Why Read?

 

I belong to a bookclub. 

But as one of my best friends and colleagues is apt to say, the first rule of our book club is that we don’t talk about books.  It’s a bit of a joke, because although we do discuss our reading, we also just discuss our lives, loves, and losses.  The six of us are trauma survivors who have grown into best friends.  We read about stories that make sense to us, and we love to talk about them.  Reading is a social event for us.  So is the food and drink, but that’s for another blog! 

I was not a reader as a child, but now I am a voracious reader.  I fell in love with Agatha Christie in the summer between grade 8 and 9.  Who knew?  But that’s the point.  Who knows what kids will fall in love with?  They need to be given all sorts of materials at all levels so they can find something that speaks to their souls (Schrempp, 2021 and James 2021).

My own boys are also voracious readers.  They read everything they can get their hands on, and we still read together before bed even though they are now 10 and 12 years old.  They are lucky.  They have a headstart when it comes to reader engagement in school.  And it is true that the number one predictor of reader engagement is family values (Schrempp, 2021, p.25).  However, that isn’t to say we can’t create these kinds of readers in our classrooms and schools even without this family background.

Unfortunately, what I see happening in many classrooms in my school and through library initiatives is better described as “readicide”.  Gallagher defines readicide as “the systematic killing of the love of reading, often exacerbated by the inane, mind-numbing practices found in schools” (2009, p.2).  I see those mind-numbing practices every day as I do curricular support.  I rarely see children engaging in reading just for the love of reading, and I am positing that there are three culprits to readicide in my school: not allowing reading to be social, asking students to answer questions after reading, and forcing children to read specific, teacher chosen books.

We know that reading is both an independent and a social event (Schrempp 2021), and yet in many classrooms it is an independent assignment where discussion is frowned upon. Reading is a social event for us as adults, and it is for our students as well. Why not allow them time to lean into their books with their friends through activities that have them talking and creating?  If you speak about your reading and hear others speak about it, books become more alive and more a part of your heart.  

Another type of readicide I see is when educators ask their students to answer questions about their books after they read.  James (2021) actually advocates for this practice as well.  I will tell you, after reading a chapter before bed, the last thing my kids want to do is explore character development.  That’s not love - that’s torture!  And yet I see it all the time in my school.  Reading a chapter followed by questions to answer.  It makes kids groan when you ask them to take out their books. I do recognize the importance of assessing their comprehension and reading strategies, but answering questions is not a natural way people engage with books.  So why do it?  

Finally, our school, through our LLC, participates in something called Battle of the Books.  In this event, students are put into reading groups (usually with different levels of readers) to collaborate to read 12 books over a period of time.  Then they participate in “battles” where they answer questions about the books to become the champion of their grade in school.  There are so many things that kill the love of reading in this event.  Students either feel that they will let their team down, if they are the lower end readers, or they feel resentful if they are the higher end readers.  The books chosen are wonderful books, but they are not chosen by the students, which means that buy-in is very low.  Finally, competition does not engage every type of student. In fact, it often makes students shy away.

It doesn’t have to be this way.  One of the best ways to still meet the needs of the curriculum but not kill the love of reading was created by my teaching partner, Melanie Charest.  She recognizes the need for reading to be social and that children thrive with choice.  When students are reading their books they always have time to talk, and she gives them discussion prompts to help awkward adolescents know what to talk about (see example below in figure 1). Then they are challenged to represent their ideas in a fun and engaging way that taps into multiple skills and interests (figure 2).  The students always have a blast with this activity (figure 3&4).  In fact, this year we had a grade 8 student who proudly announced that he read his first whole book ever after participating in Melanie’s reading activities.

(figure1)

(figure 2)

(Figure 3&4 - Examples of student's chosing to represent their reading.  Students also spoke about their work to each other and the teacher.)

In my classroom, I will try to create readers like my own two children. Those who read because they love story, characters, and exciting events.  And to do this I will give my students choice after choice.  They will be able to choose the type of reading they’d like to do, the format of things they read, and the content of what they read.  I will make reading exciting for them by asking them to be social with their reading and to create things they feel are exciting to create.  

Resources:

Charest, M. (2016). It’s “LIT”-erature Book Clubs. (Unpublished)

Gallagher, K. (2009). Readicide: How Schools Are Killing Reading and What You Can Do About It (Illustrated ed.). Stenhouse Publishers.

James, K. (2021, August 9). How Can You Engage Students in Reading? Try These 5 Strategies. Scribbr.Com. Retrieved May 29, 2022, from https://www.hmhco.com/blog/five-ways-to-spark-engaged-independent-reading

Schrempp, H. (2021). Engaging Middle Schoolers: Teaching Strategies for Boosting Independent Reading Motivation in Middle School. Hamline University School of Education, 25–34. https://digitalcommons.hamline.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1711&context=hse_cp