Originally, my thought was that as long as students are reading and enjoying the books that they've chosen, regardless of the book, then there's no problem. I like the idea of teaching kids that books are meant to be enjoyed and that reading is a great skill and an excellent hobby. But what about books such as Captain Underpants or Diary of a Wimpy Kid? I've now started noticing that there are popular books out there for kids that are, in my opinion, literary trash. Not that I'm any expert on what counts as good literature, but after reading through some of these books, I can't help but think that spending time reading these books is no better than watching mindless cartoons. This is why I'm mixed on students reading these books. Does it really matter what the content of the books is, as long as the kids are reading it? If someday I decide to tell my students not to read certain books, which may be their favorite type of book, will I be doing more harm than good? I'm not sure...
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Appropriate Books?
In my dyad placement, I've had the opportunity to observe students with a large range of reading ability. There are some students who are reading books like Harry Potter and other 300+ page books, and then there are other students who are reading books like Amelia Bedelia and Geronimo Stilton. I love seeing the different books that students are reading, but I've recently become conflicted on my thoughts about what students are choosing to read.
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Excellent questions that raise bigger question (as happens so often in teaching!):
ReplyDeleteIs it our job as teachers to tell kids what to read? Or to teach them how to make good judgments about the kids of reading that will be enriching for them in the long run?
How can we teach them about comparing different kinds of reading material and making judgments about their relative value? Value for what? Is some reading just for entertainment? Some for enrichment to access information?
Does it matter *where* the kid is in growth as a reader? Might we encourage some choices for kid who have been reluctant readers and others who are avid readers?
What's best for the kids?
Teaching questions are always so intersting :).
I thought about this subject too, on several occasions and I think that one thing I would try to make sure is that at least in the classroom the students have access to high quality books. I would want to introduce them to a large variety of books so that they can see what is out there, they can compare and choose. From my experience, children that like reading do not get stuck on only one genre or one author. They explore and they grow as readers. So I think the main thing is to make sure that students discover the pleasures of reading. It does not matter if what they are reading is what we consider low quality literature. As long as they are reading and they have the right support there is no reason why they would not discover and enjoy literature that we appreciate as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree, you are raising some great questions! In my opinion, because these children are just beginning to learn how to read and to learn about literature in general, a big part of this age and stage in their development is simply learning that there are books out there that have the ability to make them smile, laugh out loud and be a source of enjoyment for them, regardless if it's something like Captain Underpants. It's about getting them hooked on reading; if it isn't happening yet, the branching out to more quality literature will happen eventually.
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