Here is a link to my TEDx Northwood Talk "Three Lies We Tell Children and Why We Need To Stop"

EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP MAGAZINE

October 2010 | Volume 68 Number 2

Interventions That Work

Pages 64 - 68

Interventions You Can Use

Book Haters No More

Elaine Miskinis, Cynthia Freyberger, and Kathleen Vetter

"Why do we have to read?"

Educators hear that question more often than we can count. We try to offer interesting books and make our lessons engaging and inclusive of different learning styles. But in the end, we're often left with a handful of students who'd rather eat glass than read a book cover to cover.

So, how do we turn book haters into readers? Several years ago we (a teacher, a media specialist, and a curriculum administrator) sat down together to answer that million - dollar question.

We decided to tap into the social nature of teenagers by forming book clubs. But in a school of nearly 1,800 students, we faced this dilemma: If we limited the groups to individual classes, the clubs would be nothing more than another class exercise. No matter what books students chose, we'd face a forced march through each chapter. But if we opened the clubs to the entire student body, nonreaders would never willingly join up.

So we created book clubs that included our most struggling readers. As a pilot, we formed clubs of four to five students and two adults each, with all students in the clubs taken from one of Elaine's 10th grade classes; every student in that particular class read substantially below grade level. By asking these students to take the lead in everything from selecting books to constructing groups, we allowed them to own the activity.

We first sat down with a group of 12 students to discuss their positive and negative relationships with books. Several students mentioned that they didn't like to read because it was "too hard" or the books were "boring" or "stupid." As we encouraged students to talk about their interests and what type of reading they did enjoy, sports, adventure, forensics, mystery, stories about real teenagers, and any type of graphic novel surfaced as attractive options.

On the basis of this information, the library media specialist selected a variety of books for the teens to peruse. We gave students plenty of time to leaf through books and discuss them. The six titles they eventually chose ranged from manga to autobiographies.

We didn't want the clubs to include only teachers and students because we feared students would defer to teachers. So we invited the principal, coaches, counselors, paraprofessionals, and teachers from a variety of disciplines to join.

Book clubs met for six 45 - minute weekly sessions during the students' assigned English class. Participants first met as a whole group for 10 minutes to enjoy refreshments and discuss any housekeeping matters; then the groups broke off to meet in small conference rooms, counselors' offices with comfortable chairs, or sunny corners in common areas.

Groups formed around the students' book choices, and each group designed its own agenda and ground rules. We asked students to bring questions to their groups as discussion fodder; a leader chose a question randomly if conversations stalled. After the first week or two, discussing the books became natural.

At the end of each six - week session, student and adult participants shared their thoughts on their books through an online collaborative application called VoiceThread (http://voicethread.com). Students' comments illustrated that not only had they read the books, but they could also speak about characters, conflicts, and themes with an ease that indicated they had absorbed many of the works' nuances.

One afternoon, our media specialist ran into one of the book club students — a self - described "book hater" — and asked how his book was going. After thinking for a minute, he said, "You know that kid in the book? I think he just needs some nurturing."

This comment — from a high school sophomore who, until this point, bragged that he'd never finished a book — led into rich discussion about how fiction authors reveal multilayered situations and personalities.

Our focus in forming book clubs was on creating enthusiastic readers, and, three years into book clubs, we see much that tells us this has happened. In an anonymous survey of book club participants, several students said the clubs motivated them to come to school; all participants said they'd like to be in a book club again. Our librarians noted an increase in students checking out book club titles after the clubs ended. We are now addressing how to formally measure the gains participating students make in test scores, school attendance, and literacy levels. Meanwhile, the joy of seeing former book haters bond into communities of readers who discuss surprise plot twists with the principal makes the effort worthwhile.