Reidsville Middle or “ Readsville ” Middle

1. Reidsville Middle or“Readsville” Middle Presenters: • Ms. Erselle Young (Principal • Ms. Kathy Aldridge (8th grade ELA teacher) • Ms. Maranda Robertson (7th grade ELA teacher) • Ms. Amy Morris (Literacy Coach)

2. Essential Questions • How can we create a reading community? • How can we create life-long readers? “I Can” Statement I can utilize the presented information to plan and eventually create a reading program that will fit our own school community and goals

3. Why is SSR important? • In a famous study of fifth graders, Anderson, Wilson, and Fielding (1998) found a strong correlation between time spent reading and performance on standardized reading tests (Gallagher, 2009, p. 35. Reading 90 minutes a day=98%, Reading 20 minutes a day=70%, Reading 13 minutes a day=50%. • A study of twelfth graders, conducted by the National Endowment for the Arts (2007), revealed that students who read the most for fun scored the highest on standardized tests. Reading “Almost every day” = a score of 302 out 500 possible points, reading “Once or twice a month=285, and Reading “never or hardly ever”=274. (Gallagher, 2009, p. 35). • Less than one-third of thirteen-year-olds are daily readers, a 14% decline from twenty years earlier. (National Endowment for the Arts (2007) as cited in Gallagher, 2009, p. 41). • Nearly half of all Americans ages fifteen to twenty-four do not read books for pleasure (Gallagher, 2009).

4. Almost Done… • “To prevent read-i-cide: noun, the systematic killing of the love of reading, often exacerbated by the inane, mind-numbing practices found in schools,” (From Readicide, Gallagher, 2009, p. 2). • “While it is true that we want our students to be able to read and comprehend well in all curriculum areas, including required high-stakes tests, let’s not lose sight of the fact that if they don’t read for pleasure they are not likely to make reading a lifelong habit or goal” (From Reading Essentials, Routman, 2003, p. 24). • Wu and Samuels (2004), researchers at the University of Minnesota, state “Poor readers showed significantly greater gain in word recognition and vocabulary than good readers. Poor readers tended to have greater gains in vocabulary with 15 minutes of reading and they had better gains on reading comprehension with 40 minutes of reading,” (as cited in Gallagher, 2009, p. 42).

5. SSR Musts • Every available staff member must be involved. Reading is a shared responsibility. • Teachers must read. Grading papers, responding to emails, etc. sends the message that we do not practice what we preach. • Administrators must support the school program by setting clear expectations and following through with those expectations.

6. Getting Started • Teachers must receive the materials and support to be successful through staff development. • Teachers must have a classroom library • Research says that an adequate classroom library consists of 1,000 books. • Consider holding a book/magazine drive. Collect new or gently used age-appropriate books, magazines, and novels. • You may want to come up with a theme. Our theme was “Read It!”

7. The Next Step • Work with a media specialist to create a rotating media schedule with ELA teachers. • A schedule of which students are to report their assigned teacher must be created. Removing 10 to 15 students out of a class is ideal. • Students should create an SSR reading goal that can is measurable and attainable. •  SSR must be an uninterrupted time for the entire school; No exceptions.

8. What does SSR Look Like? • Reading for enjoyment is a priority. • Teachers are sharing what they are reading, teachers are giving short book talks, teachers read a short, exciting passage from a book, teachers are reading, and teachers are conferencing. • Teachers are reading role models. They know how to guide students to books that are appropriate for their interests and reading level. A “just right” book is a one where a student can understand 95% of the vocabulary. • Students are discussing books in small groups

9. I Like SSR, But How do I Create a Reading Community? • Invite the parents to come in and read. • Invite the local library branch to a school event, for library card sign-up or to advertise upcoming events. • Show students that reading can take place beyond the walls of the school building. • Put on your game face. • Include feeder schools in your reading celebration. • Include local businesses, authors, and central office members to join your reading community

10. Book of Rights • I have the right to look ahead to see how many pages or chapters I have left. • I have the right to choose another book if I find one I like better. • I have the right to reread if I do not understand or remember what I’ve read. • I have the right to escape into a good book and to let my imagination take me into the pages of that book • I have the right to read anywhere. • I have the right to browse through books to see if they will interest me. • I have the right to read out loud or silently to myself. • I have the right not to defend my tastes in reading. • I have the right to decide if a book is appropriate for my reading level. • I have the right to think about how a book might help prepare me for a future job or career. • I have the right to recommend a book to a friend, classmate, family member, or teacher. • I have the right to read to students or people older or younger than me. • I have the right to graduate. • I have the right to “Read It”! By signing this “Book of Rights” I agree to read at least 75 hours this year for pleasure. Name ________________________ Signature ____________________ Adapted from the original work in Better than Life by Daniel Pennac (Coach House Press, Toronto, 1994) as cited in Hipple, T. (1997). It's the THAT, teacher. English Journal.

11. What We Did Held a reading and sport pep rally, that included the high school drum line, fifth graders from our feeder schools, and central office/board members. Invited parents in to read with their child Made SSR part of the fifth grade school visits Held conferences daily to discuss books with students

12. What do you do with that Child that Just Won’t Read? • Keep focusing in on his/her interests. Students are far more reflective than we sometimes give them credit for. Let them come up with some solutions. • Do not let students interrupt your reading time. If you set the precedence that you will stop each time a child whispers or puts their head down, they will continue to interrupt. Wait for conference time to address those issues. • When you are conferencing, the student/s with you deserve your complete attention. Aside from a fire in the class, ignore distractions. Your conference time is too precious to allow other students to interrupt. • Do not give up on a student. Picture books, comic books, news articles are all forms of reading. Allow students to read books they have read before. At the very least, this can help build reading fluency.

13. Media Center Data • From the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year to mid-January, 8,729 media center books were circulated. From the beginning of the 2012-2013 school year to mid-January, students had checked out 20, 046 books, a 43% increase. • By the end of March 2012, the circulation total was 12, 655. By the end of March 2013, our circulation total was just under 30,000. • Our media center has 9, 229 books total. Students checked out over three times this amount over the course of the year. • In January of 2013 our media center circulated 20,046 books and as of December 2014 our media center circulated 19,121. This shows that we are maintaining our circulation momentum.

14. Student Data

15. Teacher Data

16. Other Reading Options • Research says that students can lose up to 40% of what they learned during the school year if they do not engage in reading over the summer (that is the equivalent of three months of school). Make it your priority to seek funding for a summer reading program. • Host a book club as a means of remediation. Choose a variety of high-interest books in a variety of levels. Have students select what book they might want to read. Seek parent volunteers to be a part of these book clubs. • Use bulletin boards to celebrate reading. Display a “top ten” list voted on by classrooms in school or have students give the gift of reading by decorating a gift or present (around the holidays) with the title and author of a book they believe a friend should read, a “to” and “from” tag, and then post it on the bulletin board.

17. The Continuum of Engaged Readers Kelley & Clausen-Grace, 2009

18. The Need for Interventions Retrieved from Microsoft Office ClipArt The NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress, 2011) reported that only 32% of eighth graders, across the nation, reached proficient or advanced levels in reading. Additionally, the average reading scores for eighth grade students, in 2011 were not significantly different from the scores that were reported over a decade ago, in 1998. Biancarosa & Snow (2006) report that fewer than 33% of students (age 13) read on a daily basis.

19. Continued There are eight million students in grades 4-12, across the nation that are considered struggling readers, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2003). Guthrie and Wigfield (2000) found that “Engagement in reading has helped students overcome obstacles, such as low family income and a less varied educational background,” (as cited in Kelley & Clausen-Grace, 2009, p. 313).

20. Almost Done… Retrieved from Microsoft Office ClipArt Reading as a leisure activity is the best predictor of comprehension, vocabulary, and reading speed. Kids who do the most recreational reading become the best readers (Krashen, 1993 as cited in Gallagher, 2009, p. 42). “Just as each student is unique, so is each reader,” (Kelley & Clausen-Grace, 2009). “If we want to support reading during independent reading and help them with engagement, it is critical for the teacher to identify the various types of readers in the classroom,” (Kelley & Clausen-Grace, 2009, p. 313).

21. Observation Checklist Adapted from: Kelley, M. J., & Clausen-Grace, N. (2009). Facilitating engagement by differentiating independent reading.The Reading Teacher, 63(4), 313-318. doi: 10.1598/RT.63.4.6

22. WANTED Retrieved from http://kingpinlifestyle.com/become-the-intelligent-conversationalist/ The Avoidersdo everything possible not to readand may be caught: • Sharpening pencils • Browsing the bookshelf • Trying to distract the teacher or classmate • Watches the clock/stares • Plays with items • Book is closed • Sleep

23. Intervention: Use an interest survey. Make every effort to secure a book on a topic of interest. Have the child take a reading attitude survey. Conference with the child. Knowing that you are not going to give up on him/her may convince them to try.

24. WANTED Retrieved from: http://growingupwell.org/2010/02/20/the-reading-crisis/ The Fake Readeris the student who appears to be reading but is really pretending • Book is open • Eyes may even glaze over text • Pages turn at a very slow or very rapid rate • May stare into space for short periods of time • May be doing some other activity behind the book

25. Intervention Hold the student accountable by giving them a purpose for reading. For example: Write a one sentence summary of what you read. Write down the most descriptive sentence in your book Write down the most important thing that you learned or that happened in your book. Give them a sticky note at the start of class and give them their purpose before reading. They can simply hand the sticky note to you, before leaving.

26. WANTED http://www.k12reader.com/how-to-spot-reading-anxiety/ The Challenged Reader may want to read but have struggled for so long that have essentially “given up” or are no longer motivated to try. • Likely reads below grade level • Could include students with learning disabilities • Socioeconomic challenges • Physical difficulties • Language learning challenges (ELLs)

27. Intervention Teach these students how to select a book that matches their reading level and is interesting. As a rule of thumb, if one page has more than five words on it that are unfamiliar to the reader, than it is too difficult. Have students write a summary at the end of each page. Series books are very helpful for these students as they get used to the writing style and can anticipate what will happen next.

28. WANTED Retrieved from: http://www.visualphotos.com Wannabe Readers choose inappropriate books. • They choose books that are too hard because their friends have read them or because they have seen the movie. • Abandon books frequently and tend to be book switchers. • Will likely not be able to answer the comprehension questions asked during conferences. • May notify you each time they finish a chapter or page of their book, knowing that they will likely not finish it.

29. Intervention Try completing a “Status of the Class.” This means quietly walking around and recording the page number that your student/s are starting on. This inventory will let you know how much reading the child has accomplished. Use positive reinforcement if a significant amount of reading has taken place between one day and the next. Conference with students if your inventory shows minimal reading. This group of students can be particularly swayed by book talks. Choose a few books that the student might want to read, based on the child’s survey. Try a book pass. Students skim the book for one minute and then write a brief remark about what they will remember about the book.

30. WANTED Retrieved from: http://www.theguardian.com Compliant readers read because they were told to do so. • Rarely read outside of school • Will likely not bring a book with them to read • Choose books randomly with no forethought about what they want to read.

31. Intervention These students need as much enthusiasm about reading from the teacher as possible. Read alouds are very crucial for these students. Then need to feel that they are a part of a reading community, where reading is accepted and expected. Book talks, small group discussions, conferencing, top ten lists, and book passes will all help with this.

32. Thank You!!! • We hope you found our journey helpful. • Start small. Start with an idea and let that idea grow into others. • Feel free to contact us if you have any questions. • amorris@rock.k12.nc.us

33. Bibliography Biancarosa, C., & Snow, C. E. (2006). Reading next—A vision for action and research in middle and high school literacy: A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York (2nd ed.).Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent Education. Gallagher, K. (2009). Readicide: How schools are killing reading and what you can do about it. Portland: StenhousePublishers. National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (2011). State Focus: North Carolina, School Year 2009–10. Washington, DC: Author. Available from HYPERLINK http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/files/uploads/T3SIS_State/northcarolina.pdf

34. Bibliography Continued Kelley, M. J., & Clausen-Grace, N. (2009). Facilitating engagement by differentiating independent reading.TheReading Teacher, 63(4), 313-318. doi: 10.1598/RT.63.4.6 Routman, R. (2003). Reading essentials: The specifics you need to teach reading well. Portsmouth: Heinemann. All unmarked photos were retrieved from Microsoft Clipart