Why Do You Read?

Why Do You Read?

            My EDU professor posed this question to my 307 class this semester, and I thought I would attempt to answer it here on my blog. 

I read for enjoyment.  I also read to acquire knowledge.  Maybe I can learn about a culture I don’t know much about or a period of history.  I read to become informed…informed about politics, and political platforms so I can make an informed decision when voting.  Similarly, I read when I am about to make a significant purchase, so I can make an informed choice.  I read for escapism, for stress relief.  I read because I appreciate writing as an art form, as something that can teach me something about myself or about the world.  But this question got me thinking about the reasons why a child reads during his/her elementary years.  Unfortunately, I think that in many cases, these children are not reading for enjoyment.  They are reading because they have to, because they are practicing reading and the strategies they can use to become better readers.  They are reading in a content area in order to acquire that content (science, history etc.)   I think it’s incredibly important to try to instill a love for reading in the classroom, especially in the elementary grades, as research shows that if a child leaves the elementary setting for middle/ high school without that love of reading, there is a good chance they will never develop it.  But how can we as educators, or hopeful educators, achieve this goal?  One way would be to try and substitute rich literature or high interest stories for the dry basals that can be all too common in many reading classrooms.  Another idea would be to try to supplement any content texts that might be a dry series of facts with more interesting sources.  Beyond these suggestions, I think teachers should always try to model their own “love of reading.”  Their modeling can help to create a reading (and writing) community within the classroom.  I plan to talk to my students about my own reading habits, including my own favorite books, poems, etc. with the hope that this modeling and my own enthusiasm for reading will influence my future students.