I have loved reading for as long as I can remember. I consider myself a good reader and a quick reader than average (although not as quick as my husband or my sister). I am good at comprehending as I read and I enjoy reading as long as it is my choice. I hate reading textbooks, in fact I don't read textbooks unless absolutely necessary to get a good grade in a class. But I enjoy reading at home, on my own time, and my own choosing.I generally stick to fantasy with an occasional sci-fi, historical fiction, and finance books thrown in the mix.
My whole family is very literate and encourages reading as entertainment which is why I believe I read mostly for entertainment. I was read to as a child and always saw my parents and my siblings reading but usually for entertainment purposes as opposed to study.
From my background of reading I would like to promote reading as good entertainment and also a way to expand your knowledge. In most of my classes I could teach a textbook is not necessary but I would like to incorporate other intellectual texts such as research done in my field etc... to help the students learn how to gain knowledge from texts. There are also opportunities for me to foster reading as entertainment such as child development.
I don't consider myself a good reader, much less a quick reader. I find myself having to re-read much of what I read, whether from a textbook or a novel. I've struggled with reading for a long time, nearly all my life, and it wasn't until I entered college that I realized that I had a learning disability. It takes me a while to read something and really comprehend what I'm reading. I have to use strategies such as re-reading, taking notes, and making connections to prior knowledge. I also hate reading textbooks. I think mostly because it's just information presented in an organized boring fashion, it's not intriguing so I'm not pulled into the topic. Even though I have a learning disability I still enjoy reading. It hasn't discouraged me from reading. I'm a social studies major so I enjoy reading historical autobiographies. These are topics that interest me so I enjoy reading them. When I become a teacher I want my students to read about topics that interest them, because I know that if they do this they will find joy in reading.
ReplyDeleteYou have good ideas for the variety of ways that you can incorporate different kinds of texts to get your students involved in reading.
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