Who Are These People?
Yesterday the observer for the new reading program came. She missed me, thank God, but she went to this one teacher and told him he was a little stiff. After school he was telling us he doesn't feel comfortable in his rapport with the kids when it comes to reading. He can expand on math and science, but reading, not so much. My take is, he's not a reader. (Okay, yeah, he's also never taught younger than 4th grade, too, but I'm sticking to my theory.)
My grandmother was a great reader. My grandfather, too. My mother would read TO us, but never would read for her own pleasure. (This is a bit reassuring, since I'm pretty sure she'll never read one of my novels.) My younger brother didn't read when he was younger, but he devours books now, as does his wife. My son used to devour books, but now would rather noodle on his guitar. My husband used to read but now prefers audio books.
But really, outside of writing circles, I don't know many that read for pleasure, which is a shock, especially in the field of education! Here we're trying to teach kids the lifelong joy of reading, showing them what they can learn outside their own worlds, and we're not reading ourselves?
I used to love when we'd have D.E.A.R. time (Drop Everything And Read). Everyone in the school read for 15 minutes. No one wandered the halls, no one went to the restroom, everyone read. There's no time for that anymore, unfortunately, but I have been reading to my kids, hoping that will fire them up.
Maybe I should start reading to the teachers, too.
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11 comments:
D.E.A.R. Time sounds so fun! I wish I could instigate that here.
I loved D.E.A.R. when I taught elementary school. It was great.
I had a colleague come up to me in the hallway the other day and ask me what she should do to raise her child to be an honors student. I thought she was kidding, but she wasn't. I told her to read to her child every day, have her child read to her...but even more, let her child see HER reading by herself for pleasure. This was a new one to my colleague. But I think it is vitally important. BOTH my kids (homeschooling aside) became avid readers for pleasure and writers of tales because they saw Mama doing those things. Kids are always watching and listening very intently. This was a great topic, Mar.
JoAnn
I have always wondered if my kids are such big readers because I always read while I was nursing them.
My kids sit and look at books for hours--they are just starting to learn to read, and my DH reads for pleasure now, although he only read comics when we met (Judge Dredd is literature apparently), I so love to read I can't understand people who don't.
Wow that's surprising, Mary :0
I think it's great that you read to your class :)
That D.E.A.R. program sounds cool. Too bad it's not in use anymore. The thing is, reading helps you understand all the other subjects in school.
It always amazes me when I meet a non-reader, particularly one who hates to read. That's so beyond my comprehension.
I'm the same way, Trish. I was raised by two huge readers but I'm the only kid that inherited their love of books. I find non-readers strange, and kind of sadly lacking in some ways.
Cool, Gina! It does start young....
Toni, my dh was a big comic book fan, too. He still has some. He loves sci fi and Stephen King. So does my brother.
Oh, forgot to say, 50 % of the people asked today didn't know what a guillotine is! What???? How could you NOT know?
I LOVE the DEAR idea.
You're so right about teachers not reading. I did get several of my friends hooked on Stephanie Plum though. Now to get them reading more.
My cousin, who used to poo-poo my reading of romance, now reads Janet Evanovich, Sophie Kinsella and Jennie Crusie. HA! Got her.
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