Getting Students Hooked on Books

While reading the novel Lunch Money (by Andrew Clements, author of Frindle) to my 9-year-old son, I had a major "aha" moment. Let me add some background. My 9-year-old son, while a good reader, does not often choose to read for pleasure. He is intimidated by long chapter books because, as he puts it, "They take so long to read." However, he loves being read to and does enjoy books once he gets started. It's getting started that is the biggest obstacle. This is similar to many of the struggling adolescent readers I have in class. Getting started--finding a book that they enjoy from the start--is the hardest part. I often find that if I can get a student hooked on a book quickly, they are far more likely to keep going and to enjoy it. Sometimes enough to ask whether the author has written a sequel or if there is anything similar.

Anyway, back to my revelation. We started Lunch Money tonight and read the first chapter. I closed the book and he begged me to read "just one more chapter." So I did. Then when we finished chapter two, he begged and begged me to read "just one more chapter." I said that was it for today. Then he did something that surprised me: he begged me to let him continue reading on without me. I said he could, and that I'd just catch up before we continued together the next night (I'm really enjoying the story, too).

As I left his room to go downstairs to get a few things done, my mind was racing. This is not the first time he has begged me to continue. The same thing also happens when we have teacher read-aloud time in class; the kids beg and beg to continue the story when we come to a stopping point. It never occurred to me that starting a book together could be a great way to make kids salivate enough that they want to pick up the book on their own and keep going.

I can see several ways this idea could be implemented in my reading class. I could choose a different book once a week (or at some other shorter or longer regular interval) and read the entire first chapter to the students. When I do this, I need to be prepared with at least a few copies of the book for kids who want to check it out. I will also let the school librarian know in advance.

I have done basic booktalks before, and they do generate a lot of interest in books. But not for ALL of my students. I wonder if in addition to the basic booktalks I do, if I throw in a couple of "first chapters" here and there, if that variance in attack strategies might not capture a few more kids and get them started. A book doesn't seem nearly as intimidating if you have already knocked off the first chapter. Also, most people do not like to be left hanging, unable to find out what will happen next in a situation they have been following with interest.

I will give this a try this year. Maybe not once a week because it might take a lot of time away from teacher read-aloud time, but maybe in weeks where we are between teacher read aloud books, I will try to read the first chapter of a few different books. I'll be sure to report back on whether it helps students get hooked on books.

Reading Class and Survival Skills

Just finished the book called The Global Achievement Gap by Tony Wagner (2008). The premise is that we are teaching our kids to be great fact-memorizers and high-stakes test takers, but we are not preparing them for the future where they will need what Wagner calls the "Seven Survival Skills" (1. Critical Thinking & Problem Solving, 2. Collaboration Across Networks & Leading by Influence, 3. Agility & Adaptability, 4. Initiative & Entrepreneurialism, 5. Effective Oral & Written Communication, 6. Accessing & Analyzing Information, and 7. Curiousity & Imagination). I thought it was really good and it has given me some ideas that I might be implement into my high school reading classes. I am lucky to have a lot of flexibility in my curriculum, and all of the items above would not only help students improve their reading skills, but help them be able to use what they read and comprehend; therefore, I in particular should be doing more to help students improve in these areas.

1. I want to offer more rigor along with choice. In years past I encouraged students to read things they were interested in. This is good, but I want to up the ante a little by having them work toward some sort of knowledge or achievement goal with what they learn. This will be with respect to the nonfiction reading we do. Maybe instead of me selecting all of the articles we use to practice reading strategies, I can let them select an article and use it for practice. This will take a little additional time, but it will also allow me to provide more practice and instruction at evaluating sources and focusing reading / reading with a purpose.

2. I want to have fewer "tests" and more projects. I already do a lot of projects, but why not turn current unit tests into projects too. Students could collaboratively come up with a way to present/teach the strategy and its application to the class. This would be better than a review and would also offer better evidence of their mastery of the concepts and their ability to do it.

3. I want to try to go to the local grade schools more often. In years past we have gone as a whole group to the kindergarten classes in December, then to the second grade classes in April. This is a big "one shot deal," and although the kids love it, I think it would be to their benefit to go more often. Maybe I can work out some sort of arrangement with the local grade schools so that a few kids could come each period of the day. Transportation would be an issue, BUT, maybe I can work with the Driver's Education teacher to arrange transport? Don't know if there is any liability associated with this option. I'd probably have to get parental permission at the least. Definitely worth exploration, though.

4. Finally, I want to offer some sort of incentive for FINISHING books. This idea did not come from the O'Connell book. It actually came from a book called Differentiated Instructional Strategies for Reading in the Content Areas (Carolyn Chapman & Rita King, 2003). They provided many ideas for "Celebrating Reading Achievement." It dawned on me while reading this chapter that I don't really do anything to celebrate when one of my students finishes a book. I should be, because my students have a higher "non-finishing" percentage than regular students and those who do finish a book always come up to my desk eager to talk about it. Why not capitalize on this eagerness and let it affect the rest of the students as well! They could earn something for finishing a book, or we could even have mini-celebrations (treats, etc.) when someone finishes a book. The finisher will be encouraged to share his/her opinion of the book and give a recommendation.

Those are just a few big ideas I've gotten from some of my summer reading. Many more are written in my "ideas" notebook, but they need further thought and weighing.