The Book Whisperer

Celebrate Reading Freedom

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 15:37:42 -0500

On this Independence Day, I am grateful for my freedom to read what I want. My fundamental right to write or read any book, blog, news article, or Twitter feed—no matter how controversial, thoughtful, or ridiculous—is not commonplace for all citizens around the world. When we choose our own reading material and encourage children to do the same—we exercise our rights as Americans. Celebrate your reading freedom today!

I have exercised my right to read this summer. With the extra time the vacation brings, I set the ambitious goal to read a book each day. Perhaps, I was inspired by my first summer read, Julie and Julia, one woman’s quest to cook every recipe in Julia Child’s masterwork, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Or I felt motivated after reading blogs by reading mavens like Jen Robinson and Terry Dougherty, who regularly post about the scores of books they read.

I chose each book at random—my own enjoyment or edification the only goal. Some of these books will wind up in the hands of my students this fall, some aren't appropriate for my sixth graders. I believe each book has an audience somewhere! For those who are counting, there are only 29 books, but it took me two days to read Debbie Miller’s book and absorb it. I have starred the books that I consider must-reads. Enjoy my list and post your own summer reading finds. We all want to see what you are reading, too!

Books Read In June

Teaching Books

**Teaching with Intention: Defining Beliefs, Aligning Practice, Taking Action, K-5 by Debbie Miller (nonfiction). My favorite quote from this book sums up its premise, “I'm convinced that success in the classroom depends less on which beliefs we hold and more simply on having a set of beliefs that guides us in our day-to-day work with children. Once we know who we are and what we're about in the classroom, we become intentional in our teaching; we do what we do on purpose, with good reason.”

Adult Books

The Good Good Pig: The Extraordinary Life of Christopher Hogwood by Sy Montgomery (memoir). A memoir of nonfiction author Sy Montgomery and the special pig she and her husband kept as a companion for fourteen years.

Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment by Julie Powell (memoir). Realizing, at 30, that her life wasn’t going to be anything remarkable, Julie Powell set out on a year-long journey to cook every recipe in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking . Look for the movie, starring Amy Adams and Meryl Streep, later this summer.

High School (9th-12th)

how I live now by Meg Rosoff (realistic fiction). Sent to live with her aunt and cousins in England, fifteen-year old Daisy falls in love with her cousin Edmond and life in the countryside. When war breaks out and her new family is split apart, Daisy discovers the untapped emotional and physical strength she needs to survive. Winner of the 2005 Printz Award.

My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park by Steve Kluger (realistic fiction). Baseball, Broadway musicals, and social activism provide a humorous and tender backdrop for this story of three Boston teens and their year of self-discovery.

**I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (realistic fiction/ mystery). After thwarting a bank robbery, Ed Kennedy receives messages in the mail, marked in code on playing cards. Compelled to complete one mission for each clue, Ed changes other people’s lives, and ultimately, his own. A 2006 Printz Honor Book.

Middle School (6th-8th)

**The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin (realistic fiction). Matt, narrates this story (written as a letter to his youngest sister, Emmy) of the abusive treatment he and his two sisters endure at the hands of their violent and unpredictable mother. A 2006 National Book Award finalist.

Lay that Trumpet in Our Hands by Susan Carol McCarthy (historical fiction). Reminiscent of To Kill A Mockingbird, this book describes the shocking history of the Ku Klux Klan in 1950’s Florida through the eyes of twelve year-old Reesa, a white girl whose liberal parents oppose the Klan’s tactics.

Tillmon County Fire by Pamela Ehrenberg (realistic fiction). Read my review and interview with Pamela earlier this month.

Thwonk by Joan Bauer (fantasy). Visited by her personal cupid, A.J. must choose one of three gifts: academic, artistic, or romantic success. A funny take on the “be careful what you wish for” theme.

Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson (realistic fiction). Realizing 20 pages in that I had already read this book, Anderson’s writing compelled me to read it again. Tyler Miller, invisible before spraying his school with graffiti, returns to school for his senior year, and struggles with his newfound notoriety, crushing course load, and demanding father.

The Patron Saint of Butterflies by Cecilia Galante (realistic fiction). Raised on a religious commune, Agnes seeks sainthood, while Honey yearns to escape. Rescued by Agnes’ grandmother, the girls must decide what they really believe about faith, family, and self-determination.

Killer Pizza by Greg Taylor (fantasy). Welcome to Killer Pizza, where the classic monster movie theme and funky menu items like the Frankensausage hide the restaurant’s true purpose as a monster-hunting organization.

Intermediate Grades (4th-6th)

**The Great Wide Sea by M.H. Herlong (realistic fiction). When his mother dies in a car accident, Ben’s father sells their house and sets out with Ben and his two younger brothers on a year-long sailing trip. When their father disappears, the boys must fend for themselves under increasingly dangerous conditions.

Things Hoped For by Andrew Clements (realistic fiction/mystery). While she prepares for intense music school auditions, Gwen’s grandfather disappears, leaving behind a cryptic answering machine message. Bobby, the protagonist from Clement’s Things Not Seen, befriends Gwen, and works with her to conceal her grandfather’s disappearance and solve the mystery.

Eleven by Patricia Reilly Giff (realistic fiction/mystery). As he approaches his eleventh birthday, Sam discovers a newspaper clipping that indicates he might have been kidnapped years ago. Unable to read well, Sam pairs up with a new girl in his class, Caroline, to uncover the secrets of Sam’s past. (Long time readers of my blog might recall that this book was on my summer reading list last year!)

Tales of the Cryptids: Mysterious Creatures that May or May Not Exist by Kelly Milner Halls, Rick Spears, and Roxyanne Young (nonfiction). This book provides an in-depth look into the study of cryptids, legendary beasts like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness monster, and the scientists who work to confirm (or refute) the existence of these creatures.

We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball by Kadir Nelson (nonfiction). Thoughtfully researched and beautifully illustrated, We Are the Ships tells the long-overdue story of the Negro Baseball League. Winner of the 2008 Coretta Scott King and Sibert Award medals.

Trouble Don’t Last by Shelley Pearsall (historical fiction). When Harrison, the elderly man who helped raise him decides to run away, eleven year-old slave, Samuel, joins him on a terrifying escape along the Underground Railroad. Winner of the 2003 Scott O’Dell Award.

Merlin and the Making of the King by Margaret Hodges (traditional literature). With succinct versions of three tales and ornate medieval-style illustrations, this book provides a marvelous entry-point to Arthurian legends.

Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson (historical fiction). “Hope is the thing with feathers.” Living in a racially segregated neighborhood in 1971, this line from an Emily Dickinson poem inspires Frannie, to examine the nature of hope through the eyes of her deaf brother, her frightened mother, and the white boy who joins her sixth grade class.

Gossamer by Lois Lowry (fantasy). Apprentice dream giver, Littlest, learns how to send good dreams to her human charges, and old woman and a troubled young boy, and protect them from nightmares.

The Earth Dragon Awakes: The San Francisco Earthquake of 1906 by Laurence Yep (historical fiction). Alternating narrators between Chin, a Chinese immigrant, and Henry, a banker’s son, Yep delivers a thrilling description of the historical and seismic events before, during, and after the Great San Francisco Earthquake.

The Seems: The Glitch in the Sleep by John Hulme and Michael Wexler (fantasy). An alternate universe, known as the Seems, constructs and manages the world as we perceive it. Recruited as a Fixer, troubleshooters who maintain our version of reality, twelve year-old Becker Dane embarks on his first mission to fix a problem in the Department of Sleep before catastrophe strikes.

Book of Time by Guillaume Prevost (fantasy). Searching for his father, who has been missing for ten days, Sam discovers a secret portal in the basement of his father’s bookstore and uses it to travel through time.

**Chronicles of Ancient Darkness #1: Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver (fantasy). When a demon-possessed bear kills his father, Torak and his wolf cub companion pursue the bear in an epic quest to save their home in the forest. Set 6000 years ago, this book provides a detailed look at the lives of prehistoric hunter/ gatherer tribes. The first in a six book series.

Elementary Grades (3rd-4th)

The Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies (realistic fiction). When fourth-grader Evan’s little sister, Jessie, skips the third grade, he expresses his frustration by opening a lemonade stand to compete with hers.

**Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little by Peggy Gifford (realistic fiction). On the last day of summer vacation, Moxy Maxwell has not read her assigned summer reading, Stuart Little. Distracted by life, Moxy creates a series of obstacles and excuses to avoid reading. Hilarious photographs by Valorie Fisher depict Moxy’s family and the disasters that befall them. Fans will enjoy two more Moxy books: Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank-you Notes and Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Practicing the Piano.

Toys Go Out: Being the Adventures of a Knowledgeable Stingray, a Toughy Little Buffalo, and Someone Called Plastic by Emily Jenkins (fantasy). This gentle book describes the adventures of three friends, who are also toys.

Look for more book-a-day picks in future posts. I am already three books into July!

Donalyn Miller TV Appearance

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:06:26 -0500

Editor's Note:

Donalyn Miller will be appearing live from San Francisco on ABC's "View from the Bay" on Thursday, July 2 at 3PM PST.

To watch the program, check out this link:
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/channel?section=view_from_the_bay&id=5755208

Summer Rerun-- The Tale of Two Tables

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:22:50 -0500

Reading Kate Messner's passionate post In Defense of Summer Reading Freedom reminds me of my similar post last summer, The Tale of Two Tables. What are your thoughts on required summer reading?

Tillmon County Fire

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:09:30 -0500

After reading, last summer, Pamela Ehrenberg’s first novel, Ethan Suspended, which explores themes of prejudice, loyalty and tolerance through the eyes of Ethan, a young man who moves in with his grandparents in their declining neighborhood, I eagerly dove into Ehrenberg’s latest book, Tillmon County Fire.

Set in a remote part of Appalachia, the book unfolds through the alternating perspectives of several teenagers who live in this rural community: Rob, the openly-gay newcomer; Lacey, the invisible girl who works in her family’s hardware store; Jeremy and his mentally-challenged twin, Albert; and Aiden, who believes he is an instrument of God. As readers follow the overlapping narratives, the story builds to a shocking incident, the arson of part-time resident's vacation home. How each person is involved in the days leading up to the fire and affected by its aftermath, creates a powerful story, which has the potential to spark discussion about the nature of our own prejudices and how our interconnectedness impacts us.

Well-crafted and provocative, Tillmon County Fire solidifies Pamela Ehrenberg’s reputation as a talented new author of young adult novels. Touring the blogosphere, promoting her book and discussing her life as a writer and mother of young children, Ehrenberg stops by The Book Whisperer and reveals how her life experiences influence her work.

How did you become a writer?

For a long time, I thought I became a writer because of something that happened in kindergarten, where someone misinterpreted a story I shared with the class and I realized how much of the really interesting work of writing doesn't happen until a reader comes along. But your question makes me realize it goes back earlier than that, to the stories my dad told me with unadorned sock puppets (most people would just call them socks!) on his hands. The narrator was always the most interesting character, getting all frustrated when Goldilocks failed to show up or mixing up the wolf from "Red Riding Hood" with the one from the "Three Little Pigs". I think that was my earliest clue that stories were created by real people.

How has your AmeriCorps (a national service organization) experience influenced you?

Well, in a direct way the setting for Tillmon County Fire was inspired by the Appalachian community where I was an AmeriCorps member. But in a broader sense, being in AmeriCorps opened my eyes to the different forms of diversity around me, even in places where at first glance everyone looks the same. And I learned what it feels like when people look at the badge you're wearing or the work you're doing, and assume certain things about you, like how much money or how many opportunities you have. And then talk to you differently once they've concluded that you're "poor"--that was an eye-opener. Also, of course, I met my late husband because of an AmeriCorps connection: he had worked for the Corporation for National Service here in D.C., and he spotted the AmeriCorps patch on my bag as I was coming up the Metro escalator.

Why do social issues appeal to you as writing topics?

Actually, I think it's stories that appeal to me--anything with "topics" makes me think I should be writing a five-paragraph essay. So far, I guess it's turned out that telling a story sometimes bumps up against some of the "social issues" that characters are struggling with. But I think for the person in the midst of the struggle, it's not a social issue to them, it's their life.

Why have you chosen to write young adult books?

One of the most liberating experiences I've had as a writer was when a professor returned one of my short stories with the comment, "This sounds like the first chapter of a young people's novel." That was the first time I realized that publication in the New Yorker wasn't the only conceivable goal for a fiction writer, that writing in a young person's voice that feels natural and comfortable to me can actually count as a legitimate art form.

What childhood literacy experiences influenced your interest in writing? Are there books you remember? Did you write when you were young?

I remember coming home from the library with towering piles of books, and sometimes checking out the same books over and over, wanting to lose myself in the familiar world of the characters. I was probably about eight when I used birthday money to buy the complete boxed set of the Little House on the Prairie books, all of which I had already read multiple times. (My logic: why buy a book unless you're already certain you'll like it?) The purchase was monumental enough that my mom mentioned to the salesperson that I was buying the set with birthday money, and when the salesperson asked when my birthday was, she was visibly surprised to learn that it was several months earlier. I had needed that much debate, contemplation, and analysis before even coming to the store. I still have the books, and the box.

Are you working on any ideas for another book?

My new manuscript is set in 1950s Baltimore, and it's about a girl whose mother has mental illness. I'm actually thinking ahead to what's next, because I'll need something to distract me from the plight of that manuscript as it begins its submission journey.

What questions do you wish people asked you?

I'd love to be in a position where people might logically ask, "So, what was it like winning the Newbery?" In the meantime, any question that doesn't involve potty accidents, squished Cheerios, etc., is a welcome change of pace from daily life!

Thanks, Pamela for appearing here as part of your blog book tour. Congratulations on the success of your latest book.

I read Tillmon County Fire as part of my annual book-a-day summer reading challenge. With books like this one, I am off to a promising start. Look for progress updates and book lists in future posts. Like my students, I am already looking for creatively compliant ways to finish so many books!

The First Day of School

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 09:48:51 -0500

School ended yesterday, and today, I moved the contents of my classroom into the new room my students and I will inhabit next year. Six girls, former students from various years, donated their first day of summer vacation to help me move. The most demanding task, of course, is dusting 10 bookshelves and hauling over 80 tubs of books down the hall. After two hours of dusting and shelving, I noticed that a large percentage of my books were stacked on the floor, never making it to the shelves.

Dismayed about how little progress we were making, I cried out, “Girls, why are these books piled everywhere? Do you need help sorting them all?”

The girls clamored, “These are the books we are checking out over the summer. You don’t mind do you? We need books to read!”

Laughing, I agreed, “Well, the books will just sit here lonely over the break. They might as well go home with you. Make sure you leave a list and bring them back before school starts.”

Later, we sat on the floor, eating pizza and chatting about our summer plans—plans that included lots of reading. Each girl dug into her take-home book pile, sharing the treasures discovered during the move. It amazed me that these girls, several who met each other today, came together as a reading community sitting on my floor, swapping book recommendations as freely as they shared tips about middle school. They reminisce about the books already read, and anticipate the next title. School is over, but their reading lives continue—using their experiences and preferences to inform future choices.

Teachers do this, too, reflecting and thinking ahead. One school year ends, and the new school year begins the next day, it seems. We hang up our teaching hats for a few months, but we never turn off our teaching brains. Taking a break to refresh ourselves and recharge, we consider how to move forward in our own teaching and learning. What did our students teach us this year? How can we improve the reading instruction in our classrooms? What can we read and study now that we have time? And most importantly, how can we support each other as learners like my students support each other as readers?

Considering the triumphs and trials of the last year and my own unanswered questions, a few topics repeatedly surface. Perhaps you have answers or a new perspective.

How can I build a community of readers and writers earlier in the school year? Every mix of students differs and some years it takes until after Winter Break for my students to gel as a community. Following the success of several teachers at my campus who implemented Responsive Classroom techniques this year, I plan to investigate this model for instilling academic and social competency in my own students next year. Building a supportive, caring community is always my goal, and any tools that help me accomplish this only benefit my students and me.

How can I integrate nonfiction reading and writing into my language arts classroom? For years, I have taught both language arts and social studies, integrating social studies content and language arts skills. This upcoming year, I will teach just language arts. Revisiting many of my old standbys, like Janet Allen’s Yellow Brick Roads, and new works like Nonfiction Mentor Texts by Lynne Dorfman and Rose Cappeli, I need to rethink methods for teaching nonfiction without a content area to frame it. Conversations with my content-area colleagues about how to integrate this instruction across the school day must take place this summer, too.

What role can new reading and writing modalities play in my instruction next year? Text messaging, blogging, social networking, graphic novels, and podcasts add layers of literacy to my students’ lives that we hardly touch on at school. How can I incorporate these materials and tools into my daily instruction and use them to support my students in their literacy development? I have a stack of graphic novels to read and a list of Websites to visit this summer. Hopefully, this digital immigrant will be better prepared for the digital natives arriving in my classroom this fall!

How can I redesign my classroom library so that it is more accessible and interesting to students? Reading the end-of-year surveys from my class and talking with my helpers today, many of them mentioned that our class library is difficult to use. Dividing our books by genre worked when we had fewer books, but these days my students find it hard to locate the books they want without help from me. Additionally, students stopped using our checkout system of index cards in a file box about half-way through the year, and I lost more books this year than I have in years past. I need to investigate other methods for keeping track of our books and making the class library more user-friendly for students.

As you lie by the pool, wait in airports, or work in your garden, what questions and ideas percolate in your teaching brains? How do you seek answers? What would you like to do differently next year? Which practices will you keep and which ones need an overhaul? Come sit on my floor and let’s talk about our plans and dreams. Today is the first day of school.

Esme Raji Codell Reviews The Book Whisperer

Thu, 21 May 2009 11:35:47 -0500

Editor's Note:

Esme Raji Codell, reading guru and author of How to Get Your Child to Love Reading, gives Donalyn Miller's book a great review in her blog.

So Many Books, So Little Time

Sun, 17 May 2009 01:39:36 -0500

Keenly aware of how little time we have left together, my students and I race to finish the books we have borrowed from each other. Students wistfully return books held hostage in their lockers and bedrooms. Donations for our school-wide book swap arrive each day, and I cull and examine our classroom library in preparation for my move to a new classroom down the hall (the only time I have ever admitted we might have too many books!). The end of the year is a bittersweet time for me—a mix of pride in my students’ reading accomplishments, and sorrow at losing the wonderful children I have grown to love. Soliciting reflections about their reading experiences, I ask my students to make reading plans for the future, encouraging them to maintain reading habits they have cultivated over the past nine months. Class discussions revolve around our favorite books of the year and those books we want to read in the future. As part of my reading community, I share our list of favorites with you, as well as a few titles from my never-ending to-read-pile.

Class Favorites

Elephant Run by Roland Smith (historical fiction/ ages 10-13). After Luftwaffe bombings destroy his London apartment building, Nick Freestone is sent to live with his father on the family’s Burmese teak plantation. When his father is captured by invading Japanese, Nick strikes out on a dangerous rescue mission. Roland Smith’s action-packed books are consistently popular with the readers in my class.

H.I.V.E.: The Higher Institute of Villainous Education (science fiction/ ages 10-13). Move over Hogwarts, the hip, new school for gifted teens may be inside the dormant volcano of HIVE, a school for budding criminal masterminds. Who knew I had so many evil geniuses in my class? Fans of this book will love the sequel, H.I.V.E.: The Overlord Protocol, too.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (science fiction/ young adult). Travel into the future world of Panem (formerly the U.S.), where each of twelve districts must choose two teenagers to compete in the yearly Hunger Games, a battle which brings glory and riches to its single winner and death to the losers— all broadcast on national TV. My students and I must wait all summer for the sequel, Catching Fire, slated for release in September.

The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan (fantasy/ ages 10-13). The final installment in Riordan’s modern day Greek Mythology adventure finds Percy and Co. fighting the Titans to save Mount Olympus. Released on May 5th, half of my class has already read it and declared it one of the best books of the year. A movie version of The Lightning Thief, the first book in this fantastic series, is currently in production.

Author Rick Riordan is the spokesperson for Barnes & Noble's Summer Reading program this year. Kids read eight books, document the titles on a downloadable book log, and earn a free book. I love this program because it requires readers to finish books, not just log minutes.

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson (realistic fiction/ young adult). Lia, an anorexic teen, struggles to cope with the sudden death of her estranged friend Cassie in this powerful book, which documents the mental and physical decline of a girl battling an eating disorder. Considering the enthusiasm the more mature girls in my class have for this book, my money is on Wintergirls to win next year’s Printz Award.

Books I Plan to Read (My goodreads “to-read” shelf bows under the weight of 373 titles; I chose five that beckon loudly.)

The Brooklyn Nine: A Novel in Nine Innings by Alan Gratz (historical fiction/ ages 10-13). Set against the backdrop of 150 years of American history, this book follows nine generations of baseball-loving children in one Brooklyn family.

Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci. (various genres/ young adult). The list of authors contributing to this short story anthology reads like a roll call of YA’s best: John Green, Libba Bray, Wendy Mass, Scott Westerfeld, and others in this homage to all things nerdy from Star Trek to baton twirling. (This book will be released in August.)

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly (historical fiction/ young adult). Calpurnia questions the survival rates of the grasshoppers on her Texas farm and develops a relationship with her cranky grandfather, a naturalist. Set in 1899, this book offers readers a spunky protagonist ahead of her time.

Secret Keeper by Mitali Perkins (realistic fiction/ young adult). Left behind in India while her father seeks work in America, Asha, her older sister, and their mother wait in Calcutta. Forced by culture to follow the decisions of her uncle and grandmother, Asha resists the control and loss of freedom she must endure while her father is gone. Recommended to me months ago by book blogger extraordinaire, Jen Robinson, this book is sure to be a standout.

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George (fantasy/ young adult). The Lass, the unnamed ninth child of a woodcutter, develops the ability to talk to animals after rescuing a magical deer. Lured with promises of riches, the Lass follows a mysterious polar bear to his castle where she must save him from the clutches of an evil troll queen. This retelling of the Nordic “Beauty and the Beast” tale, East of the Sun, West of the Moon promises adventure and a strong heroine.

While it will never make it near my classroom, I must admit that I am intrigued by Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (fantasy/ adult) by Seth Grahame-Smith. The Bennet Sisters as zombie killers? Sign me up! Everyone should have at least one guilty summer read!

It’s your turn. Which books call to you with promises of reading bliss over long summer days? Whether preparing for your students next fall or reading them for yourself, share your summer reading plans with us! I can squeeze a few more titles on that shelf…

Stress Reading

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 18:36:55 -0500

A recent study reports that reading may be the best way to reduce stress. With as little as six minutes of reading, your heart rate slows and you relax, losing your everyday cares between the pages. But if reading reduces stress, you wouldn’t know it these days looking in classrooms across America. It is spring, and testing season is upon us. For students and their teachers, reading for test performance induces, rather than reduces stress. In a few days, Texas' students will take TAKS, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, and the massive preparations for this test convey that reading is serious, reading is challenging, reading is an obstacle course of traps and pitfalls, but it is certainly not relaxing.

Even at my school, where teachers dedicate substantial time reinforcing to students that reading is pleasurable and engaging, test prep mania is in full swing. The copiers churn out endless reams of TAKS practice materials, our assistant principals direct state mandated training of test administration regulations, and students graph their individual mastery of test objectives onto charts. Spending most of the year using best practices methodology to improve learning, it seems we must dismantle every vestige of it to prove our methods succeed.

The halls are stripped of student work and teachers stand on chairs to cover every instructional aide on their classroom walls. My students helped me cover our walls this week, and complained about how dark and sad our room looks now. I took down my anchor charts, and covered our literary element posters and “Books We’ve Shared” chart with butcher paper. We even have to cover the clock and calendars so students cannot use them as number lines on the math test! To guarantee students across the state test under similar conditions, we must create a Gulag—a barren wasteland where no rescue is forthcoming.

I support accountability. Teachers and students should show evidence that learning takes place in the classroom. But I have to wonder what type of learning high-stakes testing really shows. Certainly, students who perform poorly on standardized reading tests are not strong readers, but is producing strong readers even the goal anymore? Countless hours spent drilling and practicing test-taking may increase students’ ability to take tests, but it doesn’t make them better readers of anything but tests. I have a responsibility to prepare my students for state testing, but I refuse to spend months and months of time my students could be reading marching through test practice.

I teach test reading as a genre like experts Stephanie Harvey and Lucy Calkins advise. Standardized tests contain specific text features, structure, and academic vocabulary just like poetry, expository text, or fiction does. We spend a few weeks before the test studying authentic passages released by the state, foregoing workbooks and test prep materials in favor of the real deal. Every day, I remind students that the hours and hours they spend reading each week does more to prepare them for state testing than any drill, and I continue to set aside the majority of my class time for reading, responding, and conferring, not test prep. Writer and philosopher, Albert Camus once said, “You cannot acquire experience by making experiments. You cannot create experience. You must undergo it.” The only path to reading improvement requires students to experience real reading—lots of it.

On test day, my students will prove to the outside world that they are great readers—proof I don’t need and neither do they. As each child finishes, I will collect their test booklets and forms and give them their independent books from the mountain stacked for safe-keeping behind my desk. My students will then prove all over again that they are readers, by opening their books. I only hope that it takes just six minutes of stress-free reading for them to fall in love with it again.

Donalyn Miller: Live on The Air

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:24:40 -0500

Editor's Note:

Donalyn Miller will be on North Texas' NPR affiliate, KERA, today, Tuesday, April 21 from Noon-1pm CST. She will be on a show called Think with Krys Boyd, talking about reading and her book. To listen live, go here and to listen later (as a downloadable podcast), go here.

A Book in Every Backpack II

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 14:59:40 -0500

I am drowning in books, but what a way to go. My bookshelves at home overflow with beloved titles I read again and again. I dedicated a three-shelf bookcase in my living room to the books I want to read—books I have borrowed, purchased, or checked out from my school and public libraries. Whenever I embark on a day of housecleaning, I begin by reshelving the books my family and I stack on every available surface.

My classroom is awash in books, too, with a collection that has surged beyond the confines of my classroom and into a storage closet across the hall. My students cannot get enough books, either. Heavy reading in class and access to books all day creates a ripple effect that influences my students’ reading habits elsewhere. Our favorite day of the week is library day. We race down the hall to check out the latest new books and request more titles for our librarian to order. My students are extremely jealous that teachers do not have a checkout limit or pay fines! They read more at home, too. I have to smile on Monday mornings when I overhear students describing their latest finds from the half-price bookstore or the public library. Many sign up for their first library cards and make sure their younger siblings get one, too. This is my goal—to build readers for life, who find value in books beyond the school day and the school door.

It is all about access. Surrounding children with books—in libraries, classrooms, and at home positively impacts reading interest and achievement. It almost seems too simple—give children books and they will read them. Countless studies prove that well-stocked and cultivated school and public library collections lead children to reading and that the most effective reading teachers have rich classroom libraries, too. United in our shared purpose to increase children’s access to books and improve motivation to read, I imagine we all agree that creating a book flood, rather than purchasing more canned reading programs is the best way to put funding behind our belief that all children read.

The goal of my last post was to share methods teachers use for finding inexpensive and free books for building classroom libraries. Your comments were overwhelmingly supportive of helping teachers who spend their own money to increase day long access to books for their students. I have collected your suggestions and added a few of my own.

Donations. Ask friends, family members, neighbors, that retiring teacher down the hall, or outgoing students to clean out their closets and donate their unwanted books to your classroom library. I honor donors with a computer-generated book plate affixed to their book. I recommend taking books you might not want for students, too, and use them to get coupons at book swaps or exchange for more appropriate books at thrift book stores.

Garage Sales. Books are not big garage sale sellers. My daughters are pros at scanning for boxes of books as we drive around our neighborhood scoping out the weekend garage sales. Cruising up to the curb, I have spent as little as $2 or $3 dollars for an entire box of books. At the end of the day, sellers are often willing to give books away rather than lug them back into the house.

Library Sales. Many nonprofit organizations sponsor used book sales in tandem with local public and school libraries. At a recent library sale, I bought an entire trunkload of children’s library books and audiocassettes for $40.00. To find local non-profit sales, sign up for the Book Sale Finder newsletter. This sends you an e-mail alert when a sale is happening in your area.

eBay. The first two hundred books I bought for my classroom library were purchased on eBay and I still frequent the site when I need additional copies of favorite books. If you are looking for specific titles, set up an alert to notify you when those books are up for sale. When building your initial collection, search for book lots—mixed sets of books that are much cheaper than purchasing individual titles.

Bookstore Clearance and online Bargain Bins. Who doesn’t love a sale? Bookstores move their stock constantly and you can often find great deals digging through clearance bins at bookstores and online sites like Amazon. Be choosy, often a book hits the clearance bin because it is not that good. I have discovered that the month the paperback edition of a book hits stores, the hardcover edition winds up in the bargain bin, often at a cheaper price than the paperback! Check out the New in Paperback pages at teenreads and kidsreads, then scoot over to Amazon and check the hardcover price.

Scholastic Warehouse Sales . Scholastic book clubs and book sales have put low-cost books into the hands of school children for decades, and many teachers build their class libraries from the book club points and incentives Scholastic offers. Additionally, Scholastic hosts several discount sales through their regional warehouses each year. Discounts range from 30% to as low as $1 a book. When looking for new or popular titles, Scholastic is a great low-cost source.

Book Swaps. The premise of a book swap is simple—solicit donations of unwanted books and give a coupon to the donor for every book they bring. The donated books provide the stock for the swap and donors can use their coupons to select more books to read. We host a book swap at our school the weekend before school is out to promote summer reading. At many swaps, you can purchase books, too, for as little as a quarter. One local school district in my town combines their book swap with their yearly library sale, using the sale to cull out collections in all of the district’s school libraries.

Get creative. Reading your comments, I was amazed by the innovative solutions many of you employ to get books into the hands of children.

Terry Doherty at The Reading Tub encourages book reviewers to donate the advance reader copies they receive to the Use Your ABC’s program.

If you are interested in writing book reviews yourself, author Kate Messner suggests Deborah Sloan’s Picnic Basket. Sign up to write a review and receive a copy of the book to share with students.

Tim Thompson at AKJ Books works with programs like Reading is Fundamental to provide low cost books. Speaking of RIF, check out their second annual contest to encourage reading aloud to children, the Read with Kids Challenge . The goal is to log 5 million minutes of read aloud time across the nation between April 1st and June 30th. Winners of the contest receive a trip to Disney World, sponsored by US Airways.

Tim also recommends DonorsChoose.org, an online charity which provides books and supplies to teachers who enroll in the program and post their classroom needs to the site.

Carol Blakely uses her own garden as a fundraising opportunity, selling cuttings to purchase books. Carol, I spend too much time with my nose in a book to have much of a garden, but your idea motivated me to start digging...

**Updated 4/25/09: Heather Wolpert Gawron over at Tweenteacher has a great post on The Importance of a Classroom Library, as well as a Book Begging letter and advice on how to Start and Finance that Classroom Library. Thanks Heather, for the advice!

Keep those tips coming! Let’s get books into the hands of those teachers and their students!

A Book in Every Backpack

Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:23:51 -0500

In my e-mail inbox today, I received an invitation to examine exactly how much money my school district will get from the federal stimulus package. I agree that school districts need help right now. With a flat housing market and foreclosures across the country, school districts have lost a major source of funding—property tax revenues. The American Recovery and Investment Act of 2009 prevents thousands of teachers from losing their jobs and sustains vital programs. If there is money left over, I have ideas about how to spend it (I bet we all do), and I don’t have to look any farther than my classroom.

I am known around my school as the teacher with the huge library. With over 2,000 books, our class library holds mythic status among my students (both current and former). They often conduct tours, leading friends and younger siblings through the stacks, proudly showing off our books and making recommendations. These tours usually end with our guests filling out library cards and checking out books to read. My willingness to share our books with any child who wants to read them is well-known, too. I acquired every book on my own through donations, book club points, countless clearance and garage sales, book swaps, and other methods. I can loan my books as I please.

I decided long ago that putting books in children’s hands over and over again was the best way to encourage them to read. Reading advocates like Nancie Atwell, Jim Trelease, Richard Allington, and the father of free voluntary reading, Stephen Krashen , agree with me. A significant factor in getting children to read is providing access to books—mountains and mountains of books. But regular access to books is beyond the grasp of many children in America. Considering research findings from numerous studies, we could rename the achievement gap the library gap. Students in poverty have the least access to books because of poorly funded and staffed school libraries, limited public library use, and fewer books at home. Additionally, classroom libraries, which positively impact reading interest and achievement, are less common in low-income schools. If you lead a kid to books, you can get them to read, but the books have to be available.

There seems to be ample funding for the latest test-prep or reading incentive programs, despite a lack of research proving such programs work. If you’re curious, check out the Best Evidence Encyclopedia at the Johns Hopkins Center for Data-Driven Reform to find data on your district’s reading programs. Wouldn’t this federal windfall be better spent on providing real books, an endeavor proven to work? I believe that a paperback book or two in every backpack would do a better job of improving reading achievement than another test-prep workbook (no need to talk about which program improves students’ attitudes toward reading and which one doesn’t).

In his recent book, Readicide, literacy leader Kelly Gallagher denounces administrators who won’t pony up funding for books, calling such denials, “unethical”. The money is there, Gallagher claims, and we should start asking for it—loudly. Unfortunately, instead of money for books flowing into our classrooms from district, state, and federal education funds, this money frequently runs in the opposite direction—we subsidize our own libraries. If you walk into a classroom with a well-stocked library, I guarantee that the teacher purchased most of those books with his or her own money. While the absence of political will or clear priorities deny access to books for our students, many teachers put their money where their beliefs are.

When the only thing standing between our developing readers and their next book is the cost of a paperback, is there one among us who would not pay? Someone will pay. Better us than the kids.

How are you funding your classroom libraries, book clubs, and other reading initiatives? If you don’t mind sharing your covert methods for finding books, we could all use a hand. I will include your ideas, as well as a few of my own, in my next post.

Never Too Old: Reading Aloud to Independent Readers

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 23:06:23 -0500

I almost didn’t recognize her. With flat-ironed hair and makeup, Madeline did not look like the gangly sixth grader with frizzy red hair who I remembered from my class four years ago. “Hi Mrs. Miller,” she said, “I am assigned to your room today.” Participating in Writers’ Day at a local intermediate school, I was asked to teach two rotations of writing lessons to budding 5th and 6th grade authors. High school volunteers, like Madeline, were paired with teachers to help with crowd control and work with the younger kids. I laughed, “I hope you don’t mind, but you will have to listen to me read the same story twice today.” She smiled, “I don’t mind. I don’t think any teachers have read out loud to me since I was in your class.”

Writers’ Day was successful and I enjoyed reconnecting with Madeline, but I thought all the way home about what she told me. When does reading aloud to children end? When we are confident they are reading well on their own? When we cannot snuggle and hold them on our laps any longer or comfortably arrange them in a circle on the floor?

I often hear teachers bemoan the lack of class time for reading aloud to their students. Considering the extensive research, which proves that reading aloud to children of all ages improves comprehension, vocabulary knowledge, and writing skill, this activity should be the last to go. Guilty of cutting read alouds when my lessons ran too long, I made a conscious decision to carve out daily read aloud time. Now I plan read alouds into my workshop schedule, write the titles into my lesson plan book, and dedicate the time. If assemblies, testing, or other infringements shorten our class time, I make sure that I read to my students every day, no matter what else I cut.

Instructionally, reading aloud books, poems, articles, and short stories to students gives teachers endless opportunities to highlight great writing and model reading strategies, but reading aloud provides other benefits to young readers.

Reading aloud builds community. Shared experiences create memories that connect us to each other. Reading aloud books with children offers these unifying moments. While reading together, we laugh and cry together, comrades on the same journey. My students are a reading community, bonded to each other through the books we have shared, and these connections last long after the book ends.

Reading aloud exposes children to books, authors, or genres. When choosing books to read aloud, I often pick books with the goal of leading my students to more books they can read on their own. Perennial favorites include authors like Gary Paulsen, Gordon Korman, Deborah Wiles, and Roland Smith. Students beg me for more books by authors I introduce during read alouds. Read alouds are perfect opportunities to expose students to genres they often avoid like poetry, biographies and nonfiction, too. After discovering books they enjoy first through read alouds, children are more receptive to reading more books from these genres. You don’t have to read the entire book to entice readers, either. Frequently, I will read the first chapter, article, or poem from a book and place it on the marker rail. The book rarely lasts until the end of the day before an eager reader claims it!

Reading aloud supports developing readers. Realistically, no book fits every reader. Read alouds are a perfect replacement for whole class novels, which can exclude readers who cannot independently read the book. Reading aloud removes roadblocks to comprehension like unfamiliar vocabulary and contextualizes words developing readers do not know. Listening to a fluent reader gives students a reading role model for their own oral reading skills, too.

Reading aloud reminds children why they love reading. Sitting on your lap, encircled by love and warmth, these are our children’s first reading memories. Reading aloud reminds children that reading is pleasurable, an activity they enjoyed before reading turned into a school chore. Early in the year, I ask my students to bring in their beloved picture books (Thanks to Janet Allen for the great idea!). Sitting cross-legged on the floor, we revisit classics like Green Eggs and Ham and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Seeing lanky boys clutching Tacky the Penguin, eager to share it with their friends, is heartwarming and magical. I share my childhood favorites like The Story of Ferdinand and The Little House, too, and we discuss why these books are still special to us.

Undoubtedly, you have favorite read alouds—books you love from your childhoods or remember sharing with your children or students. Here are a few of my favorites from recent years.

Favorite Read Alouds for Upper Elementary and Early Middle School

Weslandia by Paul Fleischman

The Word Eater by Mary Amato

It's Disgusting and We Ate It! True Food Facts from Around the World and Throughout History by James Solheim and Eric Brace

Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

The Wolves in the Walls by Neil Gaiman

Savvy by Ingrid Law

Skellig by David Almond

Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements

Peak by Roland Smith

Tangerine by Edward Bloor

The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman

I Never Said I Wasn’t Difficult by Sara Holbrook

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

I could go on—making booklists is one of my favorite reading rabbit holes. Join me in the fun! Submit your favorite read alouds; include testimonials and recommended ages; and enter to win the drawing for a copy of my new book, The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child published by Jossey-Bass and Education Week Press.

Update March 19, 2009-- Thank you for posting your favorite read alouds and sharing your wisdom. Cherie Saylor Garrett, of Lampasas, Texas, has been selected as the winner of our book giveaway. Thank you, Cherie for promoting reading each and every day with your students!

Continue to participate in Share a Story/ Shape a Future, the international blog tour to promote reading. I have enjoyed reading the posts this week and have picked up countless booklists, resources and tips, and I look forward to learning more in the upcoming days.

For additional tips about reading aloud to older children, check out the following links:

“Teens Take Time to Listen When You Make Time to Read Aloud” by Alison Follos

“Tips for Reading Aloud to Preteens and Teens” from R.I.F.

“Reading Aloud to Kids Who Are Old Enough to Shave” by Candy Blessing

Jim Trelease’s Home Page

Mind the Gap: Engaging Gifted Readers

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:58:16 -0500

March 10th marks the 95th anniversary of Harriet Tubman’s death. Tubman is famous for leading slaves to freedom via the Underground Railroad, a network of safe houses and trails from the South to the North. Nowadays, the term “Underground” represents other networks like the London Underground and subcultures apart from the mainstream like Underground music and art. The Underground represents freedom, escape, and unfortunately, hiding. I use the term "underground readers" to describe gifted readers, those students who live in a world that is often outside the confines of classroom cultures, which are often pitched toward developing readers.

In a previous post, I expressed the need for greater effort in serving gifted readers. Many of you asked for practical solutions, and I know from talking to parents, they have questions, too. As my first post for the Share a Story; Shape a Future blog tour, I offer some advice for supporting underground readers.

How do I know if a child is a gifted reader?

Many gifted readers read constantly, often covertly, and choose reading as a pastime. Signs a child is a gifted reader include those who:

• Read at an early age.
• May have taught themselves to read.
• Require less drill to master the reading process.
• Synthesize multiple reading strategies.
• Possess advanced vocabulary knowledge and usage.
• Read 3 to 4 times more than their same age peers.
• Continue to read voraciously after the peak reading years end (4th -8th grades) and into adulthood.
• May prefer abstract genres like fantasy, read deeply from one genre or topic, or prefer nonfiction text to fiction.

My gifted child used to love reading, but now he hates it. What can I do?

While gifted children may express advanced early reading ability, some lose interest in reading as they progress through school. A few lack confidence (or support) and avoid challenging themselves. Others become bored with grade level work and stop reading altogether. Gifted readers who grow uninterested in reading need support in choosing books that meet their interests and the opportunity to read widely. They should choose their own reading material most of the time and compact out of reading material or instruction in concepts they have already mastered.

Some children with high verbal IQs also have learning differences such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, or ADD that mask their giftedness and make reading difficult for them. Imagine being gifted and challenged in the same area! Targeted instruction in strategic reading skills helps such readers compensate for learning differences and maximize their potential.

How do I provide appropriate material to gifted readers who read at a higher level than their age?

The mismatch between reading ability and interest, and appropriate content became apparent to me one day, when I observed one of my gifted sixth graders reading Under the Tuscan Sun during independent reading time. Approaching her, I asked why she chose that book and she revealed that it was her mother’s favorite! Many parents and teachers are at a loss when a child’s reading ability surpasses the books most commonly recommended for children their age. Consider these options:

• Offer a wide range of literature from reviewed district, state and national lists.
• Revisit “classics” that are age-appropriate.
• Consider the emotional maturity of the individual child.
• Offer nonfiction at the child’s true reading level and popular fiction at their age level. (This suggestion comes from gifted education researcher, Judith Wynn Halstead.)
• Read off-level books before or with your child.

Which books can you recommend for gifted readers?

Gifted readers prefer books that are more complex in genre, vocabulary, structure, perspective, or theme. Librarian Patricia Austin recommends specific categories that appeal to gifted readers. I have included a partial list of books that gifted middle-schoolers love. ** You may email me at thebookwhisperer@gmail.com for the expanded list.

Look for books that include:

Distinctive Language and Word Play

Chess Rumble by G. Neri
Palindromania by Jon Agee

Challenging Structures

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg
Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

Unusual Perspectives or Points of View

Beastly by Alex Flinn
Blood Red Horse by K.M. Grant

Ambiguous Endings

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
The Giver by Lois Lowry

Thought Provoking Content: Social and Emotional Issues

Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
Waiting for Normal by Leslie Connor

Thought Provoking Content: Historical and Cultural Themes

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
Under the Blood Red Sun by Graham Salisbury (more appropriate than the Tuscan Sun!)

Role Models

Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller by Sarah Miller
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis

Gifted Protagonists

The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd
The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Considering Austin’s book categories, is it any wonder that so many gifted readers love fantasy and science fiction? These genres offer the abstraction and complexity gifted readers crave. Here are a few of my students’ top picks:

Fantasy

Everlost by Neal Shusterman
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
Savvy by Ingrid Law
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
The Warrior Heir by Cinda Chima Williams

Science Fiction

H.I.V.E.: The Higher Institute for Villainous Education by Mark Walden
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Epic by Conor Kostick
The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

As teachers, we must watch for gaps between the instruction we provide gifted students and their learning needs and interests. As parents, we must look for ways to keep our gifted readers motivated. Share the successful strategies, lesson ideas, and tips you use with the gifted readers in your lives. Join us in the Share a Story; Shape a Future event by posting comments and visiting the great sites hosting bloggers this week. I will return Wednesday as part of Read Aloud Day!

Share a Story/ Shape a Future

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 22:43:35 -0500

Five bloggers, members of the kidlitosphere, an online community which promotes children's books and reading, had a crazy idea. Why not use their Internet connections (no pun intended) to create an online blog tour that celebrates reading? Their idea blossomed into an Internet-wide event with scores of bloggers lining up to participate (The Book Whisperer included!). Share a Story/ Shape a Future begins March 9th.

If you have not already seen it on the Web, check out the official press release:

Within the kidlitosphere, the children's literature bloggers comprise and reach a very broad audience. One of the group's greatest assets is its collective, community-minded approach to sharing information and ideas. Through events like blog tours, authors and illustrators have had wonderful opportunities to share their story and their craft. Given the success of tours for "producers," what about an event for and by the people who create and engage their readers: teachers, librarians, parents, and people passionate about literacy?

Voila! Share a Story - Shape a Future is just that event. This is an ensemble effort not only to celebrate reading among those of us who already love books, but to encourage each other to reach beyond ourselves and do it in a way that we are neither judging nor instructing others. This is a venue for communicating practical, useable, everyday ideas.

The event begins March 9, 2009 and lasts one week. Each day we will have a group of bloggers sharing ideas around a specific theme. There are a number of book giveaways and free downloads that will be announced by the various hosts as we get closer to the kickoff. Here is the tour schedule.

Day 1: Raising Readers
hosted by Terry Doherty at Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, the Reading Tub blog

Finding Time at Home - Tricia Stohr-Hunt @ The Miss Rumphius Effect

Making Time in the Classroom - Sarah Mulhern @ The Reading Zone

Helping a Reader in Need (remedial readers) - Sandra Stiles guest post on Scrub-a-Dub-Tub

It's Bigger than the Book: Building Strong Readers at any Age with a Daily Dose of Read Aloud - Cathy Miller interview on the Share a Story - Shape a Future blog

Keeping Gifted Readers Engaged - Donalyn Miller @ The Book Whisperer

Day 2: Selecting Reading Material
hosted by Sarah Mulhern at The Reading Zone

The ABCs of Reading: Infants, Toddlers & Preschoolers - Valerie Baartz on The Almost Librarian

How to Help Emerging Readers - Anastasia Suen @ Easy to Read blog

Helping Middle Grade Readers - Sarah Mulhern @ The Reading Zone

Booklists and Read Alikes - Sarah Mulhern @ The Reading Zone

Using Non-fiction - Mary Lee Hahn of A Year of Reading, hosted by the Stenhouse blog

Day 3: Reading Aloud - It's Fun, It's Easy
hosted by Susan Stephenson at the Book Chook blog

Ten Terrific Tips from Read-aloud Queen, Mem Fox - on the Book Chook blog

Conquering Stage Fright - Interview with Sarah Mulhern/The Reading Zone @ the Book Chook

Reading Aloud With Kids: A Dad's Perspective - hosted by Steven and Brian at Book Dads: Fathers that Read

Using Technology for Read Alouds - Sarah Mulhern @ The Reading Zone

What to Do When the Reading is Done - Aimee Buckner, hosted by the Stenhouse blog

Reading Aloud with Independent Readers - Donalyn Miller @ The Book Whisperer

Day 4: A Visit to the Library
hosted by Eva Mitnick at Eva's Book Addiction blog

From Cozy to Cool - Library Spaces for Everyone - Eva @ Eva's Book Addiction

Lions and Marble and Books, Oh My - Betsy Bird at A Fuse #8 Production

How to Make the Library Work for YOU - an interview with Adrienne of What Adrienne Thinks About That conducted by Jules at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast

The World Beyond the Library's Walls - Melissa @ Librarian by Day

Day 5: Technology and Reading - What the Future Holds
hosted by Elizabeth O. Dulemba at Dulemba.com

Audiobooks with Bruce Coville of Full Cast Audio and Mary Burkey of Audiobooker

E-books with Harold Underdown of The Purple Crayon and Sheila Ruth of Hornbook

Podcasts with Andrea Ross of Just One More Book! and Cheryl Rainfield of cherylrainfield.com

A resource of links to audiobooks, e-books, podcasts and webcasts @ Dulemba.com.

Through Share a Story - Shape a Future we hope to build a community of readers, by sharing ideas and encouraging each other. When the event opens on Monday, March 9, 2009, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to join us and share your ideas.

In the meantime, we'd love for you to start spreading the word.

I look forward to participating in Share a Story/ Shape a Future, both as a blogger and as a reader. What a joyous opportunity to learn more about books, children and our ongoing quest to connect the two.

Waiting to Exhale

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 23:25:45 -0500

“If you want to be a writer,” Stephen King says, “you must do two things above all else: read a lot and write a lot.” Reciprocal processes, reading and writing naturally fit together. The most prolific readers are the best writers, and my students and I write every day, as well as read. We inhale rich, powerful language, gain sustenance from it, and create our own ideas. We must read so we can write, and we must write so we have more to read.

This week, we are analyzing excerpts from our favorite books, examining how authors breathe life into their writing by using prepositional phrases. Each day, students select examples from their own books, and I provide one, too. I chose today’s model sentences from our current read aloud, Rick Riordan’s modern-day Greek Mythology adventure, The Lightning Thief:

“We were on a stretch of country road—no place you’d notice if you didn’t break down there. On our side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand (p. 25)”

We discuss how these prepositional phrases help us visualize the setting, then mark out the phrases and read the sentences again. While the passage still basically makes sense, we agree that there is not much imagery left.

I tell students, “My husband claims that fat and sugar carry flavor and without them, food is pretty boring. I suppose prepositional phrases are a sentence’s fat and sugar. Without them, you have a sentence as flavorless as rice cakes!” Having just given up sugar for Lent, I imagine my instructional analogies will be food-focused for the next forty days…

Students identify prepositional phrases in the sentences they collected, and remove them—comparing the flavorful sentences to the rice cake ones. Afterward, we look through our personal writing and choose sentences that need prepositional phrases to clarify ideas or add detail. We read, study how writers use language, and use what we learn to improve our own writing. We breathe in, we breathe out.

How can you teach reading without teaching writing? It shocks me when I hear about secondary school classes where reading and writing are taught as different courses. Same goes for those elementary school classes where writing is sidelined altogether. Writing often takes a back seat to its more-tested brother—reading, which demands more focus due to standardized testing mandates. Even when students write, most don’t engage in process writing—drafting, revising, editing, and publishing original compositions. Studies find that answering worksheet questions is the most commonly practiced writing task in America’s classrooms. Can we claim that filling in blanks on a worksheet counts as authentic writing?

What we need it seems is a national call to arms, a large scale effort to improve writing instruction. In response to this need, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) released its latest report this week, Writing in the 21st Century . Written by Kathleen Blake Yancey, a prominent writing researcher and past president of NCTE, this report challenges educators to reshape how we teach writing, begs us to consider how writing authentically occurs beyond the classroom, and suggests targets for reform.

In addition to the report, NCTE has dedicated October 20, 2009 as a National Day on Writing . Inviting people to post their writing into its National Gallery of Writing, NCTE celebrates the diversity of American writing and its writers—from every life stage and sector. Submit your own writing, ask your family and friends to do the same, and spend some time this spring encouraging your students and their parents to contribute. Send the message loud and clear that writing is a valuable skill, and a vital form of human expression that deserves a prominent place in our lives and in our schools.