Reading for PleasureCreated by Jessica Brandenburg

Introduction

The topic that I looked at was adolescents and reading for pleasure. The overall problem is that teens are not putting as much time and energy into reading for pleasure like the generations before them have. They have more responsibilities and distractions that can prevent them from reading.

ArticlesOne of the first articles that I looked at was

Reading for Pleasure: A Research Overview. Basically the article describes what reading for pleasure is and that it is a form of play where we use our imagination. The problem with adolescents and reading is that they are growing older and having to use their imagination differently. Another article that I read, Reading & Happiness, discusses the different types of happiness that we achieve from our activities. Reading is an activity that you have to endure to receive satisfaction.

Articles (cont.)Two of my articles, Playing the Literacy Game and

Children’s and Young People’s Reading Habits and Preference, discuss the need to encourage boys to be more motivated to read. They also stress the need to offer choice to the students and to respect the reading choices that they make. One of the major problems of today’s classroom is that the choices in reading material can be limited. This required reading limit can be uninteresting to the students and the school may be the only opportunity that they have for material. This is discussed in The Complex World of Adolescent Literacy, Assessing Adolescents Motivation to Read, and Resistance, Struggle, and the Adolescent Reader.

Articles (cont.)The last of my articles looked at what teens

are doing in their free time and what type of literature they are choosing to read. These articles are Literacy as a Leisure Activity, The Leisure Habits of Urban Adolescents, and What are Teens Reading? These articles look at the fact that reading is not the most popular activity and it is also not the least likely activity either. Teens are more likely to read a magazine if they read anything during their free time. They want to read about things that relate to them and things that they care about.

What I have gotten from thisMotivate the

students◦ Find Materials that

interest them◦ Find subjects that

interest themBoys need more

motivationWider selection of

genres, formats but still within their reading level

Distractions

How will I use this?

I plan to use the information that I found in these articles to change the way I approach reluctant readers. I plan to offer more choices and more books that cover their interests.

InterestsCelebritiesSportsPeople like them Information

relevant to their lives

Citation of Articles Pitcher, S, Albright, L, Delaney, C, Walker, N, & Seunarinesingh, K. (2007).

Assessing adolescents motivation to read. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 50(5), 378-396.

Clark, C, & Foster, A. (2005). Children’s and young people’s reading habits and preferences: the who, what, why, where, and when. National Literacy Trust.

Moje, E, Overby, M, Tysvaer, N, & Morris, K. (2008). The Complete world of adolescent literacy: myths, motivations, and mysteries. Harvard Educational Review, 78(1).

Hughes-Hassell, S. & Rodge, P. (2007) The leisure habits of urban adolescents. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 51(1), 22-33.

Nippold, M., Duthie, J., & Larsen, J. (2005) Literacy as a leisure activity: free time preferences of older children and young adolescents. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools Vol.36, 93-102.

Selk, J. (2009). Playing the literacy game. Literacy Today, (59), 17-18. Baines, L. (2009). Reading & happiness. Phi Delta Kappan, 90(9), 686-688. Clark, C, & Rumbold, K. (2006). Reading for pleasure: a research overview.

National Literacy Trust. Lenters, K. (2006) Resistance, struggle, and the adolescent reader. Journal of

Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 50(2), 136-146. Hopper, R. (2005). What are teenagers reading? adolescent fiction, reading

habits, and choices. Literacy, 39(3), 113-120.

BookReeves, A. (2004). Adolescents talking about

reading. New York: International Reading Association.

The book that I chose to look at is the one listed above. It is about a teacher who is in pursuit of why adolescents stop reading and the struggle that they have with reading. She does a case study on some high school students and their relationship with reading. In this book, the author looks at the student’s history, performance in the classroom, their family and background, and she also talks to the students.

What I got from the bookThe most important thing that I got from

the book is that there is more than one thing that effects the way students feel towards reading.

What effects reading: Family attitudes Time Past Experience Choice in material Beliefs about reading

I believe that this will make me a better teacher because I want to know about my students, so that I can motivate them.

Websites http://www.education.com/activity/middle-school/reading/ Activities to use with students and parents can use them too. http://www.bookadventure.org/ A free website that allows the students to create their own lists and

earn points and prizes while reading. The students could access this as a reward in the classroom and also access it at home.

http://www.teenreads.com/ This website has book reviews, author interviews, and contests for

teens who read. The students would be able to access this from anywhere and get reviews about books from their peers and also leave their own reviews.

http://www.readingrockets.org/ This website offers strategies to teachers, librarians, and other

educational professionals to help students with reading http://www.rif.org/ This website offers several links and strategies to teachers and

parents to help with students and reading. There are also several literacy programs.

Software Reading for Meaning Helps students to focus on main idea, sequence, plot

and other literacy skills Read XL Motivates and encourages students while giving them

increasingly demanding text. Scholastic & NBA/WNBA Courtside Reading Provides Basketball based nonfiction that will interest

and motivate readers Books by You- Knowledge Adventure Students are given a storyline to finish and they can

make it their own. Reading Blaster Ages 9-12 This one is kind of on the low end but some students

might need to build these skills.

Non-fiction Books These are some books that I have found that can provide strategies to

motivate students. 1. Motivating Readers in the Middle Grades by Joan Collins 2. Just Teach Me, Mrs. K: Talking, Reading, and Writing with Resistant

Adolescent Readers by Mary Mercer Krogness 3. Teaching Literacy in the Middle Grades: Understanding and

Supporting Literacy Development by James A. Rycik and Judith L. Irvin 4. Reading and the Middle School Student by Judith L. Irvin 5. Readers and Writers in the Middle Grades by Martha Combs 6. Motivating the Struggling Adolescent Reader by Martha Stack

Beaudoin; Rosanne Casale Daigneault; Rose Petrucci Zbikowski 7. Naked Reading: Uncovering What Tweens

Need to Become Lifelong Readers by Teri Lesesne 8. Books and Beyond: New Ways to Reach Readers by Michael F. Opitz,

Michael P. Ford, and Matthew D. Zbaracki 9. Catch a Falling Reader by Constance (Connie) R. Hebert 10.

I Won't Read and You Can't Make Me: Reaching Reluctant Teen Readers by Marilyn Reynolds

Trade Books

Girls (Books that would motivate girls more)

Boys (Books that would motivate boys more)

The Illyrian Adventure by Lloyd Alexander

Mysteries for Girls Deep Down and Popular

by Phoebe Stone Deep Down and Popular

by Phoebe Stone Enter Three Witches by

Caroline Cooney The Cry of Icemark by

Stuart Hill

Tales of Suspense for Boys

Safe at Home by Sharon Robinson

Box Out by John CoyHeat by Mike LupicaThe Big Splash by

Jerry Ferraiolo

Picture Books (Books to motivate both genders)Mandy by Barbara D. BoothHoops By Stephen JohnsonFlight by Robert BurleighThe Wall by Eve BuntingA Day’s Work by Eve BuntingWilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became

the World’s Fastest Woman by Kathleen KrullSmoky Mountain Rose: An Appalachian Cinderella

by Charles PerraultGrandfather’s Journey by Allen SayHarlem by Walter Dean MyersPatrol; An American Soldier in Vietnam by Walter

Dean Myers

How this changes me?I believe that this has opened up my

eyes to the fact that there needs to be more focus on getting adolescents to continue to enjoy reading and to see it as a pleasurable activity. I think that when I teach reading or work in a library I will focus on motivating and encouraging the students to read something they enjoy because then they will continue to read.