How do you inspire a lifelong love of reading and writing in your students?

Actually, we do well if we let children and young adults read about what interests them. Although we have a fetish with respect to high brow literature, why not let kids read Sports Illustrated or biographies of people they admire or even comic books? The point is to read; what we read to develop a love of reading isn’t necessarily the Great Books. It is books that inspire or tap into an interest.

In order to promote a culture of reading, we must help the students realise that by reading we don't just mean books. I have seen student fight this notion that books are monotonous thick piles of paper, that might not appeal to them as a starter. So let them begin by reading what they like. For example if they like soccer, let them read sports articles, or if they like technology, let them read the latest in the world of tech. Idea is to get them into the habit of 'reading', not necessarily which medium. Books and better text quality will automatically follow.

Even including author visits with students having the ability to explore and question adds intrigue and interest, making things come alive in engaging their learning. Piquing their interest really does drive their active engagement and move them toward wanting more. Once you have them reading things they’re interested in, finding a way to provide them with books they can call theirs also helps.

Illiteracy is the biggest problem in the schools. And probably the easiest to fix. (I've been tracking this problem for many years, and just today published podcast "Episode 116: Tens of millions of Americans can barely read. Everyone should know why.") I concluded years ago it's mostly an inside job. The Education Establishment in 1931 elected to shut phonics out of the schools. In 1955 Flesch explained the impact of this decision: Johnny can't read. This means that many children are reaching middle school without ever having read even a small book. Or anything. To create life-long readers, start by creating readers. All the phonics experts say most children can learn to read in the first year. The adventure begins.

Showing our own enthusiasm when we come across literature that touches us. It's important to explicitly show students how and why we see these works as relevant and inspiring to our lives.

Absolutely agree. Children copy what they see. How can you encourage them to read if they don't see you enjoying it yourself? I have childhood memories of sitting at the breakfast table on a Sunday reading a coming while my dad read the paper.

Like any other skill,developing reading and writing skills need time and patience.Also, each and every student ???? learns and processes information differently. In my experience, by making reading and writing ?? fun, students are more likely to develop inclination for these skills.I remember, my teacher asked us to write ?? at least two letters to her in sumner vacation. As a child ?? I was excited to share my vacation story with ???? her.It’s advisable to have a list of interesting reading ?? books and young learner’s must be guided to read books as per their interest. Students can be encouraged to write a review on books .This can help them sustain interest. Integrating reading and writing can do magic in building long lasting skills.

One of the most disturbing things to me in K-12 is that experts want to teach X by first teaching Y. I suggest you should put the kid on the bicycle and let him roll, put the kid in the swimming pool and let him see how it feels. It's liking to be on a bike or in a pool that will accelerate a child's learning. Find the nursery rhymes, limericks, riddles, nonsense, cheers, jokes, knock knock jokes that are likely to entertain a child. Repeat and repeat. Encourage memorization. Encourage dramatization. This is how we all learn how language works. Write on the blackboard: Twinkle twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are, up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. Repeat in unison. Explain punctuation, etc.

As educators, one of our primary responsibilities is to nurture a love for reading and writing in our students. Discuss the books, articles, or materials you are currently reading or have recently finished. Explain why you chose them and what you gained from reading them. Offer recommendations that align with your students' interests and reading levels. Express your passion and enthusiasm for reading and writing. Share your excitement when you discover a captivating book or when you are engrossed in the writing process. Your genuine enthusiasm can be infectious and motivate your students.

LOVE this principle and think it applies not just to children, but to adults as well At Novel, we train instructional leaders to "walk their talk" and deeply prepare for their intellectual prep meetings with teachers by reading the text, writing exemplars, and modeling the strategies you want teachers using in the classroom. Modeling makes the learnings and action steps transferable into teachers' practice!

I agree. And when we assign reading, it takes on a negative connotation. Some educators tell students who complete their work early to pick up a book and read. For some, this isn’t a plus. Why not let them draw or make something out of Origami paper or do a puzzle or play a word game? Reading isn’t a punishment; it’s a pleasure and we need to keep the latter goal in mind.

Encourage students to create their own reading lists based on their interests, whether it's historical fiction, fantasy, biographies, or any other genre. Provide time for them to explore books that resonate with them, allowing for a more personalized reading experience. I also encourage students to maintain reading response journals. This provides a space for them to reflect on their reading experiences, jot down questions, make connections, and express their opinions. These journals can serve as valuable tools for self-reflection and growth.

Some of my best classroom experiences involved the classroom library. I had curated it with a variety of texts from classics to modern day graphic novels. There were also many books that connected to the backgrounds of my students. It was a joy to see students come to the shelf and search for a book that interested them. Students were sometimes presently surprised that there were books that caught their attention and they walked away eagerly anticipating the reading experience. Giving students the power to choose their reading and providing a variety of options to choose from, helps increase reading motivation and engagement.

I'm working on an article about Lucy Calkins fiasco. She encouraged children to write in journals, etc. Trouble is, Lucy told them to use picture clues to read English. The children got to middle school without being able to read anything that didn't have pictures. Lucy has been sent into exile. This presents an opening for all those who want to help literacy. Lucy was basically a sight-words person so the landscape is safer for phonics now. My phonics guru, Dan Potter, recommends Blend Phonics by Hazel Loring for all classrooms. My thesis is that anybody can tell that Whole Word (by any name) cannot work. Too slow, works only for those with photographic memory. Many children are quickly defeated; most others become poor readers.

Choice. This was my very first thought. As an educator of more than 20 years with experience as a kindergarten teacher, an English Language Arts district administrator, a sales representative for reading and writing curricula, and, most importantly, a parent of two amazing young people, giving students choice is my number one response hands down.

Students need to be able to read by developing their basic skills of word recognition, context, and understanding . If students can’t read, they won’t read that is why I believe that a supportive community in teaching skills is important. From an early age, children need to be read to and that practice should continue even into later years. Reality, though, is some students will not like to read for various reasons. Inspire a love for learning the best you can through that supportive community.

Pair students up or form small groups where more experienced readers and writers can mentor their peers. This not only provides a valuable support system but also allows for the exchange of ideas and learning from one another. I then design projects that require teamwork and cooperation. This could involve group research assignments, collaborative writing tasks, or multimedia presentations. These activities encourage students to leverage each other's strengths and work towards a common goal.

Teaching X in order to teach Y is like telling children they must look at context and other features in order to read a word. Anything that takes you away from the word is bad. Phonics is the code for how to read 1 million English words. When children feel secure with that code, and after a few years of practice, then you will reach the goal of reading being part of a child's solitary and social activities. Then you can help children find the things they might most enjoy. If they have a sport or a hobby, you know what books to buy. Doesn't matter what they read as long as they are reading. Traditionally, there were only two reasons for someone to read: pleasure or information. Schools should cater to both

Forming teams within your classrooms of students that mix both similar interests and different skill sets will help move everyone forward together. Kids often learn more from each other than from the adults that are responsible for developing them, so be sure to tap into that.

Why not invite in authors? They can Zoom in. As an author of children’s books, I’ve read to thousands of students; we always do a related activity. We often do a Q and A. I’ve been asked the most wonderful questions and even questions that stump me. I wear a costume in keeping with the book I’m reading. Many authors will gleefully read at no cost to schools, and people of all ages can learn from engaging w/ authors. Imagine a book you liked as a student and how fun it would be if the author joined in. I’ve thought about the answer Robert Frost gave when asked about the roads diverging and taking the one less traveled. He said in short: I was just taking a walk and saw roads splitting. No existential question was on my mind….

The troubling aspect of the Calkins fiasco is that her work would not be possible without the silent approval of the New York Times, Ivy League schools etc. etc. etc. It seems to me that even though sight-words suffer defeat, they regroup with something that seems new but isn't. Bottom line, if the people in charge want education reform, they can get it. This country apparently had higher than 90% literacy rates before World War I. There was less formal instruction for the great majority but there were a range of motivations: reading the daily paper, finding a job, moving into the middle class, reading a Penny Dreadful. I think the people just naturally moved into being literate from the ages of 6 to 12. Experts all say reading is easy

Challenge your students to respond to literature in a way that centers them while also addressing your classroom instruction. An example is reading aloud a passage and then asking them to respond by sharing how they would have written this or shared it aloud?

While the importance of literacy education is undeniable, it's equally essential to recognize that learning can be an enjoyable and creative journey. As teachers, we have the power to infuse fun and creativity into our literacy instruction, making reading and writing activities more engaging and inspiring for our students. Occasionally, host literary character dress-up days. Encourage students to come to class dressed as a character from a book they've read. This fosters a deeper connection to literature and allows for creative expression. Encourage students to contribute to a classroom literary magazine or blog. This provides a platform for them to showcase their creative writing and share book reviews and recommendations.

Content area literacy has long been a passion of mine. Content-literacy builds content knowledge and content language--some of our biggest priorities as educators. And, students are often curious about inventors (social studies), scientists (science), and musicians (arts). So, reading and writing across the curriculum creates the perfect bridge between traditional literacy instruction and content-area learning.

Students should spend a majority of class time every day reading, rereading, annotating, discussing, and WRITING about the class texts - this process is recursive and interwoven. Research suggests that grappling with increasingly complex texts, rather than seeking mastery of discrete skills, is what drives student understanding in reading. We include disciplinary knowledge mini lessons intentionally and always pair with contextualized practice and opportunities for retrieval.

As an urban educator, students need to know they matter. To foster engagement, I integrate social issues into our science curriculum. We dig into the broader theme of environmental justice, examining how it impacts access to healthy food and quality clinical services. These topics are not just academic; they reflect the real injustices our community faces. It's not just about reading and writing for academic purposes; it's about empowering them to understand and address the issues they see in their world. The end goal is to help students recognize the value of their education in both academic and personal contexts, giving them a sense of purpose and empowerment in their learning journey.

Reading and writing are fundamental components of scientific literacy. As a science teacher, I integrate literacy into my curriculum through science journals and debates. I employ Interactive Science Journals, where students annotate their observations, hypotheses, and reflections, encouraging active engagement with the material and fostering a deeper personal connection to the scientific process. Second, I use Structured Science Debates to hone critical reading and articulate writing skills. Students prepare by reading multiple perspectives on a scientific issue, then craft and defend their arguments, promoting critical thinking and clarity in communication.

Honest self-reflection and an understanding of your students are essential to fostering a love of reading. Many of my students "don't like to read," but they're happy to binge watch subbed anime! I say lean into that! I encourage them to watch shows and movies with their families, but they have to mute the shows and watch only with subtitles and captions. They can do the same thing with YouTube videos! This can help build students fluency, confidence, and interest in "reading." Once they've established the base level, try to find some comics and/or graphic novels that match what they're watching. The possibilities for multimedia integration are endless!

I tell parents all the time that we start early with reading - read to your kiddos. Then read with your kiddos. Then let your kiddos read to you. Make it fun each time - show them how much you enjoy it. That enjoyment is contagious.

Teachers are learners too. I thought I knew everything about English but I've just started writing a novel. It's tough! I now acknowledge the importance of genre and structure in ways I hadn't before. I'm humbled and looking forward to passing my new found knowledge on.

Allow children to choose to read for themselves. So many children are turned off to reading becuase they have been forced to read texts that aren't relevant to them, but never shown any that are. Get to know your students. Know what they like, and help them find books that incorporate their likes into words. I've had a lot of success finding books for children to read when they answer a few simple "get to know me" questions.

Adapt to needs! It can be very overwhelming for someone who is struggling with reading. A culture of love of reading should always be encouraged, taking into account where all learners are at.