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A "Below-Level" Reader
Mark's Advice.
Author: Liz Strauss
Instructor Issue:
Oct, 2000
By the time struggling readers reach
the upper elementary grades, they are experts in what they can't do. So lets
tend to them.
His name was Mark. He had strawberry-blond hair, mischief
in his eyes, and a contagious grin that popped up at the most inappropriate
times. He registered more than 76 disruptive behaviors a day. (His witty
one-liners could compete at Shakespeare's level for comic relief.) I couldn't
help but like him. He couldn't help but drive me crazy.
I met Mark in the days before kids were labeled
gifted, hyperactive, reluctant, or learning disabled. But Mark had
nonetheless collected labels. His really meant "disruptive,
disagreeable, and dumb." Mark was 10 years old and couldn't read. I
was 22 years old and a first-year teacher. I was all he
had.
Today, we have a lot more information about how kids
acquire reading skills. Yet, kids like Mark still make it all the
way to high school unable to read. I wonder sometimes if we value
the information we get from experts more than we value the
information we get from kids.
Those sneakered, spirited,
street-smart people we teach may have acquired some pretty complex
thinking skills to navigate life without literacy. They also have
firsthand experience at reading below level. What advice, I wonder,
would a kid like Mark have to offer to us?
Selecting the
Right Books
Between anxiety and boredom sit the books
these kids need to grow as readers--books that aren't too hard, too
easy, or insultingly immature. Put simply, kids need access to books
that they want to read and can read--books with humor, adventure,
and cool, credible storylines.
Don't worry if the most
appealing books don't look like the books we read at their age. For
whatever reason, the traditional choices didn't work with these
kids. Collect a new set of books just for your below-level
readers.
Look for stories that respect their life experience
and their sophisticated young-adult sense of humor. A little
irreverence, tastefully done, can go a long way toward letting kids
know that reading can be fun as well as informative. Stories about
real-life problems they face every day can show them that books can
offer experiences and answers that people might be unable or
unwilling to share. Informative books written to entertain as well
as explain can motivate kids to read nonfiction content much more
quickly than any test at the end of the chapter.
The object
is to get kids to understand why some people want to read, not have
to read. If they develop a relationship with just one book, you'll
have their attention.
Mark's advice: Let me help select books
I read and have lots of books about kids like me. Go for short
sentences and short chapters. Art on every page means I turn pages
quickly. I like to feel progress.
Introducing the
Book
Book introductions motivate readers the way that
movie previews motivate viewers. They also give nonreaders practice
in techniques good readers use. Invite kids to check the front
cover, back cover, and table of contents for information about the
book. Ask and invite questions that get kids thinking about the
problem or ideas explored in the book. Encourage kids to relate the
book to their own experiences and to summarize what they know before
they have read even one word. Knowing what to expect from a book
makes reading it easier and more meaningful.
Mark's
advice: If you want me to talk, don't invade my privacy. Don't ask
me "Have you ever stolen something? What did you do?" Say something
like "Imagine you got caught stealing. What would you do?" Then
listen to what I say. Make it okay to laugh and try not to notice if
I smirk--it's embarrassing to learn in front of an
audience.
Reading the Book
Whether reading
aloud or silently, reading fewer words with comprehension and
fluency builds skills more quickly than reading long passages with
only the dimmest understanding. Help kids break the reading task
into manageable, yet meaningful chunks--start with a paragraph and
build to a chapter.
Help kids set a purpose for reading, such
as searching for information about a favorite animal, and then talk
to them afterward about what they read. But before you listen in,
give them a chance to practice reading aloud privately. Practice
time is extremely motivating for below-level readers.
Mark's
advice: Every learner has to practice. Ask me when I'm ready to
read. When I do, don't set your expectations too high or correct me
every time I mess up. Once in a while tell me what I did right. And
don't ask me to read for people who read a whole lot better than I
do.
It Makes Sense
I don't have a clue what
happened to Mark. (Maybe today he's dealing with a clever,
disruptive nonreader of his very own.) I just know that my memories
of him over the years have taught me even more than he did in the
one year I knew him. I suppose it makes sense that he could teach me
so much--I was only a first-year teacher, but he was a tenth-year
nonreader.
If you ever happen to meet Mark one day, be
prepared if you get him started--he has plenty of advice for anyone
who'll listen. I'll always be glad I did.
Elizabeth "Liz"
Strauss is the vice president of publishing for Sundance Publishing
and developer of Second Chance Reading, a series of high-interest
books with comprehensive teaching support for below-level readers
(grades 4-9).
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Below-Level Readers' Gripe List
* 1. People
think we're dumb. I know a whole lot about a whole lot of
things--just ask me. |
* 2. They treat us like we can't think.
I solve problems every day of the week. I just can't seem to
tackle this reading thing on my own.
* 3. Don't think that
we can't see. Don't give me books with giant words--they make me
feel stupid.
* 4. People treat us like babies. I don't
want to read books about "Julie, the Junior Reporter," or "Sam, the
Happy Pirate." I'm not a dork; I just don't read.
* 5.
They want us to be serious about reading all of the time. In
my neighborhood, a sense of humor can stop a problem. Can't we
lighten up a little?
* 6. People ask us to read books they
wouldn't read in a million years! Don't give me boring books. If
you think the book is boring, why would I want to read it?
*
7. Don't give up on us. It's like playing the guitar--we need
practice. Give me a book that I want to read, show me how it works,
and let me practice before you listen to me read.
* 8.
People make us invisible. Get to know me. I'm one of the most
interesting kids you teach. |
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