Bog #2 - Chapter 2 – Reading Essentials “Bond with Your Students” (Angela Anderson)

I found this chapter to have many good insights and reminders.  Some noticings that I thought were most relevant include these:

·        The strongest predictor of reading achievement is student-teacher relationships.

·        Catching students’ fascination is important to bonding; extend an invitation to them to read and participate.

·        With a bond and trust, we can make magic happen.

·        Look for ways for students to shine.

·        For struggling students, look for the one thing they wrote or did that makes sense and affirm it.

·        Call on a student to respond and then collaborate to guarantee success.

·        Bonding is very important, and with strong bonds reprimands may become less necessary.

·        Use a language of encouragement and respect.

·        Celebrate the lives of students.

·        Allow students to be responsible for keeping the classroom well-functioning and beautiful.

·        Become “real” to our students.

·        Publish the writings of our most struggling students first so they can use these writings to help with their own reading of their story.  Connect writing to reading.  These could be shared stories even.

·        Read alouds are the quickest way to bond with kids.

·        One on one reading interviews are the best way to get to know your students as readers.

·        Focus on the joys of our students – their delightfulness and curiosity.

·        If we want our students to be excited about learning, teachers need to relish learning.

This was a great chapter for me to read this year.  Although I have done a good job with many of these bonding activities, there are some I need to try to incorporate more.  I especially like the idea of publishing the writings of our most struggling students first and using this to help them with their own reading.  The bonds we share with our students will help to create a classroom more conducive to learning and less focused on student behaviors.