What’s wrong here?

Students are being taught that reading isn’t fun or something to do for recreation.

Reading Isn’t Fun for Many “Students who have struggled with reading...often develop such strong resistance to reading that, even under the most favorable conditions, voluntary reading is among the last activities in which they will choose to engage.” Worthy, Patterson, Salas, Prater, & Turner. (2002). “More than just reading.”: The human factor in reading resistant readers. Reading Research and Instruction, 41(2). p. 180.

Recreational Reading 2002 NAEP—75% of high school seniors never or only occasionally read recreationally 2003—Bouchard found only a few h.s. seniors had read a Harry Potter book. Almost all had seen a movie.

1988—Anderson, Wilson and Fielding showed recreational reading has strong correlation to growth in reading skill. Extension of study--Lowest 2% would read only 8,000 words per year—Fifth graders Anderson, Wilson, & Fielding. (1988). Growth in reading and how children spend their time outside of school. Reading Research Quarterly, 23(3)

Landmark study by McKenna, Kear, & Ellsworth—Attitudes start relatively positive and go down. All groups decline to indifference by 6 th grade. Don’t need to throw out the baby with the bath water. Just put in some toys and bubbles.

Sustained Silent Reading

Attitude Change! Studies by Manning and Manning, Pfau, Holt & O- Tuel, Pilgreen, Krashen, and Shin demonstrate change in students’ attitudes from a quality sustained silent reading experience.

Liberty Student Survey 289 free comments--I classified as positive, negative, neutral, change for better, or dependent on interesting reading material. 52 wrote it changed for better. 2/3 showed positive feelings for SSR & reading in general

Student Comments At first I didn’t like SSR, but now I wish we could have more time to read. (Liberty Middle School) This summer school has got me more in to reading than I ever imangin. I start likeing R. 1 Stine, Goosebumps, and bady Sitter’s club. I even start reading the newspaper. I know now how fun reading is.” (Failing 8 th grader) I find books more interesting than before... even better than the movies. (10 th grader)

Sequoyah Scholars Anaheim H.S. Sequoyah Scholars were mostly Latino and half were limited English proficient. Very negative attitudes before program. Almost never read for pleasure.

H.S. Chapter 1 Teachers’ Comments on Arrival of New Books for SSR “I was overrun by a mob of 14- year-olds fighting over books. Books!” Students arrived ½ hour before school started when new books were coming. Many stayed through break to browse through new books. Most new books were checked out by end of 1 st day.

What is SSR? Short time-span... during school when students are allowed to read whatever they like Pilgreen, J. (2000). The SSR handbook: How to organize and manage a sustained silent reading program. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook.

LMS Grade 7 MAP Communication Arts Summary % Bottom 2 levels % Top 2 levels (1 st SSR year)

Liberty Middle School MAP MSIP Reading Scores Seventh Grade Satisfactory and Above 77.10%84.90% Proficient48.80%58.20% Satisfactory28.20%26.70% Unsatisfactory22.90%15.10% MAP Index

Kornelly and Smith Kornelly & Smith: H.S. sophomores and juniors for 18 weeks SSR students gained equivalent of 2 years of reading level 4 times the growth of non-SSR students who advanced the expected one semester of achievement level

Shin 6 th and 7 th graders who failed reading proficiency test 6 weeks SSR students gained equivalent of 5 months of instruction.

Greaney and Clark Study Longitudinal study in Ireland SSR students read more than non-SSR students during year of SSR SSR students were still reading more SIX years later.

Student Quote “I think I learn much n the program. My mom said you read batter then I was reading before. My mom proud of me.” Shin. (2001). Motivating students with Goosebumps and other popular books: A self-selected reading program for middle school students. CSLA Journal, 25(1), p. 18.

Fisher Urban high school 20 minutes for SSR for everyone added to 4 th period Survey showed only 40% were actually reading. Some seniors already left, some doing homework, some just using for social time Just assigning time doesn’t work After revision, 88% were reading. Why the difference?

Pilgreen: Eight Important Elements Access Appeal Conducive Environment Encouragement to Read Staff Training Non-accountability Follow-up Activities Distributed Time to Read

Access

Access: Biggy for librarians! Classroom libraries— rotate materials Book exchanges Freedom of access-- extend open hours Schedule trips to school and public libraries Students not required to bring something with them—Make it easy!

Appeal

GIVE UP CONTROL!! “...students worst experiences reading in school were directly related to assigned reading...a curriculum defined by teacher choices, which would include mainly award-winning fiction, might limit their [students’] reading experiences rather than extend them.” Ivey & Broaddus. (2001). “Just plain reading:” A survey of what makes students want to read in middle school classrooms. Reading Research Quarterly, 3(4), pp. 363 & 368.

Appeal Self-selection!! Basic to concept of SSR from the beginning Increasingly important from middle grades on-- curriculum doesn’t cover divergent interests and format preferences

They’re Okay-- Magazines Comic books Light, serial, or graphic novels Newspapers Read-along books and tapes

Liberty Middle School Student Comments “I am very upset that magazines do not go towards our SSR logs. Magazines best represent my interest and what I enjoy most.” “The best part is when you have a good book, worst part is when you don’t and it feels like SSR has been going on forever.”

Encouragement to Read

Everybody reads!!! Principal visits classes and reads with them Principal from Fisher project required construction workers to quit hammering and read too. Teacher comments on own reading, share own reading experience Book talks Book displays

Modeling Methe & Hintze study 93% reading when teacher was reading 65% reading when teacher doing something else ABAB pattern-perfect correlation

Student Quote from Fisher “Man, it’s [SSR] the best. It’s the quiet time in my life—I can read because the teacher tells me to. Everybody’s reading. I can’t really take a book and read after school ‘cause of my friends, you know. This is it for me. I read Seabiscuit...because [the librarian] told me about it—you all should read that, that book was tight. Fisher. (2004). Setting the “opportunity to read” standard: Resuscitating the SSR program in an urban high school. Journal of Adolexcent & Adult Literacy, 48(2), p. 25.

Conducive Environment

Quiet, uninterrupted environment Hunt: “...no one may act so as to interfere with the productive reading of another.” Comfortable seating Posters Hunt. (1971). Six steps to the individualized reading program (IRP). Elementary English, 48(1), p. 28.

Anderson’s Rules Take care of all health issues before or after SSR. Once SSR has started, you may not go to the restroom, get a drink, or go to the nurse. Delay the onset of any disease or condition until after SSR. Don’t make a sound. You may not make a sound with any part of your body that is capable of making a sound. You may not talk, whisper, yodel, cough, hiss, burp, hiccup, hum, or make any other bodily sound. Don’t move. You may turn the pages of your book or magazine, but carefully. You may not walk, crawl, slither, dance, roll, run, inch, or move your body in any way that you might imagine.

Staff Training

Staff training Important to get everyone on board Develop uniform guidelines Help solve problems that do arise

Non-accountability

No tests, reports, projects, grades!!! Reading is just for fun It’s okay to stop reading something they don’t care for Again, give up control! At most, keep record of books and pages read

Follow-up Activities

Must be VOLUNTARY!!!!! Few minutes to talk to another about reading--Manning & Manning study (1984): Peer interaction group outscored non-SSR and simple SSR groups on attitude and achievement tests Write in journal Draw Response/comments to whole class or read paragraph to class Reader’s theater

Distributed Time to Read

More Bang per Buck in First Minutes of Reading Anderson, R.C., Wilson, P.T., Fielding, L.G. (1988, Spring). Growth in reading and how children spend their time outside of school. Reading Research Quarterly, 23(3), 297.

Distributed Time Start at a few minutes and work up to depending on grade 60-minutes per week— better 12 minutes per day or 15 minutes 4 times per week vs. one 60 minute session Develop reading HABIT

Secondary School Rotate among periods—1 st six weeks in 1 st period, 2 nd six weeks in 2 nd period, etc. One set time for everyone throughout the year—added to one period Develop class libraries of subject-matter-related materials for access

Book Resources The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research (2 nd edition) by Stephen D. Krashen The SSR Handbook: How to Organize and Manage a Sustained Silent Reading Program by Janice L. Pilgreen Are They Really Reading? Expanding SSR in the Middle Grades by Jodi Crum Marshall

Web Resource Liberty Middle School Media Center Web site: /LMC/SSR/index.htm Susan Martin, Library Media Specialist:

SSR: Not perfect, but better