definitely a new concept for me, as I have always felt it was important for
students to track their reading.
However, Routman suggests simplifying the record keeping students
do. I think Padlet would be a great way
for students to track and share their reading with others.
A second take-away from this
chapter for me was giving an outlet for students to share what they’ve
read. In the past, I have seen
first-hand how one recommendation from a friend is all it took for the whole
class to be hooked on a series. I love
the idea of a book review bulletin board and plan to incorporate this in my classroom
soon. Having students write a book
review or blurb for other students to read will be a powerful, authentic way to
get others reading. I think it would
also work well if I am included on the board and recommend books as well.
I’m very excited about instilling a
“book love” within my students this year.
I’m also hopeful that I can find some time to put down the TV remote and
pick up some books to rediscover the love for reading I once had.
I am so glad you were able to take away some things from this article to use in your classroom! I too, was guilty of taking too much time from reading by having students record what they had read during IR. I love how you are incorporating the padlet as a way for them to record what they have read. It may also prove to be a collaborative place for them to share what they are reading! If you decide to do the Book Pass idea, you could have post-it notes available during the book pass activity. If a student has read the book already, they can write their name on the note and stick it to front to the book. This would allow anyone who is considering the book to know who they could talk to about the book. Let me know if you try it out. I would love to hear how it goes!
ReplyDeleteHi Valen,
ReplyDeleteI appreciate how you are working to foster a book love into your students' this year. I loved your paragraph, "Since time is so precious in today’s busy classroom, I realize that time is the best thing I can give to my students in order for them to discover a love for reading. They need time for independent reading with books that they select. They need time to reflect. They need time to share their books with others. If given adequate time, I know a genuine love for reading can begin to grow." This is so true! Time to read truly is a gift and how we invest into that time and allow reading recommendations and conferencing to come out of that time and feed into our instruction really targets our students' growth as readers. I also appreciated your thoughtful takeaways. Let me know how padlet goes for your reading log! I'd love to see it. Sincerely, Dawn