This is me on a rant | Mentoring in the Middle

This is me on a rant

But first, a word....these are my thoughts about fostering a love of reading.

Not killing it.

I recently received a complementary comment about a novel study guide I had created.  The person wrote, "I love the connection activities!  I think it really encourages a higher level of thinking and connects this story perfectly with other units we're studying...."

But then there was this.  "I'm using it along side another study guide though, to get the chapter questions to assess comprehension and retrieval skills."

I'm not upset about the comment.  I'm sad that this teacher, or this district, feels that good reading should look like this.

Isn't it more important for students to make connections from the text to themselves, to the world, and maybe even, to other books they've read than to be able to answer the name of the dog or the location of a building?

I know my district requires my students to show that they comprehend text.  Honestly, though, if my students walk out of my classroom at the end of the year feeling like one of the books they read touched them in some way, then I'm completely happy.  

If a book has inspired a child to try something new or to visit a country they knew little about, I'll be thrilled.  If some child decides they want to have persistence like someone they've read about or the courage to speak up when it wasn't popular, I'll walk out cheering.

And it's perfectly fine if they forget the name of the dog.  





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