Feliz

I have numerous opinions about this topic.... where to begin. Well, I am split between some different options because of how I, myself, like to read literature, and knowledge of how other students must learn. I was one of those that always just wanted to read to myself, I hated reading aloud with the class because they moved at a much slower pace than I was used to. I couldn't concentrate with the mess of whose turn will it be to read next, and stopping to discuss every mundane detail drove me crazy. However, there are many students that I have found, simply from tutoring, that can't seem to pick out the main ideas unless it is done in an organized group fashion. Therefore, I think that in my classroom I will try to have an organized class discussion after a few chapters or so in the assigned book. I also think that it is important to give them time in class to read silently. I think that this is especially important at the beginning of a book, where they have not yet gotten into it enough to want to pick it up on their own time. The end of a book always flies by when you just can't wait to see what happens next. Another important concept to me is that the students all read both the assigned text, but also recieve points and perks from reading material that they choose. Some students need the extra push of a grade behind their time spent reading, but do truly enjoy reading material that they pick themselves. Reading has alot to do about one's interpretation of the literature, and I hope that in my class someday that as a class we can have some good debates and questioning about why we interpret parts of the bok the way we do, but that the students will always be respectful of eachothers opinions. I guess I'll have more ideas about this topic when the time comes closer to my teaching career.

I think that adolescents should read a wide variety of literature. Sudents may not willingly read different genras of books, but they should still be exposed and knowledgable about them. In the classroom, most of the time there are certain books that students are assigned to read, but there should also be credit for books that they choose to read. I know that when I was younger I loved reading books that I could relate to. Not all stories have a happy ending, and I agree that this is the way it should be. Many adolescent books have to do with family problems, sexuality, drug/ alcohol use, and friendships. These are all great topics because they, for the most part, include things that all kids go through. The students will benefit most from being exposed to different genras, authors, and topics. Most likely students, by the time they enter junior high, know what kind of literature they enjoy reading. This should be encouraged, but they still need to be pressured to dig into something that they wouldn't have picked out on their own. Because most of adolescent books deal with issues of one of the characters, it is a good learning experience that can help the student say, "well, I'm not going to be like that," or, "this character is exactly like me". It is fun when you can understand the book on a deeper personal level. Overall, it is important that students read anything, and develop the skills for reading and understanding of the literature.

Literary reading should be able to be explained simply... shouldn't it? It is not simply reading literature! There is so much that a person puts into reading that it doesn't seem fair to narrow it down to "reading". Every person brings their own past experiences to a book. I have found that I tend to like books that have at least one character that I can relate to. Many people like to lose themselves in the literature, and make an hour feel like a minute. Do you know that feeling where you just can't bear to put the book down for even a minute because you feel like something might happen without you? It is almost as if you become the character in the book, and when they're feeling down, or excited, you feel almost the same way? I remember I read one of the "Boxcar Children" books when I was younger, and the little brother Benny got lost in the museum.... the characters in the book were soo worked up about it that I felt my whole body getting tense, and tears were streaming down my cheeks. I remember thinking... What if that was my brother? or What if they don't find him? It is just amazing that stories from literature can impact us so much. Some of my more "interesting" porfessors really get excited about a new psychology book, or some new science discovery, where as I frankly sometimes don't really care. I think that you must be passionate about what you are reading, or at the very least interested to actually get anything out of the book. There is usually a connection between the reader and the characters, or some background knowledge or experience that intrigues the reader that makes us as the reader want to press on in our reading.