![]() Which requires me, as the teacher, to take on the important role of helping, in particular, the reluctant readers in my classes to find books that engage and suit them. Now, due to time constraints (Donalyn Miller hasĪlmost two hours with her students per day I have 48 minutes), I haven't completely mimicked her teaching methods, but I have tried to bring into greater prominence the independent reading piece. They're simply imitating what they have read. The students who are great writers don't even realize what they're doing when they're stringing together different sentence structures, or organizing their writing with structure or details. Based on students' writing, I can tell who reads a lot and who does not spend their time in books. Grammar only matters in the context of reading and writing language.Īfter almost 5 years in the classroom, I can totally see the same results. And all the while that they read, they become more naturally aware of the flow of language and of sentence construction. When they write, they use their independent reading books as the source and impetus. When they talk about literature, they do it in the context of the choice books they're reading on their own. So in her book, Miller describes how she makes independent reading the focus of all her 6th grade students' English language arts studies. ![]() Students must be able to read to absorb the content of all subject areas, students can only learn to read by READING a variety of texts and READING often. Students who read independently on a regular basis are more likely to meet and exceed testing, critical thinking, reading, writing, math, and other standards, and generally meet with more success in school. And even in a private school, the educational trends coming from universities and local, state, and federal governments still affect the expectations of the administation, the teachers, the students, and the parents.ĭonalyn Miller, in her book, The Book Whisperer, scraps all the politics of literacy and literature and Common Core and other standards by simply getting back to the basics. I am fortunate enough to be employed in a school where testing and meticulously scheduled standards are not the only or central focus, but I have many teacher friends who are. We live in a time and culture where, because education is subsidized by the government, it unfortunately has as many bureaucratic issues at any other government agency (I'd argue MORE). Last spring, the reading specialist at my school recommended a book to me by Donalyn Miller, which completely changed my outlook on teaching English Language Arts.
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