Fostering a Love of Reading

   “I cannot live without books.” — Thomas Jefferson

     I came across this fabulous quote about reading after grading some practice OAA tests.  The words resonated in my head over and over because this is the goal we want for our students more than anything.  Sure, awesome test scores look good for OTES (Ohio's Teacher Evaluating System) and is needed to obtain that ever-so-wanting "Accomplished Teacher" rating.  However, if the students don't foster a love of reading and really have no desire to want to discuss favorite authors, series, genres, etc. than those numbers really aren't so powerful and resonating.  Donalyn Miller, author of Reading in the Wild: The Book Whisperer's Keys to Cultivating Lifelong Reading Habits, says, "In order to build strong literacy skills, our students need reading, writing and discussion-and lots of it."  The next thought that popped into my head is, "What are some small things I could be doing as a literacy coach to help foster a reading community at our school that encourages writing and reading about books?"  

    Currently,I am holding some book clubs during lunch with third and fourth graders.  The third graders I meet with are amazing and they literally devour books and sustain a rich reading life.  I look forward to meeting with these four avid readers and I marvel at their passion for reading. Their love of reading is contagious and inspires me to want to read more.  Our book discussions are rich and engaging.  They build upon each other's ideas and they always have thoughts about which books we should read next and why.  One student even asked if we could hold the book club at his house on a Saturday!  They have even thought about how to do book talks via Skype with a student who moved away from their class in the beginning of the year.  Whenever the book talk is done I often sit and ponder how can I instill the same reading habits these readers possess with all my book clubs?
     My fourth graders are a little more challenging to ignite a reading spark.  I try to use book trailers to make the book more enticing and we have a reading celebration, which usually includes pizza when the book is done.  Sometimes I even wondered if they enjoyed the book club and wanted to participate.  Then we finished our first book titled Stone Fox and they were ready to do another book club and some even started making suggestions.  Okay, I thought this is exciting and hopeful!  So I decided to let them choose which book they would like to read next.  Almost everyone chose a Gordon Korman book titled Shipwreck. So I faced a new challenge of getting multiple copies from the library.  Everyday the students stop and ask when we will begin and when they will get their books. Today when I popped into the cafeteria one student was begging to join our book club.  I am getting pumped up and excited to begin our next book club.  Tomorrow the boys and girls will get their books and our next reading journey will begin!