Reading in the Wild
I skimmed through Donalyn Miller’s Reading In the Wild and I found some interesting things. I really liked Miller’s way of doing the reading itinerary. She used it as a way for students to realize their reading habits instead of forcing them to read for certain amounts of time and counting up those minutes the way I did in elementary school. She would then have the students look into where they were able to read the longest, whether they read more in or out of school and what they learned about their reading habits. I think this is a much better way of looking at reading. I would have been interested to know my reading habits as a kid and know what I needed to work on or where my favorite place to read was. I also liked that Miller allowed her students to read wherever they wanted in the room. I think this would make reading more of an adventure and an escape from the norm of the desk and chair. It would make reading feel like more of a break from school and less of a mandatory reading period for school.
What seems the most challenging for me is finding time for myself to read. Right now I only read materials required for school since I have overextended myself this semester. But even during summer I find myself watching Netflix and catching up on TV shows instead of reading a book. So for me I think the hardest part will be getting back into the habit of reading regularly.
I’m excited to get students excited about reading and being able to connect with the students through reading. I want to have a story time at the end of each class where I can read to the students as we do in class now. I think it would be a good way to end the day and have the students leave everyday with reading on their mind. I’m most afraid that I won’t be able to analyze books the way my teachers have. My past few english teachers were really good at analyzing the novels we read and so when we would discuss it in class, I always loved hearing the small details that they found and how they had this deep meaning and painted a bigger picture. I know the books I’ll be teaching to elementary school students won’t be as complicated as the one’s I’ve had to read the past few years but I just want to be able to be that super smart teacher who can find all the cool little factors in books that most people skim over.
Rebecca Autrey