Quote: "When we, as teachers, share our own reading with students, we show how reading enhances our lives. In this way we demonstrate to our students that reading helps us learn more about the world in which we live, gives us pleasure and enjoyment, develops our vocabulary, and helps us become better speakers and more effective writers" (Gambrell, pg. 21).
As I read this article, I reflected a lot about my own love for reading. I was reminded that reading has truly enhanced my own life in several different aspects. It has helped me understand the world in many different perspectives and given me a love for other people. Now, as I am becoming a teacher, I want my students to know that reading has this potential. I am sad that a lot of my school teachers taught that reading is a task we do to gain information. Sometimes, I only viewed reading as sheer busy work. This quote explains just how to help students see the joy reading can bring us. It's through the teacher sharing his or her own reading. Many of my teachers never told us that they read on their own and that they loved it, they just did it with the class. As a teacher, I want to let my students know that I read and I love it, because it makes me happy. It teaches me and makes me excited about life! My excitement will help motivate my students to also read and have their eyes opened.
If a child begins talking during reading time, because they want to share their excitement about a book, should the teacher ask them to be quiet to let the other students read or is it appropriate to allow the student to share at that moment what made them excited about their book?
That is a difficult question. If any children are excited about a book they read on their own time, I would urge them to wait until the class discussion about books (like in Lilly's Plastic Purse). If they are excited by something you just read. it would probably be best to have them wait until the end, but then go to them first during the discussion. I know it's not good to stifle children's excitement, but I worry that if we just let children interrupt during the stories, it will stifle the interest of the children who hate having books and order interrupted.
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