Maybe it is because I’m still in the midst of
tweaking schedules or maybe it is because there is such concern about what we
are supposed to be doing to raise test scores.
Either way I found Miller’s book validates what I truly believe is
important for our schedules, for our schools, and most of all, for our
students. Section 1 of Miller’s book
goes head on with the age-old dilemma of not enough time. I have found that there is never enough time
in the day—not for eating, sleeping, working, exercising, etc. This roadblock is nothing new but it does
pose a challenge. That challenge is to
find what is truly necessary and important with the time that we do have.
“Children learn to read by reading…but not without
instructional support.” The truth is
that practice makes perfect for reading as in most things but the support of
the teacher makes all the difference in this process. Just as a gymnast or a football player
perfects their skills with the assistance of a coach, so too do readers with
the help of their teacher. Student must
be reading to become readers which may seem obvious until you look at classroom
plans that have students completing worksheets about reading yet rarely really
reading. Just as Miller’s group in
Maryland discovered, they may have talked about reading and provided some time
to do some reading but it wasn’t the kind of reading that allowed teachers to
get to know their students as readers nor was it the kind that encouraged
growth in abilities of the readers. It
wasn’t a time that provided the support and guidance that is truly needed.
Miller challenges them and us with an eye-opening
story on page 3. This story clearly
illustrates that sometimes we do things without fully understanding why we are
doing them. The problem continues until
finally someone is bold enough to question the practice. We have to question our practices. Are our students reading volumes or just
enough to get by? Do we know each of
them and how we can help them? Is our
priority where they are or what the standards say? I don’t know if it is a balancing act or a
juggling act but it is essential that we find the time to reflect and the time
for students to really read. Then be in
that moment with them not to call them out as non-readers or fake readers or
hopeless but to be beside them inspiring them to try just one more time ready
for the reading success that each student deserves. Just as Miller states, “Independent reading
in silence without the kind of support described in this book means these
students suffer in silence.” All they
need is a teacher who makes independent reading time a priority for her
students and an opportunity to get to know them better and help them grow as
readers. Surely we can find the time for
that.
You bring up some really good points. I think it is hard to look critically at how we invest our time, but you're right--sometimes we think we're giving kids reading activities, but those worksheets are not real reading. Real reading is what makes real readers! And yes--surely we can find the time for that!
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