Margaret Tiller: Blog # 1: “Section 1: Not This: Is There Enough Time? And Is Time Enough to Support Independent Reading?” (Miller, Section 1).

   For my first blog post, I decided to select the first passage from Miller’s No More Independent Reading Without Support.  Section 1, “Not This: Is There Enough Time? And Is Time Enough to Support Independent Reading” particularly spoke to me. It discusses many of the issues I have faced in my first two months of teaching. While I repeatedly studied the importance of independent reading throughout my time in college and graduate school, I was not faced with the issue of timing and scheduling until I began teaching. Before I began teaching as a full-time career, I of course knew that independent reading was important, and I thought it would be an absolute breeze to fit into my schedule; however, I quickly discovered that this was not the case. I think many teachers hesitate with scheduling time for independent reading because they are concerned that the lack of direct instruction will be misconstrued as a lack of learning. Admittedly, I was one of these people. Miller points out, however, that is not the fact at all: “It’s well known that in order to become thoughtful, strategic, proficient readers, children need to read. A lot” (Miller 1). While direct instruction is necessary in day-to-day instruction, independent reading time is arguably just as, if not more, important. Independent reading time not only allows students the opportunity to exercise choice in their reading and the opportunity to learn more about the outside world, but it also allows the students to shed light on themselves, not only as readers, but as people as well. Independent reading has become a major part of my classroom schedule, and as the teachers questioned in Miller’s first section mention, I have learned more about my students through the time I have spent with individually conferencing than I have through any other means throughout the school year thus far. Until conferencing with my students, I did not realize how much a person can get to know another person just through a conversation about written word. I have discovered that I can infer a lot about my students and their personality and interests just through identifying their book selection. Even more, I can truly get to know my students by listening intently to their reactions about a book’s plot, views about author’s purpose, and interest in further analysis of the book.