Mollie Kuhn - Blog Post 2: Moss Section 2

In Section Two of Not This But That, Barbara Moss answers the question of why independent reading matters and the best practices to support it. She defines independent reading as a "time that students spend reading self-selected texts." (p. 11) and shows how this is a very effective practice. It helps improve all areas of reading including fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, and most importantly motivation and desire to read. Many studies show that independent reading time improves academic achievement across all content areas.
The problem that many teachers encounter with trying to implement independent reading time during their day is that they feel there isn't enough time for it. At one point the National Reading Panel even stated that there was not enough evidence to support independent reading. However, we now know differently due to many studies that have shown that it is effective and necessary for student success in and out of the classroom. Moss goes on to explain how the rise of Common Core Standards has helped teachers to know that this is necessary as well as what types of materials students should be reading. She explains that in order for students to grow as independent readers they must have classroom time to read; be able to choose what they read; have explicit instruction about what, why, and how readers read; be able to read a large number of books and a variety of texts; have access to texts; have teacher monitoring, assessment, and support during IR; and be able to talk about what they read.
All of these points are important to support the case for independent reading in the classroom. In my own classroom I began implementing the Daily 5 last year. Because of the Daily 5, I have seen my students find success in reading and writing. I am able to implement all of these things that Moss mentions because of the Daily 5 set up. I can use anchor charts in my mini lessons to teach the what, why, and how readers read. We have a wonderful classroom library that keeps growing because of the support of our district, school, community members, and parents. The way the Daily 5 is run allows for the time for students to read and gives more time for teachers to monitor and assess students as they read. The area that I need to improve upon in my teaching is giving students more choice in their reading. Right now, I mostly choose which books students have in their book baskets. However, it is important for students to be able to have more choice and find books that peak their own interests. I also think figure 2-4 on page 33 is a great example of what teachers should be doing during independent reading time. One of my favorite times of the day is getting to listen to my students read and watching them 'get it'. Especially this year, I have seen that even our youngest learners can read at the beginning of the school year and find success when given the opportunity and the right tools to do so!