Okay, so I have to admit...I had fallen WAY behind our book study! I have been meaning to comment along the way, but life has been crazy here and I am ready for it to slow down a bit. I am happy to say that I finally caught up with the reading!!
Donalyn Miller is such an inspiration! Although I have many, I want to start by going back to highlight just a few things that I could totally relate with (just a couple…I can’t retype the whole book!)
In chapter 2, Everybody is a Reader, Donalyn Miller discusses how she classifies the different types of readers who enter her classroom in more encouraging terms. This totally struck a nerve with me because I work with the students who do not meet grade level benchmarks for one reason or another. Instead of calling these readers “struggling readers” which can be somewhat negative, she calls them, “developing readers”. I love how Donalyn Miller has identified these readers in a much more positive light.
Then in Chapter 4, Reading Freedom, Donalyn Miller begins by discussing how she gets her sixth graders to tell her how they go about choosing their independent reading books. They begin by giving her the answers they think she would like to hear, but she then gets into discussing the methods they are reluctant to admit. I truly believe these reasons are important to discuss with some of the upper elementary aged students to help choose books that will continue to increase their motivation to read. Validating that it is okay to:
- Choose a book based on length-because it is short, because it has chapters, etc…
- Choose a book they have read before, and want to read again and again.
- Read the first paragraph or the last page to decide if they want to continue reading the entire book.
- Choose a book because it is easy.
I also think it is important to have the discussion about what to do when a book they have chosen is not working for them, whether it is too hard or simply too boring for the child. She states, “I never want my students to feel that they are roped into a book just because they have started reading it.”
Now for the chapter (Whisper) that I am scheduled to host, End-of-Year-Evaluations. When I think of evaluations done at the end of the year, I think about the assessments done in my district, the DRA2, Pals, local assessments, etc… She discusses the survey she gives her students at the end of the year to provide them with a time to celebrate their reading accomplishments, express their opinions about the structure of her class, and to set future reading goals. She states, “By visualizing and stating plans for reading after my class, I hope that students will continue to move forward as readers.” I love this and have modified the End-of-Year Evaluation she had in the book to suit some of my 3rd-4th graders and am including it below. Feel free to click on the picture to download it for free from my TPT store.
Thank you!!
