Reading outside the skin

Thinking about reading outside the skin, conjures the idea of how easy it is to break the skin–little kids tripping and scraping their knees, or one wrong move in the kitchen and you slice your finger. While I know that sounds gross, it kind of makes me hopeful about my students’ abilities to read outside of themselves and understand characters and themes they may not have much in common with. If readers can emerge from their selves to see purpose and pleasure in what they are reading they can start to love to read outside of what is expected in the classroom.

In chapter 4, Dr. Bomer explains that state standards about booklists I thought all teachers had to abide by don’t actually exist.  My mind was BLOWN. Perhaps booklists and school wide requirements have been the norm for so long that everyone just believes that when teachers are presented with the books they have to teach they assume it is the law.  Teachers help students “compose their reading lives” by being “one of their resources for finding books that might hook them” (Bomer, 75). It is not only a smart choice, but I feel it is also a responsibility, for teachers to supply their students with books that they actually want to read. My English 4 AP teacher inspired my literate life and she is a big catalyst in my decision to become a teacher. She helped me see the world outside of my “oppressed” teenage life. Grendel by John Gardner jumpstarted my love of reading dystopias like novels by Margaret Atwood and the perplexing philosophical works by Milan Kundera. I’ll never forget reading Grendel or my teacher.

 I start my observations next week, but I had a wonderful talk with my CT on Friday and that is exactly how she motivates her students. When we were chatting during her planning period and talking about our schedule, a boy came in to borrow a book from her library. He was going out of town for the weekend and he really wanted to read while he was gone. I watched him grab a copy of Bronxwood, scribble his name on an index card and walk out of the room already opening the book. For me that was a little insight into what teaching relatable materials can have on students’ lives beyond the classroom. This boy could have listened to his iPod or played videos games while he was killing time this weekend but instead he wanted to read a book. This happened two more times in the mere twenty minutes my CT and I discussed her schedule and our programs expectations. I believe that if my CT’s library was made up exclusively of the likes of Shakespeare, Bronte and Homer this welcome interruption wouldn’t happen as often. That is not to say that students today are completely averse to reading “classics,” but those who might not usually read for leisure seem to be doing so in greater measure.

I realized as I started writing my blog that I was unintentionally returning to the concept of motivation and its link to students relating to the materials that I wrote about last week. Perhaps this is because it is an integral part of the discussions in all three of our classes. Also, I believe it is key to helping students find a passion for literacy. Including things that can be controversial like graphic novels and books that reflect the diversity in the classroom can compel students to pick up more books. By reading for fun they are improving their reading in the classroom. Reading has helped me think critically and express myself in all facets of my life and this is something I want to instill in my students as well.