Re: Summer reading

[Johanna Halbeisen <johanna@MASSED.NET>]

I am at a school of over 700 students in grades 1-8.  Each June, I put
together a recommended summer reading list.  My Associate Principal
informed me today that only about 30 students read over the summer.  It is
a waste of paper and my time to compile and send out the lists.  How do you
motivate your students to participate?  The big problem here is that the
summer reading CAN NOT be mandatory!  Does anyone have suggestions as to
how to get more kids to read?  We give trophies and shirts as incentives,
but it isn't working.  Any help would be appreciated.
>
>Elana Gensler
>Hebrew Academy of Long Beach
>Long Beach, NY
>EGensler@aol.com

My belief is that incentive for reading has to be in the book.  Ultimately.
So you have to build a program school-wide year-round that encourages kids
to read in every way possible.  There are lots of studies about what gets
kids to read.  External rewards don't do it.  Not for the long haul, or for
the time when it isn't being pushed.  Does the administration see this as
as important goal?  Will they put into the school day a SSR (sustained
silent reading) time when EVERYone reads for 20 minutes (including all
adults)?  Can you promote book ownership with book fairs and book swaps?
Can you hook up with the local public library and encourage kids to get
cards?  Can you encourage kids to listen to books on tape?  Can you get the
parents involved, starting in first grade, reading to their kids as often
as possible?  Can you book talk really good books for each grade level just
before vacation and then have the paperbacks available for purchase at a
cut rate?  Look at the Harry Potter craze!  I have *second graders* who are
slogging through Harry Potter books.  Now THAT is motivation!

Read Stephen Krashen who wrote The Power of Reading about how to get kids
to do free voluntary reading and how that kind of reading increases ability
in nearly every language-related area of school.  It is possible to get
kids into the habit of reading, but it has to be a school-wide effort and
t-shirts don't do it.

Good luck!
Johanna

---------------------
Johanna Halbeisen, Teacher Librarian
Woodland Elementary School (preK-4)
80 Powder Mill Rd.
Southwick, MA 01077
johanna@massed.net

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