This all seems like such an easy and obvious way to "turn kids on" to the love of reading yet it is so seldom practice in the classroom. Why do you think that is? What are your thoughts regarding Layne's advice.
Simply stated, Layne tells one of his student teachers to "Tell your students why you like the book..." (pg.48). In this chapter Dr. Layne asserts that, "On my list of all-time best ways to stimulate a positive attitude, interest, motivation, and engagement in text with readers, providing book chats is at the top" (pg.42). He also explains that, "At no point in my teacher training nor at multiple levels of higher education had a learned person ever said, 'Read books written for the age group you teach and then tell the kids about the books' " (pg.40).
This all seems like such an easy and obvious way to "turn kids on" to the love of reading yet it is so seldom practice in the classroom. Why do you think that is? What are your thoughts regarding Layne's advice.
7 Comments
Angela
2/14/2014 01:33:12 am
As we are all aware of as teachers, the obvious or common sense is not so common after all. Many times the most obvious goes overlooked as we all try to meet the increasing high demands of teaching. Honestly, this book has been hard for me to enjoy since I teach mathematics and the reading material available that is on grade level is either scarace or totally obsolete. I have however had conversations with students who enjoy reading and they are more than willing to share their thoughts with you on what and why they may be drawn to a particular series. Reading lists that we may have in common definitely spark additional conversation. Which is fun for both of us!
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Sandy
2/19/2014 12:55:56 am
I think that one big reason why a lot of teachers don't booktalk is that they don't read YA lit. There are some good books out there but, the reality is, it can be difficult to read book after book about teen angst (or vampires). :-) I have done some booktalks, but not nearly enough. I am also trying to get students to booktalk because I have found that a peer recommendation goes a long way.
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Ever since college English for Middle School teachers, (When we read over 200 middle school and elementary level books) I have read books I thought my students would like. Any time I hear or see students reading a book, I look into it. This is how I got turned onto the Twilight series, the Marked Series, and the Vampire Academy series. I have read all of them. However, I usually find that I would NOT suggest them to young adults because I find them inappropriate for their level. I know I view things differently as an adult than they would but I would not want to suggest a book and then a parent get upset about it. This is why I NEVER suggest books to students. I am just not comfortable making the decision whether they are age appropriate or not.
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Megan
2/21/2014 06:12:18 am
I have started to do more booktalks in my room after Mrs. Brand sent me books to read that are YA fiction. When I come and share with the kids about the books, they are very interested in how I felt about what I read. I have also noticed that when we read excerpts from novels, children will be so proud to check it out if they find it in the library. I think this is because they are being modeled to how to read based on interests instead of reading for an assignment.
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I do book chat reverse order. Since I have younger children, I do not get to read any teenage novels. However, when I see a title out there or I see a book that everyone is reading, I ask them about it. When students see that you are interested, they might want to check the book out for themselves.
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Ali
3/31/2014 04:40:11 am
This is something I need to work on. As a Math and Social Studies teacher it is hard for me to do book talks...because it seems like all my time is about math. I know I need to read more YA books especially on history. I could definitely incorporate it into my history lessons and collaborate with my partner teacher on how we could both work on it together.
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AuthorMiddle School Instructional Coach with a focus on ELA facilitating a book study. Archives
March 2014
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