"Why can't she remember that?"

Quotes:



1. "It is difficult to overstate the importance of choosing books that connect to children's lives. This is important to remember for all students at every level, of course, but for none more so than young children who enter school with no prior attachment to books."

• In order to get a child interested about reading, they have to be able to figure out for themselves why it matters to them. Not just because an adult tells them that it should matter. I know from personal experience that it is extremely hard for me to dive into a book if I can't relate to it. I included a picture of one of my favorite books from when I was a child, Jessica. When I was a little girl I thought it was the coolest thing in the world that somebody wrote a book about me. Of course, the book really wasn't about me, but I was able to draw a connection to it which made it that much more important for me to read.

 2. "I have found it helpful to use a puppet to talk with children about known-answer questions and other kinds of book reading behaviors."

• Meier talks about the importance of teaching book reading behaviors to children. Meier talks about how she uses the puppet almost as a model for bad behavior (e.g., calling out answers and other comments, turning his head away and not paying attention, distracting other children). This gives the teacher the opportunity to call upon these bad behaviors to the class and hopefully will allow them to determine what would have been a more appropriate behavior. I decided to include this quote because I really liked this idea. I believe it would be more constructive for the teacher to place blame on the puppet, rather than calling out a child in the middle of class; which could potentially embarrass the child, causing more harm than good. 

3.  "Make books come alive"

• I feel that this is such an important concept. Especially when dealing with young children it is important to make reading fun. Albus Dumbledore once said "words are, in my not so humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic". This is one of my favorite quotes. One of my favorite things that happens while I'm reading a really great book is that the words just fly right off the page. I can put myself directly in the plot and feel everything the characters feel. That is what makes reading exciting, and it is important for young children to get excited about reading. I will never forget my 5th grade teacher, for the sole reason that she did not just sit and read to us in a monotone voice. She had a different voice for each individual character, which made it feel so real. It will always be one of my most cherished memories of grade school. 

Questions for class:
Did anyone else have a similar experience?
What helps you get excited about reading?