Thursday, September 17, 2009

Update on Challenging My School

I figured if I was going to motivate my students then I needed to show them that teachers believe that reading is important. I received an email from our chorus teacher telling me she had set her own personal goal and was excited. One of the reading teachers came into my classroom and I asked her if she had read my invitation to the challenge and was told that she doesn't usually read during the school year because she just doesn't have time. And she is one of the reading teacher's trying to get the kids to read more books.
The students are appalled that I have had such a poor response. Out of all of my classes I have students who have decided to read 5 books and some 20 books. They are al considered reluctant reader. When I added up their goals they have chosen to erad 343 books total. This is just my classes we have not had time to let the other students know about it. They will hear it however. I had a student finish the first book The Missing book 1: Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix. I just purchased the sequel last weekend. I told him he could read it but he had to give it back to me so I could read it. They are getting excited about the number of books they were going to try for. I have a kid who took the ball and ran with it. One boy asked if he could check out 5 of my books and if I would divide them. In case some of you are not familiar with what this is, here goes. Take the total number of pages in the bookand divide it by the number of days the kids plan on reasding. Then I go through and put a smal sticky on it. For example if I have a student that has a book with 125 pages and 12days ito read it in .. then he will have to tell me so I can divide the books b number of pages. I will end now as it is 9 p.m. and I have been going on two hours of sleep and worked a 14 hour day. Keep Reading

2 comments:

  1. I like the idea of dividing the books visually for reluctant readers, I'll bet that makes it seem more manageable to them. I am going to remember that to suggest to parents at our library!

    _ Yoda

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  2. I wish teachers at the school system I grew up in had come up with ideas to get kids to read...I was reading at a level on par with college freshmen by age 12, but when I graduated in 2007, only 15% of my graduating class could read above a 4th grade level. It is really quite sad...I understand that some kids have problems, or don't come from a good family, but a bunch of 18 year olds who can't read books a ten year old should find easy is just appalling. (And that reading teacher you mentioned should be ashamed of herself!)

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