| Children's column: how to inspire children to read |
 |
 |
| Children's |
| Written by Nicolette Jones |
| Thursday, 12 February 2009 17:43 |
|
If anyone out there missed it last Sunday, there is still time to catch on iplayer BBC Wales's Just Read, in which Michael Rosen turned an ordinary Welsh school into a school of booklovers in 10 weeks. It moved me to tears. Children at the school had the usual resistance to reading: they were embarrassed about their own reading aloud; their friends didn't read (especially the boys), so why should they?; they thought it was babyish to be read to; since they didn’t read and weren’t read to, they were persuaded that reading was boring; they couldn't find books they liked. Saddest of all, most of them didn't know where the (desperately unexciting) school library was. Rosen asked a lot from the teachers, who were already inundated with paperwork and initiatives from above. And from parents, some of whom were not confident about their own reading abilities. But the teachers learned that if they ignored the things they thought they were supposed to be doing instead of reading aloud, the knock-on effect on children's abilities across the board made up for it. And the confidence of the children seemed to have a knock-on effect on the confidence of the parents. Everyone stopped doubting the value of books. (Except for the 4 per cent of the children who did not say they liked reading more at the end of the term than at the beginning; I wanted the project to go on long enough to convert these lost outsiders too.) Reading was proved to be the basis for all sorts of learning. Even, as Rosen said, "The best way to learn to browse on a computer is to read a lot of books." So what did we learn from it, apart from the fact that Michael Rosen is brilliant at reading aloud, and at motivating adults and children alike? And that it is fantastically exciting if you can get Francesca Simon into school too? We learned that a few simple things can make all the difference. So these are the directives that every school should now be putting into practice:
All simple, really, and obvious. And all this ought to be achievable without a film crew, and without cloning Michael Rosen. Detractors will argue that teachers don’t have the time, the freedom or the budget. But perhaps if every teacher, and headteacher, saw this programme they might realise that they do. The rewards – not least those unlikely boys having doors opened to them – are everything that education ought to be about. If only this experiment would start the school reading revolution it deserves to inspire.
Set as favorite
Bookmark
Email this
Comments (4)
  written by Justin Richards, February 13, 2009
It looks like the programme is repeated next Monday (16th Feb)at 7:30pm and later that night (though actually Tuesday 17th if you're setting a timer!), at 1:50am. Both on BBC 4. I missed it, but will certainly watch!
 written by Anne Rooney, February 14, 2009
You can watch it on iPlayer, too, Justin.
Nicolette - just wondering if the 'lost souls' of the 4% might have been those who already immensely enjoyed reading at the start? It doesn't help that the physical contact that has always been an important part of sharing books with children is now not allowed outside the home. A teaching assistant or dinner lady/man can't sit a 4-year-old on their lap, bounce them up an down to the rhythm of a rhyme, count on their toes or tickle or rub their tummy to go with the story as necessary. I thought one of the most telling moments was when Michael's hand hovered two inches above a child's head when the natural thing would have been to touch him. 
 written by Lauren Holmes, February 16, 2009
Book Fairs are a great way to help encourage the reading habit and boost the school library too. With attractive displays, bright posters and support for finding visiting storytellers/authors/illustrators a travelling Book Fair can really help to generate excitement around books. The commission earned by a school can go a long way towards regenerating the school library.
 written by Joy Court, February 17, 2009
The programme made me weep too if only to see that shabby neglected school library. No mention of a Schools Library Service? Our sole purpose is to help schools improve their library- we can lend them books which they can swap each year for new ones - how cost effective is that for a cash strapped school! We are there to advise schools on how to get pupils reading, on display, promotional ideas and activities and given half a chance like nothing better than reading aloud and sharing our enthusiasm with children. Its a shame too that the programme did not mention that school libraries are not statutory. The single thing that this government could do to help make this a literate, reading nation would be to make it a legal requirement for every school to have a library. Making it a requirement to have a Schools Library Service in each authority would have been helpful a few years back - unfortunately we already lost services in many areas.
Lets hope this programme gets repeated on Teacher's TV ! Write comment
You must be logged in to post a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.
|
Subscribe to this comment's feed
