While my students were taking the high stakes ELA and Math tests that would serve as benchmarks of their learning and indicators of my effectiveness as a teacher, I was reading The Book Whisperer! I downloaded the text to my Kindle because this phrase caught my eye, "Miller is a 6th grade Language Arts teacher who advocates an unconventional approach to teaching in her book, The Book Whisperer.
I do think it was a bit of destiny that led me to Donalyn Miller's reminder about reading as the way to engage readers. Miller is a Texas teacher who despises book reports and avoids comprehension worksheets. She believes students should be empowered to read personally selected texts! She gives students choices about what to read in a classroom full of high interest books! Her students consistently get high marks on the state tests!
This book reiterates what we have known about learning for many years. At first I was almost insulted that someone needs to put "common sense" into print; however, as I reflected on the increasingly intense focus on high stakes those tests, I was reminded that we all (teachers, administrators, parents and lawmakers) need to hear this message loud and clear! Somehow, we have forgotten what common sense might tell us: if you want a society of devoted readers, we have to have classrooms filled with high interest texts where kids are reading and talking about their books!
Can you hear me loud and clear?
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1024&bih=715&wrapid=tlif133573378930610&q=The+book+whisperer&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=12866553534142300202&sa=X&ei=sK-dT4m4Febl6QH89KnvDg&ved=0CGYQ8wIwAw#
![The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child [Book]](http://books.google.com/books?id=ilPmGxgxTqgC&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&l=220 "The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child [Book]")
I do think it was a bit of destiny that led me to Donalyn Miller's reminder about reading as the way to engage readers. Miller is a Texas teacher who despises book reports and avoids comprehension worksheets. She believes students should be empowered to read personally selected texts! She gives students choices about what to read in a classroom full of high interest books! Her students consistently get high marks on the state tests!
This book reiterates what we have known about learning for many years. At first I was almost insulted that someone needs to put "common sense" into print; however, as I reflected on the increasingly intense focus on high stakes those tests, I was reminded that we all (teachers, administrators, parents and lawmakers) need to hear this message loud and clear! Somehow, we have forgotten what common sense might tell us: if you want a society of devoted readers, we have to have classrooms filled with high interest texts where kids are reading and talking about their books!
Can you hear me loud and clear?
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1024&bih=715&wrapid=tlif133573378930610&q=The+book+whisperer&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=12866553534142300202&sa=X&ei=sK-dT4m4Febl6QH89KnvDg&ved=0CGYQ8wIwAw#
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