The Importance of Practicing Sustained Reading Time

I have always loved to read. I would spend hours and hours just pouring over books visiting alternative worlds, making new friends, and creating long lasting relationships with the characters who take me along with them on their journeys.  There was such a magical quality to losing myself for hours in books, that it shaped my lifelong passion as a voracious reader. 

After reading the article,  "Is Google Making us Stupid" by Nicholas Carr, this concept of how reading is changing had me concerned. Carr points out that since the rise of internet and technology, not only is the "way we read is changing, but the way we think is changing." As students grow up becoming avid users of the internet, play video games, and of course watch t.v. sustained attention is becoming much more difficult to attain.

I see this every day during our silent reading period in school each day.  Students sit for 20 minutes with a book in hand and read silently the old fashioned turn the pages way.  When I study the kids I see a variety of behaviors. There are the students who look at the book but are not actually reading anything, the students who are looking out of the windows, or at friends, and then there are the frequent fliers to the bathroom.  There are of course still quite a few students who look forward to this time and settle in to their literary worlds, but what do we do to address these avoiders of reading? 

On one hand I see value in giving my students the option of exploring online reading during this time, because at least they are reading and practicing this skill.  On the other hand, I fear that if we as educators and parents don't nurture our children to experience books that require us to sustain our attention that we are going to lose this opportunity to connect with the ethereal experience of losing oneself in another world simply by turning pages.

It alarms me when I read this quote from the article, "And we still await the long-term neurological and psychological experiments that will provide a definitive picture of how Internet use affects cognition. But a recently published study of online research habits, conducted by scholars from University College London, suggests that we may well be in the midst of a sea change in the way we read and think." 

I don't have a reliable scientific answer to this, but I have observations as a classroom teacher as to how I see students changing.   Students immediately reply, "Wait, what?" when they have been asked a direct question. I see students who are trying to engage in conversations that require critical thinking to make a point, but they get lost midway through their thoughts and can only dance loosely around the point they wanted to get to. Following multistep directions, even if they are written on the board, is nearly impossible.  When students are confronted with something difficult, many do not know how to work through the problem without assistance. Attention is often short-lived and fragmented even during activities that are designed to be fun. 

Maybe these are all just part of the development of children at this stage, but I just wonder if this article is really true when it says that "we are changing the way we think". And if it is changing the way we think, are we okay with our children losing the experience of sustained attention and reading a book the good old fashioned way? 

100 Dresses by Eleanor Estes

The book The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes was written in the 1940's and awarded a Newbury Honor in 1945.  It is nearly 74 years old now and I still decide to incorporate this short read into the beginning of the year when we kick off our Community Unit.

The story is about the main character Maddie who is best friends with the most popular girl in the school, Peggy. They tease a girl named Wanda Petronski when Wanda, who is clearly very poor, claims that she has one hundred dresses "lined up in her closet." The girls who have only seen Wanda in a worn and faded blue dress, decide to play along and pretend they believe her and ask her relentless questions about the 100 dresses.

This book is a great book to take a look at stereotypes, bullying, bystanders and so much more.  While all of these topics in and of themselves are enough for you to pick up the book and read it to your child or your class, there is one reason that I came across by mistake which makes this book an even more powerful teaching tool. 

One day while I was preparing to start this book with my students, I wondered about why Wanda Petronski just didn't tell the girls to get lost. I also noticed that Eleanor Estes had Wanda repeat the lines "Yes. One hundred dresses, all lined up in my closet," throughout the book. She was constantly described as stolid, showing no emotion at all.  I wanted to figure out why a girl who was so passionate about her 100 dresses didn't show more emotion when it was beyond clear that her classmates were making fun of her.  Then it dawned on me.  I think not only was Wanda an outcast because of being a poor Polish girl with a weird last name.  She was also an outcast because I suspect she was autistic.

This is the first story I have read that captures a character that seems to display many of the traits of autism well before autism was ever defined or became a disability known in most homes.  Wanda's disability was not in the forefront or on display in this book, she just comes across as a peculiar child who just wants to fit in with her classmates. It is only when we take what we know now about autism spectrum disorder and INFER what her behaviors mean can we see why in the end Wanda never actually realizes that she was never a part of the group at all.

If you haven't read it I encourage you to take a look!! It is worth a read and really opens up some amazing discussion with your students.

The Lost Boys...in 6th Grade

Hi readers!! I have noticed a trend over the past five or so years where many of my male students seem to be flailing as they try to navigate the traditional model of the school system.  Education was once was considered a privilege only afforded to boys, and girls were often overlooked and their learning considered inconsequential as they got older because their "rightful" place was considered to be at home. But to me at least, it seems the tide has turned and I find that my male students seem to constantly be at a loss in how to be successful in school. Despite working to include more movement in class, more hands on activities, inclusive reading material for all readers, I still find that many boys are just not able to be reached by today's school standards.  For a while I considered that it was just my subject area, ELA, (and still assume that this still plays at least a sizable part) but I asked my colleagues if they noticed this too, and I am not alone. 

Why I am writing this is two-fold.  First I want to inquire if others are seeing this trend elsewhere or if it is all in my mind, my district, or my class? ( Include resources if you have any!!)

Second, because my main objective is to get my students to invest in their independent reading, I am also hoping to get some current book suggestions that will hook these guys into reading.  Before you suggest titles here are some of my go to books/authors that are my tried and true: 
ANYTHING and ALL by Rick Riordan
Sports books by Mike Lupica and Tim Green
ALL of Jason Reynolds books
The Ranger's Apprentice series
Conspiracy 365 series
 Hunger Games series
Maze Runner series
DOWK books
Bone series
Amulet series
Also any books/series that are more suited to 4-5 grade level as I have many low readers this year.
Thank you so much for your thoughts, ideas, and book suggestions!!!
Lynn

Why I Teach about Racism and Books I'd Recommend

   

I remember having my eyes opened to my white privilege when the BlackLivesMatter movement was in full swing.  I think the recent death at the time was when Philando Castile, a school cafeteria supervisor, was shot in Minneapolis.  BlackLivesMatter memes and posts were everywhere, and I wondered: Yes. Black lives matter. But don't all lives matter?

 I was one of those people who thought that I wasn't racist just because I was a good person and liked people of all colors.  Not only that, but I also always  had been fascinated with the civil rights movement and had read every book that addressed injustices in the past.   I loved reading about heroes like Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Ruby Bridges as they confronted racism head on. I knew there was still racism, but naively thought it was minimal and only done by bigots.

Luckily a person who I admire and follow on FB posted an article "Every time You Say 'All Lives Matter' You Are Being an Accidental Racist"  and I thought, Oh shit! I don't want to be considered racist on purpose or by accident,  so I quickly opened this up and read what the BlackLivesMatter movement really was.  Once I really got the BLM message loud and clear, I started to realize just how privileged I am and living in Maine where the population is 95% white.

As a teacher I always shied away from books that confronted racial issues because I was scared I would do it wrong. I was worried I would offend my black students in my classes where they might feel singled out. Or what if while explaining something in our history that was built on racism, I got my facts wrong? If I was going to teach this, I wanted to do it right, and how could I, a white Mainer come across as an expert on this? But then again, in a state that is 95% white, if white people don't start talking about it to our kids, who will?

Truth is, I can't be an expert.  I am not even close.  But I have read, and researched and keep my eyes, ears, and mind open when it comes to learning all there is to learn about our racist systems. I also know that I felt duped by the white washed "history" lessons I was given as a kid, because now at 44 I am realizing that while I would not consider myself a racist, I now get that I have benefitted from the racism in our country.  Now, I feel like it is an ethical responsibility for anyone who is aware of the way racism works, to show our students, to point it out to them now, and get them to think about how we can fix this before they perpetuate the same system.

 I get it if you are not ready to tackle racism, I do, it's scary.  But not as scary as living in a racist country that refuses to progress forward and make change.  Take a minute to read the blog post "Politics and the English Language" by Radical Departures. In this post the author makes the point that if we shy away from topics and conversations that make us uncomfortable, then we will never be able to grow as a society. We have to let go of the old adage "Never discuss politics and religion" and teach our kids how to listen, understand, and confront each other in ways that are respectful and thoughtful. Where else will these lessons take place if not done at school?

Need to learn more on what racism looks like today? Check out: 16 Books about Race that Every White Person Should Read by Huffington Post.

A great book to start out confronting racism with students is:

Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963  by Christopher Paul Curtis.  A story about a family that decides to bring their oldest son, Byron, to live in Birmingham, Alabama with his grandmother to get him to "shape up".  Great literature connections to layer in: Emmitt Till, Ballad of Birmingham, Dr. King Eulogy, the Green Book, and the poem Let America Be America Again by Langton Hughes.

You may also want to look at and connect some of the recent news about the Emmitt Till burial site, or the reopening of his case to hold his murderers responsible, and the final sentencing of the men responsible for the Birmingham Bombing.

**Racism is alluded to throughout the book, but not overt, therefore you can pick and choose the areas you feel more comfortable to confront.

Soap Box Rant: Common core is the Killer of Humanities

I was at a backyard neighborhood party talking to a graduating senior a few weeks ago and we got into a discussion of possible majors that she might be interested in when she goes off to college. She wasn't sure about whether or not to pursue a degree in science or to stick with literature and as we discussed possible options on how to navigate each, it became clear to me that this 18 year old girl did not know what the term humanities means.

And then if I am to be completely honest with you, I actually couldn't quite put my finger on an exact definition myself while I was sitting out by the backyard fire. I mean, don't get me wrong, I had an idea, a generalized version of it in my mind, but really why were all of the literature, drama, and arts all considered part of humanities? I did what everyone this day and age does and Googled it to find out what exactly humanities were, and a quick quote from this article from the Huffington Post captured it perfectly:
         "When we study the humanities we study people, only not psychologically or biologically (although those fields do come into it from time to time). Mainly we’re learning about how people in earlier ages or faraway places created the world they lived in, and how the world they lived in made them the people they were. And while studying the many different subjects contained with the humanities, we inevitably end up learning about more than simply past or distant cultures. We end up learning how we create the world we live in now, and how the world we live in makes us the kind of people we are."

I immediately reflected on all of my amazing literature classes in college and the connected philosophies and ideas that opened my eyes and my love of literature to a whole new level. So how was it that this 18 year old girl really had no idea about this concept?  And then it took me two seconds to realize exactly what the problem was...the Common Core.

As an ELA teacher I have often found the Common Core standards to be a ridiculous box that has limited our teachers and students since its adoption in 2009.  This densely defined document outlines  thousands of skills that need to be mastered by the end of a student's academic career. Here are a few that I am responsible for each year: 
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.5
Analyze how a particular sentence, chapter, scene, or stanza fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting, or plot.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

Of course these common core standards ARE important, and getting students to be able to accomplish these tasks are relevant, but are they what the true focus should be as we read with our students? While it is important to determine how a sentence fits into a larger paragraph, isn't it just as important, or even more so for our young readers to connect with the stories, the characters, and the experiences that may engage them to become more empathetic thoughtful humans? Why doesn't the common core ask educators to look at how characters deal with problems in a book and view it from alternative perspectives to gain a deeper understanding of the situation without judgment? What about taking context of a novel written to reflect our  history to connect it to the social injustices that we still see in our world? Or if you look at writing standards, why is it that the only skills of importance according to CCSS is to be able to write informational, persuasive, and narrative pieces? What about poetry? Lyrics? A reflection of nature? Why doesn't the common core focus on these? Because you can't measure human experience like you can measure skills. 

I wonder if while teachers focus on the nitty gritty details of how to teach each strand of standards, does the passion get lost? My experience has shown me that those who have a background in humanities can still get kids to seek the deeper meaning of life, and teach the connections between us all, even while working with 2nd graders. But what about the teachers who are just trained to be generalized K-8? Do they use the CCSS as the Holy Grail of what is important in teaching kids to read because someone (without any experience in the classroom or without humanities) determined it should be so?

Maybe I am wrong. In fact, I hope I am.  I hope that teachers are able to connect our kids to the humanities side of literature rather than just locking in on just the skills. I still see many educators who realize their biggest responsibility is not to just teach kids how to "master" a task, but to become reflective humans capable of empathy and independent thought so that we as a society "we learn about the world we live in now, and how the world we live in, makes us the kind of people we are." 

Where the Moon Meets the Mountain

Where the Moon Meets the Mountain by Grace Lin was just a super book filled with a wonderful tale of a girl, Minli who decides that she will try to change her family's fortune to please her mother who is constantly complaining about all that other people have while they have nothing. The book follows the girl along her journey to find the Old Man of the Moon who she must ask to change her fortune. Along the way she meets a dragon, selfish monkeys,  a buffalo boy, a green tiger,  a pair of clever twins, and of course the Old Man of the Moon.

This book is filled with rich details, magic, and Chinese folklore that teach important lessons to the characters throughout the book, especially Minli's mother who learns that while she was complaining about all that she didn't have, she took for granted all of the things that she did have: a happy loving family.

While it was Minli's adventure that kept the reader moving along, I loved the mother's journey the most throughout the book.  A mother who is sick of work, not having enough, and a husband who only tells stories. Yeah, I get that. Except the stories part-switch that with just sitting on the couch watching golf and we're good.   Anyway, I really connected with the mother. She is just tired of working hard and getting little to nothing out of it.  She takes her fortune frustration out on her child, and that is a bit unfair, but haven't we all had those days?  The way the mother slowly comes along is realistic and true. I mean, how many mothers are at home each night stuck at the sink, again, washing dishes and cleaning up after their children wishing that they lived a more fortunate life? We don't do it meaning to be ungrateful, we do it because we are exhausted and want a break from what is immediately impacting our happiness. Reading this book was a perfectly timed reminder that sometimes you just need to sit back and force yourself to recognize all that you have and should be grateful for.

Sparrow

Disclaimer: One of the things that you should know about me right away is that I am constantly curious and looking for connections within my reading. I love to research topics I have never heard of, books I haven't read yet, poems, moments in history...you name it I want to find how it connects to the book that I am reading.  Out of all the things I love to look into, when books mention songs, bands, or lyrics I am immediately interested in how the song connects to the book and the moment in the book that it is connected to.

One of the best books that I read this summer was a book by Sarah Moon called Sparrow.  The book starts out with the main character, Sparrow, trying to explain to the doctors in the hospital that she really wasn't trying to kill herself, I was immediately hooked.

It turns out that Sparrow is actually just a very solitary girl who does not understand social interactions or how to make friends very easily.  She finds solace in books and she felt at least understood by her school librarian, Mrs. Wexler, who always gave her space and reading recommendations in her library.

Sparrow is also an only child and lives solely with her mother. They have a strong relationship and are best friends. But when Sparrow ends up in the hospital, her mother does not know how to react or treat Sparrow, and an uncomfortable distance settles in between them for the first time.

In order to be allowed out of the hospital, Sparrow has to agree to go to a therapist.  She believes she can outlast this woman and not speak to her for the duration of her visits, but once her therapist plays music that strikes a chord in Sparrow, she begins to take notice of the power that lyrics and beat can have on her connecting with herself and her emotions.

When she finally breaks slightly out of her shell,  she allows herself to be taken to a Rock-n-Roll camp for girls for two weeks  in the summer and Sparrow for the first time is forced to confront all of her old habits, realizes that people might actually be interested in her and that above all music brings people together.

As I mentioned in my opening paragraph, I love books with music mentioned, so you can imagine that with the extensive and eclectic playlist listed throughout this book, I was in book geek heaven. Perhaps there are not many of us out there who are as geeky as this, but if you are and you have read this book, then I have included a list of links, and lyrics below for you to follow along with as you read.
I have discovered that the music follows along perfectly and is a perfect mirror of her growth as she navigates through this book.
Enjoy!!

Pg. 39 The Pixies: Where is my Mind?  Lyrics 
This is the first song that breaks the barrier between Sparrow and Dr. Katz.  At the first moment that Sparrow hears this song she is fascinated by the screeching and the lyrics that seem to echo exactly what is running through her current state of mind. 

Pg. 49 The White Stripes get an honorable mention but no specific song (too bad for them I guess)

Pg. 49 The Alabama Shakes: I Don't Want to Fight    Lyrics

The lines: Take from my hand
                 put in your hands
                 The fruit of all my grief....These show that Sparrow is ready to start the journey of discovering how to help herself.

Pg. 80, 89, Patti Smith:  Pissing in a River      Lyrics
My thoughts on this is that this song comes about half-way through her journey of figuring herself out and she is relying on Dr. Katz to not let her down because she is so vulnerable.

Pg. 113 TV on the Radio: Happy Idiot: Song and Lyrics
Pg. 116 TV on the Radio: Wolf Like Me  Lyrics

Pg. 137 The Weaves: no specific song mentioned
Pg. 138 Elliott Smith: no specific song mentioned

Pg. 147 and 149 Betty Davis: They Say I'm Different  Lyrics
Pg. 172 Courtney Barnett: Dead Fox  Lyrics

Pg. 203 Nina Simone: Feeling Good: Song and Lyrics
Bird flyin' high, you know how I feel... 
Pg. 215 Janelle Monae: Q.U.E.E.N Song and Lyrics

Pg. 226 Nina Simone: Mississippi Goddam song and Lyrics

Pg. 245 Beyonce: Run the World Song and Lyrics
Pg. 251 Nina Simone: Here Comes the Sun: song and Lyrics