Slice of Life Day 15: Making Readers

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Today a colleague and I hosted a collaborative book tasting in our media center with both of our classes. As I was wandering around, I overheard a conversation between one of my beginning of the year reluctant readers. Two of his buddies from the other class were picking on him about reading, and he replied, "Yeah, I read. I read fifteen books this year. How many books have you read?" as though it was the most normal, expected thing in the world. I had a proud momma moment, because that's what I want. I want to create readers that can't fathom why anyone would choose not to read. I wrote this poem in response to the moment.

It's quiet and calm.
The only sounds are the flip of pages
quiet exhalations of soft breath
a brief, whispered conversation.
Outside the springtime sun glints off the windshields
of cars in the parking lot
and shadows slant to the right
reminding us of the lengthening day.
Around me, students are scattered.
They lounge on mismatched chairs and lean on ragamuffin tables,
slouch on couches or sprawl on the carpet.
This room
is full of readers.
They have not always been so.
Five months ago, many were not.
So many had reading identities which were 
long forgotten; 
Left behind with cartoon character backpacks,
popsicle-stick crafts and chubby pencils.
They found their reading selves
somewhere in the dusty detritus of memory,
brushed them off,
and put them back on.
I made a space for them to do that.
It is my life's work.
Yeah, I read. 
Just like it's 
no
big
deal.

Comments

  1. Elisabeth EllingtonMarch 15, 2018 at 4:17 PM

    Such a beautiful piece about what happens when we create that space and issue that invitation. Our dormant readers rediscover themselves and begin to grow their reading identities again. I love the line breaks here and the vivid description. I felt like I could see your classroom, hear the hush that falls over the room as everyone enters the zone.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Deb DayMarch 15, 2018 at 5:29 PM

    "Yeah, I read." I loved hearing that line when I taught. My year always started with high schoolers who proudly proclaimed they didn't read. Hadn't read since elementary. For most, by the end of the semester or year, they could say they read more books with me than anytime since middle school.

    You've created a great place where students remember they are readers. I'm glad they have you!

    ReplyDelete

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