There is always work to be done in a library-- weeding, fixing catalog records, mending books, adding new books, and my favorite job-- reading! This summer, Mondays are the day set aside to go to the St. Therese Library for work on site. My children are usually with me, so I can usually only manage 2-3 hours at a time, but this is better than nothing.
All week, every day, however, I'm at home reading books, researching books, and investigating the blogs of other librarians, authors, literacy specialists, teachers, and people who care about children and reading. I started reading the "must-read" education book of the summer, Readicide: How Schools are Killing Reading and What You Can Do About It by Kelly Gallagher. An advocate of SSR (Sustained Silent Reading) time at school and free choice of high interest reading materials, Gallagher wonders why teachers and schools are not doing everything they can to provide a wealth of good books to their students. Many students do not have access to good books at home and also do not live in communities of readers. Schools are the only places where these students might be exposed to authentic reading and escape a future of illiteracy.
Gallagher's book made me cry with the story of one if his students who did not show up for school on a regular basis, had a less than supportive home life, and struggled with reading. When the student appeared on the day of state testing, Gallagher admitted to wondering, "why?" and "how are his scores going to affect my scores?" Gallagher writes, "Here is a kid who needs school more than anyone else in the class, and I was actually sorry to see him show up to class on that particular day" (p. 36). These kinds of students who struggle with reading are often subjected to more drill and kill, given more test prep to get them through the test, and are less likely to be encouraged to read actual books. Would you think reading is fun if you only ever got to dissect worksheets with reading passages and multiple choice questions?
I'll finish this book today.
I also finished Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look and LeUyen Pham last night just before turning out the lights. It made me laugh out-loud in bed, and I can't wait to get the next book in the series, Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters.
