My 2024 Reading Wrap-Up

The year is days from ending, and people are beginning to talk, write, and post about reading challenges from the past year and the upcoming year. Reading these usually motivates me, but this time it has been hard. This was not a banner reading year for me although it wasn't my worst year, according to my Goodreads account. Reflecting back on the year, I have learned a few things about my reading life.

1. Distractions are real. We hear so much about our student's being distracted by their phones. I know this is true, but I also know my phone is my biggest distraction. I often reach for my phone instead of a book, and it is something I am not real proud of. I know I need to fix this problem if I want to reignite my reading life.
2. My reading life affects my students' reading lives. I know the connection between books, teachers, and students. I have written about it; I have presented it; I have preached it. I used to live by the quote by Steven Layne, "Never underestimate the power of a great book in the hands of a teacher who knows how to use it." That was me. I need to find that "me" again.
3. Bad habits form quickly, and good habits quickly die. Stacking habits is something I believe in. Finding a habit I already do and add a new one to it. For example, when I eat breakfast every morning, read a few pages. This is something simple I can do to help my reading (and avoid #1!)

But I am not going to beat myself up over this dismal reading year. Donalyn Miller once wrote in a Nerdy Book Club post:  "Most readers experience this ebb and flow--alternating between reding binges and dry spells." I will continue to hold tight to these words while looking at ways to end this dry spell.

However dismal this year was, I still read some amazing books that have become my favorites of 2024!

For someone who has never played basketball, I have a long history with it. My sister both played and coached for years, and my daughter has followed in those footsteps. When I see books about girls who play basketball, I have to read it. If you have any girl basketball players, I highly recommend this one! Basketball, friendships, rivalries, and March Madness! What’s not to like?!?! Being from Indiana, I would have loved the girls to have chosen the movie "Hoosiers" to watch!

I was afraid to read this sequel to Frindle for fear of being disappointed. I don't know if it was the backstory about finding the manuscript years later or having read to my students in my first year of teaching, but it was everything I wanted it to be!

Playing sports in the late 70s and early 80s, the struggle for girl athletes portrayed in this book is real. Living in Indiana, the basketball history and culture is accurate. Being a graduate of Butler University, the pictures of Hinkle Fieldhouse are nostalgic. I absolutely adored this book. I even got a little teary-eyed at the end! The back pages with the story of the three athletes on which this story was based, made me appreciate Matt Tavares' research and accuracy. I can't wait to get this in my classroom this fall.

What a book! Two of my high school friends grew up struggling with eating disorders, ten years before Jake's story began. We, their friends, didn't know about it, and then when we did, we really didn't understand. As I was reading this, I wondered if this was the type of pain they went through. Did they feel this alone? Should we have seen something sooner? I wish they could have read a book like this all those years ago, and I wish we, as their friends, could have read it too.

With 2025 around the corner, I am looking forward to getting my reading life flowing again, and I am always looking for recommendations!

Thinking About Read-Aloud #SOL23

I have been thinking about read-aloud lately. 

Maybe it's because on Wednesday, I read the last chapter in our class novel, and every student was either following along in their books or were listening intently as I read every word. The room was silent; it was wonderful.

Maybe it's because I listened to Donalyn Miller Friday night and her words stuck with me: "We don't age out of read-alouds. If we did, audiobooks would not be on the rise for adults."

Maybe it's because I listened to Neal Shusterman Sunday morning, and he told a story about how he was a summer camp counselor, and the way he got kids to settle down for bed was by telling them stories. As he was telling teachers from across the country his story about his thoughts and ideas behind writing Challenger Deep and Scythe, the entire audience was hanging on his every word, as if we were the kids at camp.

Or maybe, it's because of all three.

 

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Getting My Brave On #SOL23

When I look at my teaching career, I see many fingerprints of others embedded in my practices. Kelly Gallager, Penny Kittle, Ruth Ayres, and Donalyn Miller just to name a few.

But Donalyn Miller was the first. After my first year of teaching, I read The Book Whisperer and my teaching was forever changed. She affirmed what I believed as a young teacher and gave me the strength and knowledge to do something that no one else was doing or even believed was the right way to do things.

The first time I saw Donalyn in person was at the All Write conference in Warsaw, Indiana back in 2014. I am an introvert, so I was too intimidated to go and meet her. I then saw her present at NCTE in Houston and Baltimore. Again, I was not brave enough to introduce myself.

Social media has changed my teaching and has opened the door to many opportunities. It has helped me to come out of my shell a little when presented with opportunities to meet people in person.

Finally, last night this happened...it only took 10 years!

 

Join Two Writing Teachers and other teacher-writers as we 
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Donalyn Miller and a Pivot #SOL21

Join Two Writing Teachers and other teacher-writers as we share a slice of life every single day in the month of March. 

Pivot. 

Does this word make you cringe? It seems to be a current buzzword that may have a negative connotation attached to it. Many teachers have had to pivot this past year in ways we never thought we could and in ways we didn't want to. 

If I think back to my early teaching years, I remember a pivot. It was the summer before my second year of teaching, and The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller was published. I wasn't on social media at the time, so I honestly do not know how I heard about the book. But I devoured it and soaked in her every word.

In my first year of teaching, I taught reading the way I was taught - the way I thought I was "supposed" to teach. We read a story from the anthology every week and completed the accompanying worksheets. I hated it, and so did my students. 

I knew this way of teaching wasn't working. I knew better ways of teaching were out there. I knew I needed a change. A pivot.

That summer I read The Book Whisperer, and I slowly added her ideas to my classroom. I saw student engagement shift. I saw motivation to read increase. I saw my passion for teaching grow.

This book showed me "that's the way we've always done it" is not always the right way to do it. This book gave me permission to make the changes I needed to make for my students and for me. This book validated my beliefs. This book was the pivot that turned my teaching in a new direction. This book saved me. 

And I have not looked back.

Donalyn recently posted about the anniversary of the book on Facebook. She states, "Twelve years ago today, I became a published author when The Book Whisperer was released. I never imagined how my personal and professional life would change."

Me neither, Donalyn. Me neither.

Happy 12th anniversary! And thank you for helping so many teachers find the positive in the pivot.

Creating Reading Experiences

This past week, Donalyn Miller wrote a post about her annual #bookaday on the Nerdy Book Club Blog. She explains how the #bookaday came about and the guidelines to participate. But toward the end of the post, she writes this:

"Ultimately, the measure of a reading life isn't how many books we read. We measure our reading lives in the experiences, knowledge gained, the conversations and relationships we have with other readers, or the further reading inquiry, or action our reading experiences spark."

Like many things Donalyn says, this got me thinking and has left me with many questions. As hard as I try to be a literacy advocate in and out of my classroom, I believe I can always do more and be better.

I have been thinking about how can I make reading experiences stronger in my classroom. How can I create different ways for my students to show their knowledge through reading? How can I improve conversations about books and our reading lives, which will build reading relationships? How can I engage students, which will spark that desire to read and learn more?

I brainstormed and made a list of things to think about this summer, which I share with you.

• I can be more consistent with my book talks and give more opportunities for students to talk about books among themselves. Summer is a great time to revisit books I have read and to think about the books I will share in the fall.
• I can be more consistent with making reading time in class a priority. Some times I let other important-things-at-the-moment take up the time set aside for reading. I believe Penny Kittle and Kelly Gallagher have said if they aren't reading at school, then they aren't reading at home. It is difficult to have reading experiences when students aren't reading.
• I can strengthen my reading conferences. Making time to confer with every student regularly allows me to create reading relationships. 
• I can continue to read myself. When I sit down with my students to confer, they know we are talking reader to reader, not teacher to student. Being familiar with the books in my library helps me to recommend books to students, solidifying that reader to reader relationship.
• I can create different ways for students to share what they have learned through reading. Reading response is a part of my standards and is expected. But the response does not always have to be a written paragraph or essay. 
• I can find texts that will spark their thinking and lead them to other reading. Thanks to the connections on social media, finding texts that are timely and relevant for my students is much easier. Summer is the perfect time to search for these.

As Donalyn said, it is these experiences that ultimately measure a reading life. This fall, students from four elementary schools will converge in my classroom, each coming with their own set of reading experiences. These experiences have made or have broken a reader and also contribute to students' attitudes about reading. 

My students come from AR reading experiences. Points are how they measure their reading lives. I have many students who come in saying they don't like to read; some even say they hate reading.

It becomes my job early in the year to find out about their experiences. But most importantly, to create better ones.

Ones that will become a new measure of their reading lives, hopefully, for years to come.

Thankful to Have My Reading Life Back

I am a middle school ELA teacher.  I believe in the power of books.  I believe in the benefits of independent reading.  I believe in sharing my literacy life with my students.

But do you know how many books I have read this school year?

Zero.

Yes, I said zero, and I am not proud of that number.

I started working on my Master's in September, so my reading life has come to a standstill.  Oh, I am reading, just not books with my students.  On Facebook, I commented on this new dilemma I was facing on the Passionate Readers Book Club page.

Donalyn Miller gave me some words of advice, "Our reading lives wax and wane. You are not setting it aside forever."  and then posted a link to a Nerdy Book Club she had written titled:  Guilt Trip:  Accepting My Reading Slump.

In this post, she talks about reading binges and dry spells.  She gives such great advice and offers grace for those of us who have had to set aside our reading lives when real life gets in the way.  But I felt better when I read her words, "I must remember that my reading life belongs to me. I need to reclaim it for myself or I won’t have much to offer my reading community." 

Last Saturday, I reclaimed my reading life.  And it felt good.

My public library had just received a copy of Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds.  (Actually the book wasn't even on the shelves yet. The librarian had to go get it from the catalogue department.) 

I had recently shown my students an interview with Jason, and they begged me to purchase the book.  Because I teach 6th graders, I knew I wanted to read it myself first before I put it in my classroom library. 

And I didn't just read it, I devoured it...in about an hour.  

And I couldn't wait to share it with my students. 

I went to school on Monday with a new spark.   I shared this book with other teachers, my assistant principal and anyone else who would listen. I even began to read it aloud in all of my classes. On Tuesday, the day before our Thanksgiving break, we had a reading day.  I read Patina, another wonderful book by Jason Reynolds.  

I am once again living a literate life.

So no, Donalyn, I haven't set my reading life aside forever.  It is back, and on this Thanksgiving Eve, I am thankful for its reappearance.

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.

Pillars

It is that time of year when inadequacy permeates my thoughts, and I feel as if I am under a microscope.  I do not like to dwell in the negativity of testing, but it is a part of our educational culture.  As teachers, testing and the data gleaned from it is something we all must deal with.

Last week I gave the STAR reading test to monitor how much my students grew as readers this year.  As I explained to my students, this "number" is just one snapshot of their reading growth.  But I was still discouraged by the results.

I have put much time and effort toward changing the reading culture in my classroom this year, and I really wanted my efforts to be visible in these tests results.  I do not have a lot of faith in the STAR test, but I know people in high places look at these scores and want to see improvement in reading levels.

Today I listened to Penny Kittle's podcast with Donalyn Miller about independent reading.  You can listen to all of the Book Love Foundation podcasts here.

In this interview, Penny talked about all the pillars which hold up our readers. One pillar is all the tools to help students find books in hopes of finding at least one which will keep them reading. Other pillars are a place to read, access to books, and time to read in school to accommodate their busy schedules.

Listening to this podcast, I realized that teachers are also a pillar, maybe the most important one.  I know I have made a difference in the reading lives of some of my students, although I may not have seen this in their scores last week.

A student recently wrote in a card that she has probably never read this many books in one year before.  I had another student tell me I had changed him into a reader.  I know I have not reached all of my students, but without these pillars, I have to wonder where they would be?

I don't need a test score, a level, or a number to be hold up my students.  I spent a year putting the pillars Penny talks about in place.  When they leave me in just a few short weeks, I know what a difference these pillars have made in their reading lives.  And I don't need a reading level to tell me any different.

Life Preservers and the Island of Isolation

Thank you Two Writing Teachers for creating this space for me to share my corner of the world.

I am in my ninth year of teaching, and I am amazed how much education has changed in that short amount of time.  Some of that change has been brought on by education reform, and some of that change has been my own reformation, which has not always been easy and many times quite lonely.

My first year of teaching, I taught 5th grade reading.  I used a basal series and all that accompanied it.  I hated it, and so did my students.  The following year I moved to 4th and my quest for change began.

That summer I read The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller.  This book was my life

preserver, and I clung tightly to every word she wrote.  We are an Accelerated Reader district, and I knew better ways to motivate and create readers were out there; I just had to find them.  The Book Whisperer validated my beliefs while I tried to survive on that isolated island where we teachers sometimes inadvertently find ourselves.  This book was the catalyst in changing the way I taught reading.  

I began to:

• give kids more choice
• improve my classroom library with books kids wanted to read
• unlevel my classroom library
• decrease the use of worksheets
• increase the talking about books

It was slow, but it was a start.  Each year I implemented more and more of her ideas. My classroom was changing in ways I could not even imagine.  Now I read The Book Whisperer every summer to reaffirm my beliefs.

My eighth year of teaching I moved to middle school and felt like a first year teacher all over again.  I knew I could carry over many of the ideas and methods I used in my elementary classroom, but I also knew I needed to change some of the ways I approached independent reading.

My next life preserver was Book Love by Penny Kittle.  I read Book Love for the first time last summer and it completely changed how independent reading looks in my classroom this year.  Again, I held on tight and became brave enough to make some changes that I knew I needed to make.

I began to:

• include independent reading every day during my 48 minute periods
• establish reading rates and keep track of pages read
• have students keep track of books read using an online reading record
• have students rank the difficulty of their reading though reading ladders
• have students reflect on their reading
• conference with my 100+ students on a regular basis
• eliminate Accelerated Reader

I know that I am a much better teacher because of the influence of these two women and the books they have written.  The reading culture in my classroom is magical. And that is not an easy task to attain with middle school readers.  Turning students into readers has become my passion and my primary existence in the teaching world.  

Change is not easy, but when we have mentors like Donalyn and Penny who throw us life preservers, we musy grab them and not let go.  We must be brave enough to make the tough decisions.  And brave enough to swim off that island.

Celebrate Good Times, Come On! 6/7

Each Saturday  Ruth Ayres invites us to share and celebrate events, big or small, from our week. Looking for celebrations has certainly improved my outlook on my week. For that, I am certainly grateful to Ruth and to all of you who choose to celebrate with me.

This was not my original celebration post, but in light of some Twitter happenings this week, things changed!

Today I celebrate standing up for what you believe in, perseverance, and persistence. Or in other words, I celebrate Donalyn Miller.

Many of us are faced with challenges or attacks on what "belongs" to us (and I use that word very loosely here) or on our character.  This is not an easy situation to be in.  Many times this takes perseverance and persistence.

If you were on Twitter at all this week, you may have seen where a publishing company is using the hashtag #bookaday.  For those of you who "know" Donalyn, you know this hashtag is associated with a reading movement she started many years ago and was published in her book, Reading in the Wild.  You can read more about the Book-a-Day Challenge here on the The Nerdy Book Club.

I started tweeting at the end of 2013 and was looking forward to my first book-a-day challenge this summer.  Now, this anticipated experience has been tainted.  To quote a tweet, Donalyn says, "...because of you, an event for teachers and librarians is getting spammed with garbage."  This is so true.  I looked forward to reading and sharing books this summer with teachers, readers, and librarians and challenging myself to a book-a-day.  Now the hashtag leads me to junk I have to sift through.

I have never met Donalyn, but I do believe that she will prevail due to her persistence, her perseverance and the way she stands up for what she believes in.  I look forward to meeting her in a couple of week at All Write, but until then, I will continue to celebrate what she does and what she stands for.  And I will continue to celebrate and support #book-a-day.

According to another tweet, I believe she has a plan.  I hope you will join her in her quest for persistence, perseverance and standing up for what you believe in.  I know I will.

*UPDATE - Donalyn announced today that The Borough Press has changed their hashtag to #bookadayUK, therefore leaving the real #bookaday for teachers, readers, and librarians, which is where is should be.

This is a celebration of persistence and perseverance!