Varley Blog #3 - Routman Ch. 4

        I enjoyed reading Routman’s chapter 4 “Teach with a Sense of Urgency”. Throughout the chapter, Routman gave clear examples of what it means to teach with a sense of urgency. When I began reading, I thought that by urgency he meant quickly, but that is not the case. To teach with a sense of urgency is to teach in way that allows you to focus on your students and what they need in the moment while being aware of where you want them to go. He said that “we need to support students in becoming more self-sustaining, thoughtful, independent readers and writers” and I could not agree more. He had me hooked and I just wanted to figure out how he was doing this in the classroom. That led in to his “Top Five Things I Do To Ensure Students Become Excellent Readers” list. Now, I had had some of my own ideas of things that I try to do to ensure that my students become excellent readers, but he had some that I would not have originally thought of. I love that he started by saying that he first demonstrates to his students that he is a reader. This is something that one of my college professors always stressed to us and I am happy to see it supported in other works, as well. When students see that you are a reader that makes the experience very real and it allows them to join the community of readers in the classroom – the teacher included! Having a positive and respectful relationship with my students has always been one of my top priorities and Routman noted this, as well, when talking about the “optimal learning model”, which shares that it is important that students have bonded with their teacher. This bond will allow the students to trust the teacher and value what they have to say in the classroom and that bond will also positively impact students’ reading when they hear that that teacher, they are bonded with, is a reader as well. I hope to be able to incorporate more of the “optimal learning model” and the activities that Routman outlines in this chapter, in to my classroom this year to help my students to not only feel successful in reading, but also to enjoy reading.