Katherine Malmquist, Blog Post 5, Routman Ch. 6 & 7:

There are two reasons I chose to read these chapters.  The first reason was to see Routman's ideas on Independent reading, and how those ideas match what I am seeing in the classroom as well as the students behaviors when they come to the library.  The second reason is because when I was flipping through I saw "Just Right" books (p.95) and wanted to know more; I didn't really have much interest in chapter 7 but sometimes you got to do what you got to do.

I love that Routman begins the chapter with a story about how great a teacher was at teaching reading, but wasn't providing enough time for independent reading.  This meant not only were they not spending the time reading, but they were not receiving feedback on their reading.  As an educator, I can see how this happens in my personal life (never enough time to read) and how students may loose out on their reading time because they are receiving the extra help they need to support their educational needs.  I love that I am able to go into the classroom and read with several of our students because it provides time where I can interact one on one with them and talk about what they are reading.  Even though it is a structured reading program, and they are not given choice about what they are reading, we are reading together and we are able to problem solve when they don't know a word, and they are growing and making connections as readers.  In a perfect world, we would be able to do that daily with every student in the school because (IMHO) it makes a HUGE difference in their reading even when it is not immediately obvious in their test scores.  Since that isn't possible, Routman's discussion about independent reading activity makes sense.  I also love that a checklist is provided on page 86, showing that independent reading is more than picking up a book and reading silently.  There are deliberate choices that make reading even more enriching than just picking up a book for thirty minutes.

One thing I have been thinking about for my library is implementing centers where students can accomplish different learning objectives.  This chapter opens a great debate (in my head) about having a spot for the students to read independently/partner read, but also not duplicating what they may be receiving in the classroom during their balanced literacy stations.

My favorite section of the chapter is about establishing selection guidelines.  I LOVE the examples of "just right" books presented because we are individualizing our instruction when we have students finding the books that are just right for them.  Just right books for one student may be completely different from another student, even if they are in the same grade level and have the exact same reading score for Star.  The first question I always ask my students is, does this book interest you?  Why are you reading it?  If a student just wants to read it because it is "on their reading level", they haven't bought into the love of reading, and they may not give the book a fair chance-all because it is not something they are interested in.   I remember hating the books we were assigned in high school English classes because someone decided it was a book I had to read.  The books didn't interest me, and when the teacher could not sell me on the book I did not give the book a fair chance.  Going back and reading some of the same books as an adult has given me an appreciation for the literature because they have become more interesting to me.

My favorite part of library is when I have student checkout.  The time always goes too quickly, and it's probably (maybe definitely) louder than people expect, but my goal is to give students time to find books that interest them AND are good fit books.  Do they find books that are inevitably too difficult for them?  Yes.  Do they still sometimes get those books?  Yes, but they have to also find a book that is a good fit for them.  Does this sometimes take forever?  Yes, but it is worth it.   The students [are supposed to] read the pages to themselves first to check and see if they can read/understand the words.  Do I sometimes question their book?  Definitely.  Then they read it to me, and often they can make the decision that the book may not be right for them yet, and sometimes they surprise me.  We are helping our students grow as readers, and they need to learn to take the time to examine books and make the decision that a book may not be right for them.  When they go to the bookstore, they aren't going to be able to ask for a book that is a ___ level.  While they can receive recommendations for students in grades ___, it's not going to be a guaranteed good fit.  

If we are spending time on independent reading, it is natural to expect some type of assessment to go along with it,  Which is why it make some sense to partner a chapter about assessment with independent reading.  I like that on page 102 the statement is made that, "While you will want and need to meet with your struggling readers weekly...for most of your students once a month is sufficient." I think sometimes we become overwhelmed with the idea that we have to meet with so many students in a set amount of time that we lose some of the value of our conferences because they become rushed.

I also think it is very true that talking about a book with a student doesn't mean you have to read the book first; it is pretty obvious when a student has been reading a story and when they have not.  Some students are better about repeating a story verbatim, while others can provide the gist of the book.  It has been my experience that students can't wait to tell you what they love about a book, or if you ask them why they did not like a book they have a few things they can tell you about it.  It's also true that you can tell when a student has no clue what they are talking about because of the language they use, as well as the flow of the conversation.