I spent the first part of my summer thinking, reading, and writing about identity with the Red Clay Institute, which naturally led me to think about reader identity so I loved the first part of our reading this week! I identified with Ripp's experience as my own reading identity was developed outside of school. I don't remember reading being much of a focus when I was in school. I was just fortunate to love reading on my own. I have been thinking about doing a lesson with my ELA teachers this fall and I think the ideas that Ripp offered will be very helpful when I design the lesson. I'm sure there are many teachers that already do many of the things that she outlined, but I'm sure there are many that do not and I cannot think of a more important lesson than one that focuses on creating a reading community. I could have cried when she told the story about her students wanting to visit the school library because the school librarian was a reader and they found his recommendations and book discussions helpful. How I hope my students see me this way!
I read chapter 5 with great interest as Ripp laid out so many ideas that she had learned as a teacher of reading—things that didn't work and things that did work. This is my area of weakness since I have not been a classroom teacher. I want to learn from those who've been with a class daily. Also, I have seen so many things in my role as a librarian that perplex me and I want to understand why teachers have the opinions about reading instruction that they do. The obsession with reading levels comes to my mind first, but also the reliance on computer testing is one area that I don't understand. Though I did not learn the answers to these questions in the reading, I did learn a lot of valuable information from Ripp's "then" and "now" explanations and modifications of her classroom workings.
One thing that stuck out to me is that she used picture books as read-alouds for her older students. I have found that older students love picture books as much as younger students and I love reading them aloud to students. There is so much that can be gained from a picture book read aloud—through modeling inflection and dramatic presentation, observing the visual techniques and cues, and discussing the characters and story. It may seem simple, but I believe the experience is very worthwhile to readers. In fact, as I write this I'm thinking I will start my PL with my teachers by reading a picture book :) I love that Ripp had her own library of picture books that targeted strategies that she wanted to work on with her students. I see this a great opener for a class and she mentioned even doing a read-aloud on the first day of school.
I think my biggest take away is the simplicity of what she said were the most essential components for reading success: choice time, access to books, and a supportive environment. Whenever I reflect on reading instruction in schools today this song comes to mind...
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3 comments:
The inclusion of picture books in a 7th grade classroom also stuck out to me. Once I read further in the book, however, it became clear that one of Ripp's goals is guiding her students to a place where their reading identity is so well-rounded that students are interested in a range of texts, authors, subjects, and media (picture books included!).
I hope the same can be said for us teachers. My to be read list is fairly diverse right now, and I hope it stays that way.
Hi!
I also loved hearing about what worked and didn't work in Ripp's classroom. I especially loved hearing how she handles the students choosing books out of her library. I always felt guilty not finishing a book like a lot of the students she mentioned, so I think knowing that it's okay to not finish a book for literally any reason would be such a relief for those students who are hesitant about reading so many books.
I'm with you that Ripp was so generous in laying out a ton of helpful, practical steps for swapping certain classroom strategies for others. The part about picture books had me thinking how one of my constant reading behaviors, for as long as I can remember and to this day, is to pull out a Calvin & Hobbes collection when I really need to wind down. It's about comfort and returning to the roots of something I love very much, which is reading in general. Going back to something I started reading in the third grade, and which still holds up just as well for adults today, is a solid practice for me and one I hope to share with students. Like you (and Ripp) said, the key to all this is returning to the simpler elements of choice and time.
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