Remember the first time you read a whole book on your own, without help from a teacher or parent? The first time you immersed yourself in a chapter book, say, without pictures (or very few, anyway), and felt so proud of yourself you toted the book around with you as a sort of proclamation of your achievement.
One of the joys of my life is reading to elementary school children. They listen with mostly rapt attention, and their characteristic fidgeting is more a sign of excited engagement than boredom - the exact opposite of middle- or high schoolers.
I always bring some of my favorites, books that are guaranteed to grab children’s attention and provide a hammy reader (me) with plenty of opportunity to act out scary, funny, or suspenseful scenes.
I used to do the same in my high school classes. Yes, I read aloud to teens - they liked it. There’s no age limit on listening to someone read. Poe’s short story “The Cask of Amontillado” was a great one. So was “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pockets” by Jack Finney. And, of course, the gorier parts of Shakespeare and Lord of the Flies, among others, proving that adolescents are not genetically averse to literature if it’s “acted out” shamelessly and without regard to other teachers looking in to see what the commotion is all about.
Today when I visit elementary schools, I come armed with Chris Van Alsburg’s books, my favorite of which is Two Bad Ants. Plenty of episodes to raise and lower the voice, to spin around (the garbage disposal scene), to shoot across the room (the electrical outlet scene), to say “Cool!” (the mountain of sugar) and “Ewww!” (the mouth drinking coffee picture).
I also love the books of my friend Jerdine Nolen. I love her Tall Tale series, illustrated by the wonderful Kadir Nelson. Jerdine’s Big Jabe, Thunder Rose, and Hewitt Anderson’s Great Big Life tell implausible and highly entertaining stories with just a hint of kid-appropriate morals to them. Kids love them and they’re fun to act out.
I’ve been told more than once that these readings have inspired kids to read on their own. “My first book!” they say.
I don’t know if my first book is in print any longer. It was called Half Magic, about a group of kids who find a magic talisman (I think) that answers their wishes half way. Wish to go back in time two hundred years, go back one hundred. Wish for a thousand dollars and you get five hundred. My memories are vague, but the ingenious concept is clear. I only half remember. Chuckle, chuckle.
What’s your earliest book memory? Did you start early, or were you like so many of my high school students who didn’t seem to be the least embarrassed to admit they’ve never read a “whole book” until they tried one of my many, sometimes desperate, recommendations.
What got you going? Was it the book itself? A resourceful teacher? A determined parent? A helpful librarian? A trusted friend?
What books would you recommend to young readers today? To older students? If you’re coming up blank, the Association for Library Services to Children, a division of the American Library Association, has a wide range of recommendations for students of all ages. Click here to check out their lists.
For younger kids? The Sylvan-created Book Adventure allows children (grades K-8) to create personalized book lists from more than 7,000 recommended titles, take quizzes on the books they’ve read at school or at home, and earn prizes for comprehension of the books they’ve read.
6/10/2008 2:17:16 PM
Dr. Rick love your new blog.
Thanks for the link to the ALSC book lists. I am sending the link to all my students families.
If you have trouble finding the lists , go to search and type in:
"book lists"
Dave
6/10/2008 2:20:27 PM
As an adult I still love to be read to. In the car we do books on CD for long trips. As the mother of a 5 month old we read constantly, we even have books for the bath tub. I can't remember my first book, my mom read to us all the time! Our favorite was Amelia Bedelia!
~Julie, NYC
Julie
6/11/2008 2:35:41 PM
Dr. Rick,
Thank you for making reading the first topic of discussion. It is great to see kids reading, and I hope that more kids will see the joy in reading. I remember reading a group of books in every grade, from Little House on the Prairie, to the Babysitters Club, to Lurlene McDaniel.
Great Blog!
Tiffany~~Iowa
Tiffany
6/12/2008 4:54:56 PM
Hey Dr. Rick ~
Love the blog! My favorite children's book is "Carolina Shouts" It's fun to read aloud because it has difference voices. However, you do need to be a bit familiar with a southern accent for it to really work!!
Teresa - Portland, OR
Teresa
6/16/2008 10:14:16 AM
I have always loved to read. When I was a young girl I loved the Babysitter's Little Sister series by Ann Martin. I had an older sister who read the Babysitter's Club, and I always wanted to be just like her, so my mom gave me the "younger version."
One of my happiest memories as a kid growing into the love of reading is of my 4th grade teacher. She read out loud to us everyday. She would read Judy Blume's Tales of the 4th Grade Nothing and all of the Fudge books. She was such a great reader and she had all of us just begging for more.
I share with parents to find books that your child will love. Expose them to all the different books that are available! (This is where I really promote Book Adventure.) So many parents do not know where to begin when looking for books for there kids and Book Adventure provides some direction!
What a great topic! As you can see, I could probably talk for days about reading and great memories of reading.
aydree
3/11/2009 11:51:33 PM
Yes, I remember the first time I read a whole book on my own, without the help of my teacher or my parent? The first time I immersed myrself in a chapter book, say, or very few picture, and I felt so proud of myself that I toted the book around with me as a sort of proclamation of my achievement. It is a great experince.
100 ice
9/8/2009 5:54:13 AM
My heart loves your recent blog. Thankful ALSC book lists! I am mailing the link to all my students’ families. Even supposing you have disturb finding the lists, go to search and type in. ---- Thanks
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9/9/2009 2:09:53 AM
Bona fide info & suggestion ---- Thanks
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10/1/2009 1:07:44 AM
To read firsttime book without getting assistence of your parents and teacher is a like a herculean task for the users which is going to be a sound amaizing for the users. while reading book alone, leaves manny queries in the mind of the students to be solved. being hazardous situation, if you go for second time to read, most of the ideas will be cleared.
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10/13/2009 1:32:49 PM
Very very great post. I read it and like also.
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10/28/2009 3:04:29 AM
The post is collection of some past experience about how did you feel at the time of reading book without anyone's help .......... Thanks
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