Reading Logs: Part 2

I wish I had a simple answer, that I just nixed reading logs and that is that.  It wasn't that simple for me.  My second graders DO have a Reading Log where they record the title of book they read that day/night.  There is also a place for them to Reflect on their reading from the week.  My reasoning for keeping the log is that I still want to ensure they are adding to their reading volume for the day, by reading at home.  They return the log to me on Fridays, and I respond to their reflections.  It's not a back and forth, daily reading log, which became such a burden in years past for me as a teacher, and last year as a parent.  No one in my house was thrilled with reading log "homework" last year. Addison's teacher this year  (a colleague and friend of mine!) is using the same reading log that I came up with, and so far, I have a daughter who WANTS to read each night, and it doesn't feel like a huge chore.  Whew!  Maybe it's the spin we put on it?  Maybe it's because it's not turned in daily, the nightly pressure isn't there?   But we're still encouraging "home reading?" I don't know what it is, but I'm hoping this low-pressure system (ha! sounds like a weather front!) continues to grow my little readers.

Side note:  I want to be clear that growing readers is not just about reading logs, there are gobs of other pieces in place that go into cheering our little readers along.  For example, TONS of read aloud, choice over what to read, a tricked-out classroom library that is inviting and stocked with engaging, books.  Maybe I should write a post on ways to engage our tiny readers?  :)

Reading Logs: Part One - Time to Revise

Nightly reading logs.  Those buggers have been on my mind for months now.  Do they encourage and instill life long reading habits, or do they turn off kids from reading for pleasure since it's usually "assigned homework" and not self-instigated reading?  I witnessed the negative effects of reading logs first hand this past school year with my first grade daughter, Addison.  And to add fuel to the fire, I was the teacher who assigned the nightly reading!  This added an entirely different dimension to the situation, to say the least.  Yes, it was an interesting year being my daughter's first grade teacher!  I'm moving to second grade this coming school year, and NO, she won't be looping with me. :)

The reading bug hasn't bitten Addison yet.  I'm still waiting to find her curled up with a book in a corner of our house, or under her bed.  She LOVES books, and absolutely loves to be read to, but she's not reading for pleasure on her own.....yet.  As the school year progressed, I noticed that reading was becoming a chore for her.  It was as if I was forcing her to finish the broccoli on her plate.  This was NOT the effect I was going for as her teacher and most importantly, avid reader MOM!  How many other families were experiencing this with their new readers? 

 

Apparently other educators are having the same misgivings about reading logs, check out this blog post by Matt Renwick, a principal/blogger in Wisconsin.

  

The hard part about this dilemma is we know so much about the importance of reading volume, and how closely reading volume is tied with so many aspects of success later in life.  How can we encourage kids to read for pleasure outside of school?  The amount of reading (and kinds of reading) that happens in many classrooms is not enough.  Especially with current curriculum demands that many schools and districts are entrenched in, which focuses on whole group and small group instruction, with little time for independent, self-selected reading.  In this Common Core crazed world, we need to create classroom communities where reading for the pure joy of reading is the norm, and it oozes out the doors of our classrooms, down the street and into the homes of our students.  Donalyn Miller (The Book Whisperer) has some cool suggestions in her book Reading in the Wild, which I'm engrossed in currently.  Long story short:  I plan to revise my reading log practices.  What will this look like?  I'll let you know when I figure it out. But it won't involve forcing broccoli on anyone.

Green Grass and Dandelions

April is Poetry month.  Here is a poem that makes me happy. :)  Spring is here!