LIBE 477B Inquiry Blog #1: How do we create a reader-friendly school?

Image courtesy of: http://classroomchaos.tumblr.com/post/15103320902/dr-seuss-quote 

I think that to establish a true reading culture in a school, everyone- teachers, EAs, administration and students- has to be invested. In addition to having whole-school involvement, I think that teachers must model their reading behavior to students and consistently explain their "why" when it comes to reading. If a student were to ask me, "Why do you read?" I would have lots of different reasons, depending on the medium. To stay informed. To learn about different people, places and things. To get lost in a great story. To identify with a character. And, of course, just for fun! I've seen a number of schools that highlight their teachers and administration reading, with pictures on the walls of staff reading their favourite books, or having teachers write little book reviews on the school website, or inviting teachers to share their favourite books with different classes. I found a great article highlighting a discussion about the ways teachers share their reading with their students and how it inspires them. The article quotes Mem Fox in that "The passion I am asking for from teachers is a passion beyond the pay cheque. It's a passion for children's books, as well as for their own reading, for if teachers don't love to read, why on earth should children?" (National Library of New Zealand, 2015).

By doing this, we demonstrate to students that reading is everywhere and is simply just part of living a fulfilled life. Some students who struggle with reading might think that reading must involve sitting quietly with a thick book in their hands, but it's important to show them that reading includes lots of other things as well- sharing, creating, discussing- and that there are many different ways to read. In that sense, being able to help students establish their "reader identity" is a crucial way to encourage students to regard reading and their choice of reading materials as a part of who they are as individuals. Indeed, "when we promote books to children and share our reading lives with them, we offer more than another great book recommendation or reading cheerleader: we invite them into a society that reveres reading and readers" (Miller, 2013). In addition, we also must address new literacies (ebooks, for example) to encourage those students who struggle with "traditional" reading but who might excel with a more multi-modal format.  Inviting students to share their thoughts on what they've read is also a great way to get them to take ownership of their learning and express themselves (and, if they are using social media, learning a new skill at the same time!) Finally, allowing students to explore what interests them (whether it's non-fiction, current events, or a specific author) will illustrate the importance of reading simply for satisfying their own curiosity. As a teacher-librarian I am happy to see a student reading anything; I think that having a variety of genres and materials (books, magazines, graphic novels) in various levels and formats is key in making the library relevant and appealing. (More of my thoughts on reader choice and establishing lifelong reading habits can be found here.)

[Writing about this topic made me think of an assignment I had my library monitors do in one of my secondary schools: Write a book review in 140 characters and post it to the library's Twitter account. I don't have that account anymore but here's a general example. ]

Possible Strategies?

Having worked in a variety of elementary and secondary schools over the past five years, I've seen several initiatives to promote reading, some of which are more successful than others. It seems to be more difficult to have school-wide activities at the secondary level than in elementary, since there are more students (many of whom leave campus for part of the day), and more differentiated classes. One school I TOC'd in had SSR built into the daily schedule, as the first 20 minutes of the second block. Everyone- teachers, students, admin, EAs- are supposed to read something for that time period, whether it's a book, a magazine or a newspaper. However, I noticed that not all classes did it, which undermined those that did: "But Mr. ________lets us do this instead!" I suppose this might be easier in an elementary school, but again, if everyone isn't on board then it will lose its momentum quickly.

Some schools are using Raz Kids to try to encourage their struggling readers; I worked with a few such students last year and they would come to our sessions very excited after having gotten "100%" on one of the activities the night before. For students who struggle and and have been consistently labelled as a "reluctant reader" throughout their school lives, this kind of encouragement is invaluable. I also think that the learning commons transformation is helpful in this respect; many students feel that the library is "just for the smart people" or "just for reading and being quiet," but if the space is more open and flexible for other uses, and teachers bring in their classes more often, then those reluctant students might feel more inclined to come back on their own.

I also feel that author visits can do a lot to garner excitement among students for reading, as they put a human face to the book. Indeed, doing author studies and getting students to find out more about who wrote the story they just read, and the motivation behind it, can do a lot to peak students' interest and help them identify with the author. They might think, "Hey! _________ is kind of like me, and he wrote a book!"

Surrey also has 3 "Book of the Year" programs which I usually promote heavily: Surrey Picture Book of the Year (K-4), Surrey Book of the Year (Grades 4-7), and Surrey Teens Read (Grades 8-12). I think these programs allow teachers to promote a community of sharing and collaboration, since all students have access to the same books. Having served on the Surrey Teens Read two years ago, I can tell you it's not an easy feat choosing ten books that have been published in the last 2 years and that represent a variety of different genres to appeal to a variety of different tastes! I do booktalks to all classes, as well as show them the book trailers, the website and explain how the voting works in May. This is always successful in garnering excitement over the books, as students generally run to the books afterward to get the one that appealed to them most. Since I had a chance to read most of the books over the summer, I was also able to share my reactions to the books which, as discussed above, is a powerful way to motivate students. Indeed, I shared with students that one of the books was so frightening I couldn't read it at night (true story), and that one flew off the shelves first!

Another strategy I hope to try this October for Canadian Library Month is DEAR (Drop Everything and Read), which some teachers already do in their classrooms daily much like SSR. Our district usually promotes this event quite strongly:

Province of BC (22 October 2012). Drop Everything and Read. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUCnQnif5k4

This is a video made by Johnston Heights Secondary students for DEAR... Hilarious!

MisterBegg (16 October 2012). Read me Maybe. [Video File] Retrieved from  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gX4np25k5m0


Has anyone done this at their school before? Was it successful? I would hope to make it more of a year-long initiative, rather than just a one-day event...


I feel like I've discussed a million different things and raised more questions than answers (in addition to making myself overwhelmed with the infinite number of possibilities for encouraging reading...oh, the Internet....) but I suppose that's the point of the inquiry process! Looking forward to seeing what everyone else has to say!

References:

Bisplinghoff, Betty Shockley,  Commeyras, Michelle & Olson, Jennifer. (Eds). (2003). Teachers as Readers: Perspectives on the Importance of Reading in Teachers’ Classrooms and Lives. Newark, Delaware: International Reading Association, Inc.
Retrieved from http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/files/Teachers_As_Readers_by_Michelle_Commeyras_et_al.pdf


Canadian Library Association. (2014). Leading learning: Standards of practice for school library learning commons in Canada. Ottawa: ON

Kelley, S., & Miller, D. (2013) Reading in the wild: The book whisper’s keys to cultivating lifelong reading habits. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. p.88-128.

National Library of New Zealand. (2015). Services to Schools: School Staff as Readers. Retrieved from http://schools.natlib.govt.nz/creating-readers/creating-reading-culture/school-staff-readers