CRBTF Chapter 1 & 2

I can be very obsessive about some things. I have been looking forward to this book study for quite some time. The day we got back from Germany, I had to stop at our local bookstore to buy Catching Readers Before They Fall. They didn't have it. They couldn't get it to me any sooner than five days. I couldn't wait that long. I didn't have the patience to wait until Amazon could get it to me in two days! I decided to go where I have never gone before...My husband's Kindle! With-in minutes I was reading this wonderful gem by Pat Johnson and Katie Keir. The only thing I miss is being able to write in the margins and highlight my favorite parts. So far the Kindle experience is worth the not waiting!
The assignment: Chapters one and two The task master: The wise and wonderful Kimberly!
 Head over to see other teacher's thoughts on this very important book.
Chapter 1: Expanding our Paradigm of Reading
As I read chapter one I paused and thought back over the past years and think about how my ideas and practices in reading have changed. Once tied to a basal reader, I felt I couldn't go wrong if I followed the set prescription. I've learned that following the same prescription for each student doesn't work. Each year I've had struggling readers who need to have the prescription rewritten to support their needs. This thought sticks with me:

Chapter 2: How Reading Works

How does reading work? It is a pretty amazing task to take children to text and expect them to get meaning from it. A task that is made up of many different process going on at the same time.  Guiding all readers to be aware of this process will help them become strong readers. 

I couldn't help thinking about the importance of reading to children from infancy. It is the best safety net a parent can use to insure their child will be a successful reader. Children who are read to are already becoming proficiant at predicting, inferring, visualizing, making connections and the other processes that make up the symphony of reading. These don't happen in isolation. They work together to weave meaning and beauty out of text.

I'm off to practice this processing of text as I read The Elegance of the Hedgehog. How are you practicing?