Re: Teenage Aliteracy

[Terri Lent <Tlent@AOL.COM>]

Carole and everyone else,

Maybe I just teach at a really weird school (or my teens are just
weird...then again.....) but my kids are READERS!   I put out three tables
worth of paperbacks that had been donated for kids to pick up.  I had kids in
all day taking 4-5 books each, discussing what they had read, authors they
were familiar with, complaining that they wanted newer titles (don't we all).
 I know that 90% of those books will be read in the next few weeks, shared
with friends and relatives and enjoyed.  I think if you make free reading a
priority in your school (we don't have a SSR time but English classes have a
Readers Workshop day weekly) and give kids what they're interested in reading
they will read!

p.s.   Thank you to R.L. Stine for creating a lot of reading addicts!  Just
like all addicts, they will soon seek out other authors to feed their
addiction as R.L. Stine doesn't cut it as it once did.

Terri Lent
Internet: Tlent@aol.com
Manassas Park Intermediate/
Manassas Park High School
Manassas Park, Virginia  22111
Voice: 703-361-9131
Fax: 703-330-1218