“IR refers to time students spend reading self-selected texts”
(p. 11 – adapted from Gambrell et al. 2011).
As a math/science teacher, I miss having DEAR time each day and would
like to figure out a way (sometime in the next year or two) to incorporate it
into my science block. I have so many
books that directly relate to my science standards (except in the area of physical
science) but have yet to devise a way for my students to effectively learn what
they are supposed to learn (according to the standards) through what they read
independently. I do have a plan in my
head but it will take more time than what we currently have available each day.
I do encourage my students to read my
science content books any time we have even five minutes to “spare.” I structure it now as I used to structure
DEAR time years ago but I have added the Post-It notes aspect. The students now write notes about things
they: learned through their reading, found interesting, can relate to in some
way, have questions about, etc. We then
share our notes in different ways – small group discussions, large group
discussions, chart paper with different headings, etc.
Also, I feel that limiting a child’s book
selection based on difficulty level is not the “right way” for my classroom library
to be structured, as stated in the table on p. 14 under the ScSR column. I believe there should be a compromise and
students should be allowed to choose at least one book they want to read even
if it isn’t on their reading level. I’ve
seen students who are unable to read thoroughly enjoy a book just by looking at
the pictures. Those students have
learned something or just laughed because they were allowed to take a picture
walk through a book in which the level was well beyond their reading
capability. I’ve had other students who
were capable of reading at a very high level but occasionally enjoyed reading
books at a lower level, as well. “…IR
is most effective when students choose their own reading materials” (p. 18
Moss). “Letting kids choose what to read
motivates them to read even when it is not required” (Ainley, Hidi, and
Berndoff 2002). I want my own children
and my students to read for the love of reading. I’ve seen students who loved reading become completely
disinterested in it because they have been told what to read or have been given
a goal to achieve that is tied to their reading. Do I think we should challenge children by
asking them to read some books at the top of their reading capability? Yes.
Do I think we should allow all children to choose all of their reading
selections freely with no help from a teacher?
No. Do I believe there is a happy
medium somewhere if we can just find it?
Absolutely.
I do agree that students need to be exposed to
and taught how to read different genres.
I like the idea of a Genre Wheel (p. 20) but did giggle a bit at the redundancy
of “Historical History.” J Even if some students balk at reading certain
genres, a feeling which I understand very well, they still need to read a
little bit of everything in order to make a fully-informed decision about what
they truly enjoy and what they honestly dislike. They also need to realize that sometimes we
need to read certain types of writing based on the reason we are reading that
genre. Is it for fun/pleasure, homework,
personal research, school-based research, etc?
They may surprise themselves at what they found interesting and
enjoyed.
You have said so many good things, Olivia! I'm "amening" every sentence! :) I even had the same giggle when I saw the "Historical History." Haha.
ReplyDeleteOn Wednesday, when you go to the D6 University, go to Dawn's session on Inquiry Based Learning. I think you will LOVE it and it will show you how you can effectively give students opportunities to read all those great books about Science that you have on your shelves.
Reading widely is important--I personally stay away from some genres, but then I have stumbled across great books in those genres and worried that I've missed other great books by judging them by their genre! Like Kelli said, I think you can gain a lot from the Genius Hour model to integrate some reading with your science content!
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