thoughtful"What do I mean when I say I love young people's literature? What do I need to do to replicate the way I come to books and understand books and retain narrative for my readers in the room? What can I do to get into the ear of the powers that be to make sure more quality titles from this demographic are included on "official" reading lists? What might ONE YEAR of independent reading look like for a student?"
WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO REPLICATE THE WAY I COME TO BOOKS? Let's start with how I come to books.
1. I blog about books to let others know what I have read that I think might be of interest, use, value to them.
2. I read the recommendations of lots of other folks. Nerdy Book Club, SLJ, Mr. Hankins, and Donalyn Miller are among the blog postings I read daily. I add to my TBR (to be read) and TBP (to be purchased) list from this reading. I follow book conversations on Twitter (#titletalk) and posts on Facebook, too. This community feeds my books.
3. When a box arrives from a publisher, I create stacks: books to be read NOW, books I have heard about, new books, debut books. It helps me prioritize my reading.
4. I read reviews, too. I will not select or reject a book solely on a review, but it also helps guide me.
5. I browse shelves and stores looking for books.
6. I ask others.
7. I give books a test drive. Sometimes the book is not the model for me. I do not have guilt about abandoning it.
8. I devour certain kinds of books. Love graphic novels and picture books when I feel like I have been away from reading for a while and need a kick start. Other books might be approached with trepidation (at one time I was not a big fan of SF and fantasy; that has changed).
9. I make sure there is always a book within grabbing distance.
10.I listen to booktalks. Often that personal introduction sells me on the book.
How many of these can we replicate in our classrooms? I do not see any item on this list I could not replicate?
The magic word for today is: CHOICE.
