Secret Society of Readers

I LOVE my Secret Society of Readers, and I love that so many educators have reached out to know more about what we're doing. This idea stemmed from several different sources, including Kids Deserve It! by Todd Nesloney and Adam Welcome. One of my top priorities this year is to simply spend more time talking with kids about books. The Secret Society of Readers is a small group of students in third, fourth, and fifth grade. We are meeting once a week before school for about 15 minutes to just sit and chat about books we're reading. 

Students were nominated by their teachers based on a love for reading. I specifically asked for students who always have a book in their hands, and I made it clear that reading LEVEL shouldn't be considered. I wanted to celebrate kids who loved to read, not just our "highest readers." Most teachers sent me one or two names. A few teachers didn't send a name at all, and that was okay with me. I wanted this group to consist of students who truly love reading, and those select few teachers told me they didn't have students that fit that qualification right now. Although this breaks my heart, it also gives me an additional goal: help these teachers and their students find books they will LOVE. 

I used this opportunity to finally wear my Harry Potter robe.
I walked around school in this thing for 30 minutes,
and nobody asked me questions. I guess
our students are just used to crazy things at this point. 

In the first week, we established a few ground rules: 

1. Keep an open mind about trying new books. 

2. Be respectful of others' opinions and abilities. 

3. DON'T TELL US THE ENDING! 

After we established those rules, I asked each student to talk about their favorite books. I wanted to know about their reading preferences. I was really surprised by the number of girls who told me they like to read Goosebumps books. I never read those as a child because I honestly was a scaredy cat. I had nightmares after watching the Goosebumps show on Nickelodeon, so the books definitely didn't appeal to me. Several students talked about how much they enjoy historical fiction, something I could connect with a little more. After listening to their preferences, I shared a few new books recommended to me on social media. Our media specialist joined in and shared some of the new books we just added to our school library. The whole meeting lasted about 15 minutes, but those 15 minutes were powerful. 

This select group of students also helped us celebrate reading as we opened our school's Free Little Library on Sept. 20th. Located at the front of our school, this library is another way to get books in the hands of children. I've already had to restock the library 3 times, and I've seen several families at the library after school hours. 

Our ribbon cutting as we opened the Little Free Library. 

I am looking forward to this week as we have the book fair and our first Family Fun Night of the year. Wednesday morning, I'll get to sit and talk about books with my Secret Society. My media specialist and I have a HUGE surprise for these kids this week. I can't wait to share it with you. 

Beyond levels and programs

It’s hard to believe it’s mid-September. This school year is flying by quickly, and I feel like I can almost put my feet on the ground. “Beginning of the year teacher tired” is a crazy level of exhaustion. The regular chaos of the start of school has been intensified by the new 21^st Century grant program at JMB. The afterschool program has exciting goals and possibilities for students, but getting a program this big off the ground is a major undertaking. All of the paperwork and drama is worth every minute and all of the stress to see how much our students are loving the program. 

Aside from our afterschool program, I do some literacy coaching. J As a coach and an advocate of literacy for life, one thing I want to do this year is help teachers enhance classroom libraries and expand student choice. Our school has a long history of providing ample reading materials for students, but students’ voices and choices have been limited by levels. Although I completely understand that students need to read material they can comprehend (reading IS making meaning), I believe there are authentic ways of teaching students to select books. A level or a color or a number should never define students as readers.

Approaching this topic is sensitive, especially with people grounded in a system. A shift in thinking about student choice in reading is a process, and I know it’s not something that will not change overnight. At the beginning of this school year, I had the chance to meet with every teacher and classroom assistant in small groups. I asked every group to describe a time when reading was successful for them and a time when reading was a struggle. Guess what? Almost every group listed being told what they CAN read as a struggle. The similarities across the groups were absolutely astounding. We have fond memories of reading with others, happy thoughts about social interaction around a text, feelings of confidence when we read something of interest or passion. At the close of our time together, I posed a series of questions. One of the questions was, "If XYZ made us feel unsuccessful or less than a reader, why are we continuing the practice?"

The most powerful question related directly to our school mission. Our school mission is “to provide an environment where students are loved and where students love to learn.”

My question: if we want students to love to learn, how are we encouraging them to LOVE to READ?

I 110% believe positive literacy role models and authentic opportunities for student choice are the answer. What are you doing to encourage real-life literacy love in your classroom or building?