Reflection 4: Non-fiction and Balanced Reading Diet (Harvey Article and D&Z Chapter 4)

I loved getting lost in Ms. R's classroom library books.

My eighth grade teacher Ms. R used to keep a classroom library. Ms. R had this little black, rotating book shelf at the back of the classroom. I remember spending my free time looking through all the colorful trade books that filled the three sides of her little rotating book shelf. One book in particular caught my eye--Fat Chance, a book about a teenager with an eating disorder. Although it wasn't an Accelerated Reader (couldn't earn points for a class by reading it), I checked out the book anyway and finished reading it in one night. To this day, I still remember vividly the plot and the smell of the book (It was a minty, cakery smell! I swear!) as I spent my night flipping through it. It all came down to the fact that this was a subject that genuinely interested me and something I wanted to find out more about. As I was reading this week's reading assignments, I confess I started out the task with nothing less than pure dread. I mean, I much rather be watching my favorite TV show or reading cooking blogs than doing assigned reading. However, these readings by Harvey, Daniels and Zemelman turned out to be surprisingly enjoyable and even made me reminisce about my teenage years when reading helped me explore and escape.

The Harvey article proposes using compelling non-fiction to ignite learning curiosity in students and teach effective reading and writing. In chapter 4 of Subjects Matter: Every Teacher's Guide to Content-Area Reading, Daniels and Zemelman argue for incorporating a balanced reading diet (textbook and trade books, choice and assigned, fiction and non-fiction, classics and contemporary, difficult and easy, short and long, primary and secondary, multiple texts and single text) in developing readers into sophisticated and life-long readers/learners. Daniels and Zemelman also give tips for how to start and keep a classroom library to further surround students with balanced reading options.

What I love about this two reading assignments is that they both remind me how fun reading and learning can be! Harvey's paper reminds me that people are curious creatures who can become fascinated with topics that learning about them is not only fun, but natural! Non-fiction is indeed a bountiful source to intrigue genuine learning curiosity in people. Why make the students read a  textbook chapter about DNA when you have part of the biography from the scientists who discovered the double helix structure? The students can not only learn about the how (how they discovered the double helix structure), but also the why (why were they motivated) from the people that are passionate about their work and discovery. Also it's so true that we, as grown ups, tend to read more non-fiction than fiction! Thus, giving students more non-fiction and training them to write non-fiction are teaching practices that make practical sense. Chapter 4 in Daniels and Zemelman's book is my favorite reading piece from this class so far! This is simply because it reminds me how fun reading for pleasure can be. It reminds me of my high school days when I'd skip lunch to flip through the Psychology Today magazine in the library. It takes me back to my 8th grade teacher's little classroom library. And it reminds me that reading wasn't all dry growing up. Why should teachers suggest otherwise by giving out dry encyclopedia/textbook readings? I also loved the book suggestions at the end of this chapter. At multiple points during the reading, I simply wanted to stop reading this chapter already and find those books (no offense, Daniels and Zemelman)!

Both of these reading assignments were great in showing and reminding me that reading can be used in all content areas during teaching--even with math! Instead of the teacher doing the standard introducing the topic of the day, possible non-fiction reading (or even show a movie clip about the mathematician) can be assigned prior to teaching the topic to capture student interests. And chapter 4 in Daniels and Zemelman's book had an entire section about math books that can be of interest to everyone. Math teachers can definitely feature a few of those in their classroom library! Also, it doesn't have to be all math-related books/readings. Sometimes, we all need some easy and fun reads that grab our attention, relax our minds, and satisfy our burning curiosity about random facts of life. At the end, teachers of all subject areas want to not only teach their content area, but also to promote the development of life-long learners/readers.

Update (11/4/2013)
After I wrote the above reflection, I actually googled a coupled of stories mentioned in chapter 4 as they really caught my attention. And I managed to find "My Favorite Teacher" (a story about a serial killer teacher)! Really loved reading the story and I even shared it with two friends (one of them stopped halfway, the other really enjoyed it too!)! Click on the following link for an interesting read: "My Favorite Teacher" by Robert Kurson! I highly recommend it!