Kids aren't reading ... by Jon Biddle

Food for thought!

I am a little bit over reading articles that tell me the obvious. Kids are not reading - not reading enough, not reading the 'right stuff', not reading for long periods, they have no reading joy, they have no reading stamina or they are not reading at all. 

There are some (here's that word again) obvious things that need to be added into the life of a child to change this. I have talked about this before.

• Give them time - turn off the screens, take away the phones and put your own phone away
• Give them access to books - home, school library, public library, visits to bookshops and give them choices
• Give them models - mum and dad and yes, their teacher needs to be seen reading and enjoying books. 

In addition to the comments by Jon Biddle, which I will share here, I would add, from our Australian curriculum context, that I beg schools and curriculum advisors to please stop insisting teachers read and 'study' books with a class that the teacher themselves does not enjoy or even like!

I could go on and on about this, but you might like to read the article above from UK Magazine Educate pages 38-39 photographed above. Here are a few of the points that resonated with me:

"We are inviting parents and careers in to talk about why reading is important and (we) are providing pupils with exciting books ... but what happens outside of the school day is ultimately beyond our control."

Why has reading declined: 

"The stresses of family life and lack of priority placed on reading in the home."

"The continued rise in the use of mobile phones."

"The pressures of an overloaded school curriculum ... "

Things to think about:

"Does a child having their reading record signed five times actually mean they have read five times?"

"Why do pupils get told to finish books they are clearly not enjoying?"

"What is the purpose behind insisting on a lengthy written review after every book?"

"Why is silence still used as a punishment?"

In addition to this article from the UK I also read these words from an Australian commentator in an article entitled "'I've been a teacher for 20 years. Here's why I'm not returning in 2025.":

"There's less time for fun. Less time for being outside, reading, writing, crafting, drawing or playing games for pleasure. There's less time for developing social skills, friendships and creativity. Less time for going outside just to PLAY in Primary Schools or work on passion projects, in Secondary Schools. We don't just read for reading's sake. We read to fill in our Premier's Reading Challenge recording sheet, so we can get a medal, and the school can report how many students completed the challenge."