My Absolute Favorite Book Evaluator...for the Moment

     Well, it's official. Scholastic Books has finally broken through with a quality application. The Book Wizard is an extremely friendly and, I'm finding, reliable tool for determining some of the vitals about books. For too many years I felt frustrated by the density and improper categorization of the Scholastic website. It was always a fine place to buy books and then not much more useful beyond that. Finally, it's changed.
     Want to know the reading and interest level of Gary Paulsen's book Lawn Boy? Plug in the title and up pops a succinct window of information. (Lawn Boy comes out with an interest level of grades 3-5 and a reading level of 4.5.) Or, maybe you're curious about all of Gary Paulsen's written works. Place his name in the Book Wizard window and presto! All 100 of his works arise. By scanning the page anyone can see that he writes within a fair range of reading levels from grades 3-8. Yes, other sites do this in a similar manner, but what they don't have are some of the additional, useful, bells and whistles that follow:
     Along with interest and reading levels, each book is categorized by genre and topic. This is a very relevant item which many other book sites either do not offer or do not do particularly well. Again, examining Lawn Boy we learn that it falls under the genre of realistic fiction as well as comedy and humor. The latter description is a pleasant bonus many sites won't bother to give. The topics associated with Lawn Boy are jobs, careers, work resourcefulness, and sports. Now, that is a feature I can truly appreciate when I do not have a familiarity with a book.
     Scholastic Books also adds a if-you-like-this-book-then-you'll-enjoy-this-book search window common to movies and music sites. Amazon rose to power with its ability to cross-compare books and make decent suggestions of other titles that could interest its customers. Now Scholastic has done the same also allowing its users to adjust the grade level difficulty at the same time. Was Lawn Boy fun but too easy? Push that meter up a grade or two and new suggestions arise. Nice!
     So, if you're not quite clear about the nature, difficulty, or how well a book might match with your child, run it through the Book Wizard and enjoy the magic. This site can easily be used by your child independently, which is another great approach to satisfying the customer.
     This is without a doubt my favorite tool for checking out the appropriateness of books for particular students by age and interest...until the next best thing comes along.

Hello Parents

     A new school year awaits us, and it promises to be an exciting few weeks for everyone at Gideon Welles School. I'm looking forward to meeting you and your child next week. 

     My colleagues and I have been diligently working to implement many new ideas and books within our curriculum. The Language Arts department is particularly excited about introducing  a slew of contemporary books to your child as part of our theme-based approach to instruction. The books span a range of genres and reading levels, which is critical to providing all our students the opportunity to connect with the written word and engage in the classroom community. It is also a tried and true method for promoting a love of reading.

     What follows is an image that will take you to our books after you've clicked it. Enjoy and hopefully I'll see you next week. 

What Glastonbury Teachers are Reading the Summer of 2010

     Most of the Language Arts and Reading Teachers in Glastonbury are reading Donalyn Miller’s work The Book Whisperer. The book is intended for educators, and while not entirely accessible to those outside of the educational field, its message is laced well enough throughout the work as to be understood by anyone. Miller’s contention is that children become excellent readers by reading, reading a lot. This comes across, in print at least, as too plain of a claim to possibly be accurate, but it is the bare bones of her argument.
Miller explains that reading in her classroom occurs daily for as many hours as she can squeeze in. Students are surrounded literally by thousands of books and have the goal of reading 40 books before the school year is complete. They are given freedom to make book selections within specified genres, and Miller works to see that the student study each genre to learn about which ones speak to them best. Miller holds herself to similar standards during the process. She reads with the children, takes their recommendations, and shares her development as a reader.
     It was difficult to not nod in agreement regarding much of what she holds true about inspiring students to become phenomenal readers. Choice is very important. She points out that many adults can point to several books they had to read in school and disliked immensely. A teacher that reads with his or her students unequivocally demonstrates the importance of the act. It’s not do as a say, it’s do as I do.

Here are some other key points, without the details, which she makes:

· reading should be uninterrupted for longer durations of time

· adult and peers recommendations are critical to finding books that speak to us

· classroom libraries are important and should be as large as possible

· quitting a book is okay as it reflects adult practices

· whole class novels are well-meaning but often counterproductive

· time taken from reading is to be careful considered for its comparative value

· students rarely read at home despite appearances

     I love to read. I read every single day for at least an hour. I find myself making connections between books, the news, movies, and personal experiences often and easily because of my continual reading. There’s no doubt in my mind that heavy readers succeed far more than fail in school or out of school. Miller’s book was therefore pretty much up my alley.
     I do hold a few reservations about her book. A few. I did not feel Miller did enough to explain the instructional activities that occur in her classroom over the course of a school year. She touched on a great deal without providing specific examples. Explanations about writing instruction and practice seemed to be lacking too. I also didn’t see much in the way of how she might work with her lowest students. Again, she merely touched on this.
     Despite these small qualms, Miller’s book is testament to what it means to be a reader. Reading goes well beyond standardized tests and letter grades. And, by the way, Miller points out repeatedly that her students “ace the standardized test” given to all Texas 6th grade students. Read and be rewarded.

School Libraries: The Blockbuster of Today?

     To begin, I love libraries and book stores. Well, to be more specific, I love what's in them. When I tell my family that I'm going to stop in at Barnes & Nobles, Borders, or the library in town, they understand that this means several things at once:

• I'll be out of touch for at least two hours. (I don't own a cell phone and even if I did I wouldn't bring it with me.)
• If they want to tag along, they have to decide if they can handle the minimum two hour visit time as well as put up with my many single syllable responses to their queries. 
• I'm going to put a nifty little dent in the family bank account.
• More books will be have to be squeezed into already tightly-packed bookcases.

     The thing of it is, I'm beginning to wonder how much longer the brick and mortar homes of books can remain as they are. I'm wondering if I need to make those trips by car and foot to my mecca. Just consider the Blockbuster versus Netflix business models and you'll understand what I mean. 

     Netflix has mortally wounded Blockbuster with its mailbox DVDs and online streaming. We want what we want quicker, cheaper, and delivered directly to us. Going to a store or the library simply doesn't hit on all three of those needs. Thus is Netflix able to slay a company many thought would replace the theater business, which is actually being handled by today's home entertainment theaters. These dynamic changes have me musing about school libraries. 

     Our school libraries, if they were a business, are far closer to Blockbuster than Netflix, and this is worrisome. In a business like Blockbuster, movies are bought, delivered, repackaged, cataloged, and shelved for customers take home. You could substitute books for movies and students for customers and still be accurate about the school library model. In both instances, there is a of time and expense woven into the goal of having individuals come, peruse, and leave with products in hand. It's a centralized model, which has Blockbuster scrambling to be more like Netflix and it's push out ways.

     I wonder if the time hasn't come to work more on a push out model for our business...err...libraries. I'm not calling for an end to physical books, or even librarians, but any means. In fact, both remain indispensable to education.  No, what I am suggesting is recognizing the successful models of today, our customer wants, and mimicking them as best as we can. This means divvying library books into classroom sets and adopting eReaders as soon as possible. That's right. Don't put the books into one big room, put the books into all the little rooms where the students are. And, start transitioning to the medium most are using now, electronic delivery of information.

Consider  all of these statements:  

• Every generation, from this point on, carries more computing power in their mobile devices than NASA had when launching the first ships to the moon.
• Electronic books are cheaper than paper books.
• When given the choice between going to the library to check out a book or downloading it to a portable reading device, most will overwhelmingly chose the second option.
• Locating the right read is easier and quicker (even more enjoyable) using Amazon (or our Destiny Quest browser) than working your way through rows and stacks of books. (Okay, I'll admit. I do like the experience of discovering a book by randomly roaming up and down the aisles, but I believe I'm in the minority with this one.)
• The Kindle, Nook, and Sony eReader can hold thousands of electronic books either via purchase or free download from the thousands of books in the public domain. (Wait until Google enters the field!) A lot less physical space is necessary.
• At least one state, Utah, has adopted eReaders as the primary means by which textbooks and pleasure books will be put into student hands. Texas is also heading in the same direction. (The larger sized Kindle displays entire textbooks with perfect clarity and all the usual instant connections to links, videos, updated information, etc.)
• Items stacked next to store registers tend to sell quickly, the so-called impulse purchase. Books, when well displayed (covers showing, not spines) tend to be checked out most frequently. Put 50 books on display in every classroom and they'll start moving. 
• Most eReaders allow users to read the first chapters of new books for free. They also show users books most-like the ones being read or examined. 
• Student connections between subject matter (science, social studies, art, etc.) can be enhanced through the proper pairing of classrooms to teachers and students.

The push out concept is not a silver bullet. There are complications. Tracking books from classroom libraries is much more challenging and potentially onerous for teachers. Librarians must make more trips to classrooms to share books and swap new titles for older titles.  However, this is how major transitions tend to work. It's not without bumps. Netflix began with DVDs to mailboxes only, then limited streaming, and slowly is working toward complete streaming. 

     Librarians, take heed. While I'm confident, as a mere reading teacher, that I misunderstand much of how a library functions, I feel as confident that change is coming and should be embraced. So, for those working the stacks, I welcome any comments you may have.

Summer Enrichment Offerings

The Town of Glastonbury offers several enriching camps and workshops each summer. I'm happy to announce that I will be involved in two of them with my good colleague Patrick Zabroski. We will co-teach both the Reading Enrichment Camp and the Glastonbury Games Club. Specific details regarding dates, times, and price will follow very soon on the Glastonbury Schools website. A brief description of each of our workshops follows:

Reading Enrichment Camp: I know all too well how summer can slip away with children having not even started the required summer reading. (I have three boys and it's happened in each case at least once. I, of course, blame this on my wife. usually from a great distance -like a state, or two :) Thus was born the idea behind this workshop. Patrick and I want to help the procrastinator in us all get a head start on our summer reading. Using a modified Reader's Workshop model, we will present how we read books, take notes, and focus on the pleasurable aspects to reading. We'll also help participants find non-fiction materials to go along with their fiction selection. The workshop meets for one week, four hours each day, allowing us to model strategies, conference with students, discuss and write, and read for a sustained period of time. So, why not take a little of the pressure off the end of summer by joining us at Smith School at the beginning of summer.

Glastonbury Games Club: Let me get this one straight. I love video games, but I recognize that too often this idle pursuit doesn't bring people together as much as it brings player and machine together. Patrick and I decided that, as great as computers are, it wouldn't hurt to nurture the social component that comes from face-to-face meetings. We also thought it might be a good idea to side-step the ole standbys, like organized sports, and go for something new -boardgames. We've got a nice list of games that allow 2-4, or even 4-8, individuals to play together in one room. Imagine that? These are the kinds of games that have a nice blend of easy to learn rules and compelling strategy. They're not your typical games either. There's Quirkle, Rummikub, Formula De, and more, much more.  Some of these may well end up in your home after your child plays them. Game night anyone?

Or, check out some of the other fine offerings within Glastonbury this summer.