My Journey with a Leveled Library

Discussions on leveling books and libraries seems to be elevated lately. This topic was the discussion in several conferences this week so tweets were flying.  The National Council of Teachers of English  posted "What's Your Lexile Score?" today.

This trend has me thinking about my own journey with a leveled library.

I teach in an Accelerated Reading district, and most of the classroom libraries are leveled. When I first began teaching, my library was leveled too. That's just how it was done, and I didn't know any better.

After reading professional books, especially The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller, I began to see the light and the damage I was doing to my students. I began to slowly add baskets of popular series and authors, as well as baskets of genres and nonfiction topics. Because I taught 4th grade, many of my students did not know how to choose a book other than from the leveled baskets. 

We had a learning curve which I continue to fight today. One the of the first discussions I have with my middle schoolers is what they notice about our classroom library. Many immediately notice that the books are not leveled, and I tell them they never will be. I teach them to choose books based on their preferences and how to determine if a book is appropriate for them. This is part of teaching the reader.

I worked with a teacher who had a different philosophy of teaching reading then I did, especially when it came to AR. We often disagreed, and he often quoted, "Programs don't teach readers, teachers do." 

He is absolutely correct, and I agree 100%. 

But what is a leveled library doing? Many libraries are organized by matching colored baskets, clearly labeled with AR levels.  This "program" is teaching our students how to choose books.  Not teachers. 

I will continue to fight against "programs teaching readers" and limiting their ability to choose books for themselves. I will continue to advocate for choice.

My journey with a leveled library has ended.

Research Inside My Own Classroom

For the past two weeks, I have been reading research on a much debated subject among educators - Accelerated Reader, also known as AR.  I have read page after page of research, blog posts, and articles.  I even stayed up until 1:00 on a school night immersing myself in this topic.

Why?  I am very much against AR for many reasons, but I want to have conversations with the teachers who support it and the decision makers in my school district. Thanks to Pernille Ripp and Donalyn Miller and their session at Nerdcamp in Michigan last summer, I have requested an opportunity to open the discussion about AR.  I want to be prepared with research to back up my beliefs.  I want to have counterpoints to their points.  My mission is to protect the love of reading in my classroom, and I cannot just talk from my heart.

But sometimes I reach a point where I start doubting my beliefs.  I start asking, "Are they right?  Am I wrong?"

This week I had three incidents in my classroom that helped me put those thoughts back into perspective.

Incident One

One of my students finished reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone this week. He came into my class complaining because he could not take an AR test on it and wanted to know why.  I explained to him that he could not take a test on a book he has already read.  He said he had not read the book "this year."

When I explained to him that the books he read in elementary school follow him to the middle school, he replied, "You mean I read that book for nothing?"

I said, "Did you enjoy the book?"

He nodded his head yes, and I replied, "That is what matters the most."

Incident Two

A co-worker's third grade daughter came into school proudly announcing, "I met my AR goal and made the 100 point club today, and now I don't have to read anymore."

My heart sank.  I know she is a reader because I share books from my classroom library with her, and I know she will continue to read.  But this attitude towards reading is prevalent in so many of our students.

Incident Three

Last week I started book clubs with my students, and today was our first Discussion Day.  In one of my classes, we discussed what worked and what didn't work.  One student who has become a reader this year said, "We talked about the book and asked questions about the confusing parts.  It was fun!"

I stopped him right there and told him that he had just made my day.  That is what reading is all about.  No points, no incentives, no tests...just reading for fun.

Maybe I should stop reading the research.  Maybe I should pay more attention to the research right inside my own classroom.