Cheri Parker Blog #3 October

  In Regie Routman's, Reading Essentials:The Specifics You Need to Teach Reading Well ; "Organize an Outstanding Classroom Library" she describes the need for books, books, and more books in and around the classroom and in the children's hands.  She points out what I know, but what I never truly have time to implement these days as I have done in the past: "Providing books for home use to our low income families."  Previously, I had "Freddie the Frog" book bags that went home once a week.  I would assign each child a book in a zip-log bag and require the children to respond to that book at home in any creative or book report kind of way.  It was a success and most of the Kindergartners would participate with the guidance of their eager parents.  They loved sharing their response, how they created the response, and retelling the story.  Most recently, I just don't have the time to do this. Although, somehow providing books for our population of students needs to be considered.
  The bookstore field trip sounds like a utopia of an idea.  How cool would it be to get a grant to do that and give each child an allowance to purchase one book for the classroom library?  Then at the end of the year the child could take that book home for keeps as a jackdaw for reading in my room.  Hmm; would it fly?  I love, love, love it!
  I am a firm believer and teacher of non-fiction for young students.  It is real to them and they can relate to the text as they have connections to the world around them.  I find as I teach my guided reading groups, I am more likely to pull a text that is non-fiction on each groups level to connect with the Sciences and content areas.  I agree with Routman as far as time is limited, integrating these texts and the excitement young learners have with the "Real World" is sensible.  If the classroom library has a variety of non-fiction texts on the same topic as the guided reading group, then their background is spiraling towards more comprehension in reading, science, social studies, and writing in the end.

  I like the idea of the children organizing the library, but giving that up is a difficult one for me.  While reading, I thought; why not allow each child to choose a book they like from a basket and place it at the Reading Learning Center. Rotating the books in and out will give them ownership and the ability to start conversations for book talks.