Just a Reminder…

Posted on April 30, 2021 by Jennie

Kate DiCamillo is one of my favorite authors. Her quotation is spot on. Thank you, D, for posting this.

Raising Readers...

This is normally thought of in the context of school, but I think its important at home as well, especially when #raisingreaders!

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About Jennie

I have been teaching preschool for over thirty-five years. This is my passion. I believe that children have a voice, and that is the catalyst to enhance or even change the learning experience. Emergent curriculum opens young minds. It's the little things that happen in the classroom that are most important and exciting. That's what I write about. I was a live guest on the Kelly Clarkson Show. I am highlighted in the seventh edition of Jim Trelease's million-copy bestselling book, "The Read-Aloud Handbook" because of my reading to children. My class has designed quilts that hang as permanent displays at the National Liberty Museum in Philadelphia, the Fisher House at the Boston VA Hospital, and the Massachusetts State House in Boston.
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54 Responses to Just a Reminder…

  1. beth says:
    April 30, 2021 at 6:36 am

    Everyone should read and remember this

    Reply
  2. Carla says:
    April 30, 2021 at 6:53 am

    Right now, there are still many areas, mine included, whose schools are closed and we are doing online learning or home schooling, so this is a great thing to remember.

    Reply
    • Jennie says:
      April 30, 2021 at 7:18 am

      That’s a very good point, Carla. This time last year when my school was closed, I started a YouTube channel so I could read aloud to my students every day- one picture book and one chapter in our chapter reading book. It kept the joy of reading alive for children. Joy is the magic word!

      Reply
  3. beetleypete says:
    April 30, 2021 at 7:08 am

    Luckily, I never had reading presented to me as a chore. With only two TV channels in my youth, no Internet or electronic games, reading was always my delight.
    Best wishes, Pete.

    Reply
  4. fallenstarstories says:
    April 30, 2021 at 7:16 am

    Such a wonderful writer; yes, Kate is one of my favourites and I honestly don’t think she can write a bad book. And yes….she is quite correct; reading should never be presented as a chore or duty, or as something we learn to do for school. Always as a pleasure, an escape from the daily humdrum and as a gift we are giving ourselves.

    Reply
  5. Darlene says:
    April 30, 2021 at 7:28 am

    This is so true. For me, reading was always a treat, a reward for having finished my chores, lessons etc. I once purposefully spelt the words on the spelling test wrong so I could stay in and read instead of going outside to play sports.

    Reply
  6. Lori from My Day in Pre-K and Lori-ize it! says:
    April 30, 2021 at 8:45 am

    everyone, especially teachers should remember this. I always hate when I see children view reading as a punishment. When you hear, I have to read this book. I’m all for encouraging different types of reading. I love using reading to learn, but if children do not learn that reading is both for enjoyment and for gathering information, then we are doing something wrong.

    Reply
    • Jennie says:
      April 30, 2021 at 9:26 am

      I was the child who lived through reading as a punishment. I was a terrible reader (I’m still a slow reader), and I realize now if my school had used the Dr. Seuss books as teaching reading, I would have learned. All that rhyming and repetition was what I needed. But in the 50’s, Dr. Seuss was not adopted by many schools as books to teach reading. Thanks, Lori!

      Reply
      • bluebird of bitterness says:
        April 30, 2021 at 2:02 pm

        In my elementary school, the reading curriculum did not emphasize reading for enjoyment — quite to opposite. The people in charge were obsessed with things that were objectively measurable, i.e. speed and comprehension. Several times a week we were subjected to tedious exercises where we were forced to read some unforgivably boring piece of writing within a limited amount of time, then answer a bunch of questions to see how much of it we retained. I hated it with a passion then, and sixty years later I consider it a criminal act. It conditioned kids to think of reading as a soul-destroyingly dull activity to be avoided whenever possible.

      • Jennie says:
        April 30, 2021 at 9:20 pm

        I cringe with terrible memories as I read your comments. Yes, that’s how it was. My husband that the same curriculum and thrived. We often talk about this. Honestly, I hope my reading aloud to children is both a life preserver and swimming lessons for children.

      • bluebird of bitterness says:
        April 30, 2021 at 2:03 pm

        Sorry, that should have been “quite the opposite.”

      • Jennie says:
        April 30, 2021 at 9:20 pm

        I knew that. 🙂

  7. willedare says:
    April 30, 2021 at 10:52 am

    Yes to joy and reading. I guess the challenge is to help each other find books that truly interest/delight us!

    Reply
  8. Orvillewrong says:
    April 30, 2021 at 11:40 am

    The ability to read and understand is the greatest gift one can give a child!

    Reply
  9. frenchc1955 says:
    April 30, 2021 at 1:10 pm

    Hi Jennie, this quotation is wonderful!!!

    Reply
  10. petespringerauthor says:
    April 30, 2021 at 1:28 pm

    It used to drive me nuts when it became schoolwide policy (we adopted some new reading program) where students had required homework to read 20-30 minutes a night. Then they had to write a couple of sentences about what they read. How it was presented made it seem like an unpleasant chore. That was terrible.

    Reply
    • Jennie says:
      April 30, 2021 at 8:30 pm

      Really? I need to get my head wrapped around this. It sounds like a dream…but for the children who didn’t like to read this must have been forced. Here’s the thing; it’s reading aloud that is most important, not reading. You have to have step A before you can get to step B. Interestingly, it has been proven that reading aloud continues to promote reading, even through high school.

      I’m going to email you one of my favorite stories about a junior high school principal in Boston. He took over the worst school before it was headed to the state. Well, you’ll see… I think it might be time to repost some of these stories from the million copy bestseller, “The Read Aloud Handbook” by Jim Trelease.

      Reply
      • petespringerauthor says:
        April 30, 2021 at 10:29 pm

        Right! I’d love it if someone assigned me reading homework. Unfortunately, the flip side is as you can imagine. Children who can’t read well being told to read without parents to support them. Reading to a child counted, as we both know that is where the joy of reading begins. In that circumstance, kids who had no support looked at is punishment. So heartbreaking for a teacher who grew up in a supportive house.

        Some of those children went to the after-school program, and I would go there and bring them back to my room to read with them when I didn’t have the usual after-school meetings. It was a frustratingly imperfect system.

        Looking forward to the story.

      • Jennie says:
        May 1, 2021 at 9:44 am

        It is an imperfect system. And heartbreaking for many teachers. I think SSR was a far better program because it was done in school, not at home. I sent you the story last night. Let me know what you think. 🙂

  11. CarolCooks2 says:
    May 1, 2021 at 2:45 am

    I grew up where reading was a happy place for me and for many years the library was my go-to place and where I was happiest..I still like geeky books 🙂 interspersed with fiction and cookbooks 🙂

    Reply
  12. Norah says:
    May 1, 2021 at 8:03 am

    One of the greatest gifts that can ever be given or received.

    Reply

  13. Pingback: Just a Reminder… – 9jaglogist

  14. OIKOS™-Editorial says:
    May 2, 2021 at 8:39 am

    Thank you, wil head over to read more, Jennie! I am sorry for the late revisit. Michael

    Reply
  16. calmkate says:
    May 3, 2021 at 3:04 am

    reading saved me!

    Reply
  17. Thotaramani says:
    May 8, 2021 at 11:01 am

    I totally agree on this point

    Reply

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