Margaret Tiller: Blog # 5: Chapter 9: Routman “Emphasize Shared Reading” Reading Essentials

For my fifth blog post, I chose to read Routman’s Chapter 9, “Emphasize Shared Reading.” I believe that shared reading is such an integral part of the reading experience because it gives students a model to observe and emulate. Shared reading not only shows a variety of ways to read and interpret the text, but it further emphasizes the idea that reading is valuable at any age. I feel that shared reading is particularly important in Title I schools because often these children do not see reading being modeled in the home setting. These children are perfectly capable of becoming engaged learners who are enthusiastic about reading, but unless they are exposed to shared reading in the classroom setting, this interest in reading may never fully blossom. One of the biggest “pros” to using shared reading I have found in my own classroom is that I do not have to go purchase twenty copies of the same book in order for my class to learn: “[…] Shared reading is cost effective and works across the curriculum. When funds for materials are in short supply, all you need is one copy of a book” (Routman 132).