Lynn Flake Blog #4 --- Reading Essentials, Share Your Reading Life

I was excited to read this chapter because my very first thought was “I already do this!” This chapter made me feel validated because I’ve never been sure if it was really a good practice. My students know that I love to read, they also know that was not always the case. I hated it when I was younger. They know that at home, I have a house full of books, a special chair that I like to read in and a special book case reserved for my favorite books. Fantasy and mystery are my favorite genres because I like getting to have adventures that I can’t have in real life. My students have told me that I’m “obsessed” with books, and it is true! 

When my students were struggling to care about keeping up with their reading logs, I pulled out my phone and showed them my Good Reads app. I explained that was pretty much my reading log and that I did it because it was fun --not because I had to. I showed them how I can use the app to talk to my friends about what I’m reading, and it helps me remember what I’ve already read and what I want to read next, years later. I showed them that my reading goal for this year was 12 books and that I’m currently on my 27^th book. We talked about how proud I was of myself for passing my goal!

But I’ve always wondered if any of that had a purpose beyond just trying to be a reading role model for my students. Is me telling them all of that just a waste of precious class time? Should these be conversations be saved for bonding time at lunch? And I’m always cautious to tell them what exactly I’m reading, in the event that there’s anything not 4^th grade appropriate in the book. However, Routman justifies all of these moments that I’ve had gushing over my own reading life with my students.  She says that “many students will not see and feel the power of reading without your enthusiasm and modeling.” (pg. 23). Many of my students do not have a reading culture at home. I have an alarming number of students who tell me that they just don’t have books at home. Their nightly reading homework is the most frequent homework missing, many will tell me that they just didn’t have time after football or etc. The idea of reading is a “I have to” and not an “I get to” – even my students who enjoy reading don’t just pick up a book and read for pleasure outside of a designated reading time. Knowing all of this, I still had doubts that sharing my reading life was to their benefit. I feel better now J