The Gift of Reading
From the desk of Alice…
In this first year of Common Core, I am seeing and hearing many stressed educators trying to make sense of what they need to be doing. Rest assured, one thing we need to continue to do is encourage a love of learning as we dip into this new territory in education. A critical element of learning is the act of reading. There is absolutely no substitute for time spent with texts in or out of the classroom. This holiday season, give yourself and your students the gift of time spent with text!
With gifts in mind, I recently had the pleasure of taking my own children to the library and school book fair and have taken time to browse books, discuss titles, genres and really reflect on my favorites and why I still LOVE to read. Have you ever considered why YOU love to read? Why do you love the titles you love and who helped you get there? How did these titles affect who you are now, as an adult?
My family is full of avid readers, but my teachers (K-Grad School) promoted reading in a variety of ways. Because of this, I am a life-long reader and many texts have impacted me and become part of who I am. Reading is a way to build background, learn new information and also a way to make sense of our lives. To steal from Robert Fulghum’s All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, I share some of the things I have learned about life just from reading:
All I Really Need to Know I Learned from Reading:
The Hound Dog (A Golden Tiny Tale)- I am sad to say this text is no longer in print. I must have been younger than 3 years old the first time my mom read this book to me but I remember having her read it again, again, and again. I could recite it in my sleep and I read it until the binding came apart. This book taught me to fall in LOVE with the experience of reading.
The Encyclopedia Brown Series- In elementary school, I read every single book in this series about a boy detective. Encyclopedia was clever, witty and analytical. He taught me that being a good listener and paying close attention always pays off.
Dear Abby– I used to read this column in the Saturday paper as soon as I knew how to read and continued through my adult life. Abby taught me that solutions are always possible. She also helped me understand that all people struggle with personal problems- some much worse than my own.
The Poetry of Robert Frost– In the 8th grade, my teacher made us memorize about a zillion lines of Robert Frost. Not the most high quality assignment. However, I inadvertently became interested in him, his words, and many of his poems. Robert Frost taught me that I could make a huge statement without a lot of verbage.
Good Housekeeping Magazine-This magazine was always around my house and I learned how to clean a room properly, organize socks, and how to prevent a quiche from deflating in the oven. Most importantly, reading this magazine helped me realize the value in light reading, not finishing something in one sitting and in reading to learn.
To Kill a Mockingbird– I could write multiple blogs on the lessons from this book. It is the crown jewel of Southern literature and I could teach an entire course on this book alone. I was assigned this book in high school, procrastinated reading it but ended up devouring it on one snowy day in January back in the 80’s. The life lessons in this text are endless. One of my favorite quotes that taught me about life: “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view . . . until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”
Shakespeare– I had to read many of his works in high school and it was NOT by choice. I remember having a frank conversation with my high school English teacher. Ms. Elder, and asking her why she was trying to punish me with so much required reading from Shakespeare including our senior paper. However, over time, I realized Shakespeare was a genius with words, characters and had a lot to teach me about WRITIING. My Shakespeare experiences have taught me that things are not always what they seem.
Southern Living Magazine-I have read this magazine since I was a small child because it was in the stack with Good Housekeeping. I currently ask for this subscription each year as part of my Christmas presents. Southern Living has always had tips for the garden, home and places to vacation. More importantly, within the pages of this magazine each month I am reminded that the small things are the big things and traditions matter.
It’s clichéd, but loving the act of reading is truly a gift. As you select text this year and create time for students to read, I encourage you to reflect on how you are building each reader text by text into something much larger than your curriculum. You are creating lifelong learners who are woven together by the threads of what they READ!