Wednesday, July 09, 2014

#CyberPD - Reading in the Wild - Chapter 1-2 - Alleluia!

      As much as I love #CyberPD, I kind of think that by selecting this book, the choir is being preached to. Based on my experience in past years with #CyberPD, I think that most of the teachers and educators joining us will be singing, “Alleluia” as they read Donalyn Miller's Reading in the Wild as it confirms, validates, and supports many of the practices that we know are good for kids. And not in the “raise test scores” kind of good, but good in the way that helps students become life-long readers. As Donalyn states early in the Introduction, this is not a program to be implemented, but a way of thinking about how life-long readers and writers integrate reading and writing into their lives and then applying those principles to the classroom to help students develop the habits of life-long readers.

     With all the current tension surrounding the implementation of Common Core, and in many states, the newly minted Smarter Balanced Assessment System, I found it interesting that Donalyn returned to the 1996 NAEP report for this quote, “Students must no only develop the ability to comprehend what they read, but also develop an orientation to literacy that leads to life-long reading and learning.” I don't know about your own school districts, but around me it seems like we are moving further away from this ideal – to not only create students who can demonstrate the skills of reading, but inspire students to actually want to read and write outside of school and develop positive dispositions towards engaging in literacy for their own purposes. Or, as Donalyn writes, to foster "their capacity to lead literate lives.” (p. xx) Wouldn't that be an amazing part of any school's mission statement?

      Donalyn reminds us, “living a reading life requires some commitment” (p. 2) and highlights that too often, students have to wait until adulthood to create a readerly life because many literacy classrooms focus on skills and strategies, rather than the full experience of becoming a reader. I enjoyed reviewing the Classroom Non-Negotiables: 1) Provide time to read and write 2) Give choice to students 3) Provide multiple opportunities to respond to reading 4) Create a community around literacy and 5) Create structures to support students and teachers to learn more and assess their work together. Although these non-negotiables are very familiar (I was an early adopter of Atwell's workshop approach), it is good to be reminded of the essence of classrooms that foster the habits of life-long readers. These habits are so essential because those who become life-long readers are “readers who incorporate reading into their personal identities to the degree that it weaves into their lives along with everything else that interests them” (p. 3).

      Managing time is one of the biggest factors in determining if one will become a life-long reader. With so many requirements, responsibilities and distractions, it is easy for reading to be pushed aside for other things. Chapter 1 focuses on how we can “practice living like readers” (p. 9) by snatching reading time on the edges (the multiple few minutes of time spent waiting that inevitable happens) and getting into the habit of always having book available for “reading emergencies” (p. 14). Lately I have gotten into the habit of downloading books to my smartphone. I have been amazed at how much more reading I've been doing just because I always have a book with me. Like many of Donalyn's students (and my own), I have been under the false assumption that I need to have long stretches of time to really be reading, but the 3 minutes here and 10 minutes there allows me to savor a book as I have time to mull over sections, rather than racing through the book. However, I do have to admit that I am a horrible binge reader and will, at times, stay up for hours reading. And again, now with having books on my smartphone, I don't have to turn on the lights and bother other people, so I sneak in a lot more midnight reading. 
 
      Self-selecting books is essential to developing life-long reading habits, and Chapter 2 reviews how readers learn to select books through multiple networks, community conversations, and read alouds. I was fortune to grow up in a household that a trip to a used bookstore was common and it was expected that each of us would leave the store with multiple books. My parents never censored my reading, though they were well aware of my choices and available to discuss things with me. Most of the books that I have learned to hate are those that I was assigned to read and dissect. I hated it when teachers told me, “Don't read ahead!” If it really was a good book, I couldn't help myself! 
 
      I have really enjoyed how Donalyn has incorporated the research behind each of her recommendations, provided teaching anecdotes to show life in a real classroom, and given us access to all her handouts and forms.  She has really opened both her classroom and her thinking to us - showing how she thinks through planning a literacy block, takes notes on students' work, and even how to spot students who are fake reading.   Although many of the ideas are not new to me, I'm learning new ways to demonstrate to other teachers how to make the transition to independent reading or reading/writing workshop less daunting. She has even illustrated how to create and maintain a solid classroom library. I wish I had this book when I started teaching!!!!!!!!

13 comments:

  1. Suz,
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts here in #CyberPD. It's true I was signing Alleluia! Donalyn really gets reading and has such a back for finding the missing points! I am that reader who didn't become a reader until I awe an adult, until i learned that talking about reading and sharing with others wasn't cheating, but just begin a passionate reader. I will also admit I have been undermining my life as a reader because I only seem to read int he edges. I think this is something more readers, and certainly the families and readers in my class will, need to see as a valuable part of being a reader. Sure, it's great when we have long stretches for reading,but these are rare moments for many of us.

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    1. Deb,

      I teach Introduction to Literature in an accelerated adult degree program and I not only encourage, but require that students share their responses and reflections with each other. From their comments, I've found that they also had been socialized to think that talking about class readings was somehow cheating. I strongly believe that reading is a social activity and try to provide as many opportunities for students to both think deeply about what they read, but also represent their thinking in visual ways to help others see their thinking. This generates a lot of great conversations and sharing of perspectives. It strengthens everyone's interpretation of the literature.

      Thanks for reading and commenting,
      Suz

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  2. Suz,
    I enjoyed reading your synthesis of Reading in the Wild. The emphasis on developing readers who read beyond our classroom is appreciated as well as the research suggested to support this thinking. I appreciated the reminder of Donalyn's words, "but a way of thinking about how life-long readers and writers integrate reading and writing into their lives and then applying those principles to the classroom to help students develop the habits of life-long readers." We are so often looking for quick fixes in today's test driven world. However, I often wonder if "quick fixes" yield only short term results. What are the implications in two years, five years, ten years? I'm so glad you are joining the conversation again this year. I'm thinking you are one of our 4 year participants. Am I right about that?

    Looking forward to continuing the conversation,
    Cathy

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    1. Cathy,

      I agree, "quick fixes" often leave collateral damage that is not anticipated when policies are put in place - NCLB is a great example of this. We've known for decades that reading widely, deeply, and often is one of the best indicators of not only student success, but achievement in life, as Donalyn so eloquently illustrated. Yet we continue to create policies that take children further away from real books. As the old saying goes, "Crazy is doing the same thing over and over, hoping for different results."

      I think I'm only a 3rd year veteran of #cyberPD. I discovered it after the first year was over, and put it on my calendar so I wouldn't miss it the next summer. So glad I've continued to join - I learn so much from all the participants.

      Cheers,
      Suz

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  3. I enjoyed the way you responded, interspersing Donalyn's words with your own. I work in a school where there is no testing or set curriculum, yet some teachers still struggle to give students full choice in their reading & writing, struggle to 'trust' that the students, through grand conversations, will learn to read & choose & grow as readers. I hope to share much of Donalyn's work with them this year, & have our own teacherly conversation about this. I too loved that the research was cited. Thanks!

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    1. Linda,

      A few years ago, I conducted a small study on what encourages teachers to adopt new practices - specifically implementing peer-led literature discussions in middle school. What I found was that teachers needed to see the practice in place, a model of successful implementation, and they needed collegial conversations to reflect on and refine their use of the practice. It sounds like you may be able to serve as a mentor/model for some of the teachers in your building and provide the supportive environment that they need to get out of their comfort zone. I liked how you phrased it - to have "teacherly conversations".

      Best wishes,
      Suzanne

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  4. Absolutely, anyone who joins in a #cyberPD for Reading in the Wild is most definitely in the choir. It's nice to have validation of what our hearts tell us, though.

    I thought a lot about CCSS and Smarter Balanced as I read the first chapters. We just purchased a new reading curriculum, Wonders, which I will spend the end of the summer attempting to adapt to a choice-filled, mini-lesson and conference-driven, workshop model. It won't be easy, but I'm confident it can be done.

    I glommed on to Donalyn's section on reading on the edges, as well. I never really thought about the fact that students might assume it had to be 30 minutes straight. It's something we'll absolutely be addressing early in the year.

    Read on!
    Adam (@MrShafferTMCE)

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  5. Adam,

    Yeah, focusing on reading on the edges is just a tremendous insight for me. I had a colleague, a high school English teacher, who was an amazing model of writing on the edges. She always had a small writers notebook with her and pulled it out in the middle of conversations to jot ideas down. Her students saw her do this and she opened the notebook to them to see her process. I was amazing! I feel a little guilty, because I'm barely able to remember my glasses, much less a writer's notebook. Hmmm.... maybe I'll need to figure something out with my smartphone for writing.......

    Ponder on!
    Suzanne

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  6. Suzanne,
    I'm glad you are joining in on the conversations! Initially, I had similar concerns about reading this book for this even, but through thoughtful discussions, Laura, Cathy and I agreed it would help us dig deeper with specific ideas, suggestions, examples, and loads of research to help cultivate wild readers. I am pleasantly surprised that for a number of participants, this is a second read! That says something!

    Specifically for me, as a reading specialist, I share quite a bit at my school about literacy and creating lifelong readers based on my opinions, articles and books I've read, or many times quoting some literacy guru on Twitter. (Insert eye rolls here from those I'm sharing with ...) Now I feel I have solid research for my beliefs. I can pull this book out and feel confident about why do what we do, why we should reflect on our current practices and rethink how we can foster wild readers.

    Currently, with a new superintendent leading my district, we are fortunate not to focus on test scores, but rather student learning. However, I would LOVE to include "foster their capacity to lead literate lives" to the mission statement!

    This is a book I would have devoured as a new teacher too. Smart thinking. Clear examples. Conversation starters. What to do if ... we all have various types of readers. We need to take them from where they are and move forward to wild reading. Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Happy reading!
    Michelle

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  7. Suzanne,
    I appreciate you sharing your thoughts about Reading in the Wild and I enjoyed the quote reminders of what Donalyn Miller said in her book. I admit that I am part of the choir singing "Alleluia" because this book only reinforces many of the things I already believe and do, but I still felt as though every section had something new to offer me. First, as a relatively new teacher, it is nice to know that I'm not the only one who believes these things. Second, Donalyn has a way of going just a step farther than I have in everything she does. I have found and thought of many ways in which I can take what I'm already doing and improve upon it. I plan on setting up the two computers next to my classroom library for easy access to review and recommendation sites such as GoodReads, NerdyBookClub, and Amazon. Then I will explicitly teach my 4th grade students how to utilize these resources, rather than just having them there. I also plan on taking part in World Read Aloud Day, something I didn't know existed, and giving my students more control over the selections we read aloud. Finally, the biggest epiphany that I had from Reading in the Wild was that I had become a dormant reader. I used to be a wild reader when I was in school, but college and then work had begun taking over, leaving little time for me to read. I have since remedied this and have fallen in love with wild reading again. I too use my smartphone to download books and now have an extensive to-be-read pile on my phone. I'll never be without a book again!

    Thanks for sharing!
    Stephanie

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    1. Stephanie,

      I think your metaphor of a dormant reader is so powerful. When you look at the definition of dormant is it "alive but not actively growing". You have committed yourself to become actively growing again, which will enrich both you and your students.

      Stupendous!
      Suzanne

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  8. Suz,
    As Michelle commented already, we thought long and hard about this title for our #cyberPD book this year. I do believe there is a lot of preaching to the choir happening, but I also see a lot of new thinking and sharing taking place already! I love that you've shared some of your "a-ha" moments along with your affirmations of what you've already been doing. The research in this book is something many of us are commenting on; while the practices are what we believe to be best for readers, it's fantastic to also have research cited to back us up. Your stories about your own reading life will surely inspire your students! So glad to have your voice in the conversation again this year!

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  9. Laura,
    I agree - I think it was a wonderful idea to read this book to get pumped up for a new school year. It is like the keynote speaker at a really good conference, she celebrates what we already do but challenges us to do more! Plus, we are extending our own networks to have supportive colleagues with affinity!

    Cheers,
    Suzanne

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