The Joy of Reading

One of the dilemmas I have faced as a teacher is the notion of leveling books.  For those of you who don't teacher, or who may not be aware of what leveling exactly entails, I will give you a brief introduction.

On the most basic level, as might be expected, the "level" of a book labels a book's difficulty.  There are different leveling systems but the one that I have used most often is that of Fountas and Pinnell, two reading gurus from Cambridge.  They level books on an alphabetic system from A to Z, A being the easiest level.  A new movement in reading instruction is to make sure that teachers match a book's reading level with a student's ability.  As you can imagine some the whole notion has sparked discussion.

I'll read any of her books, no levels required

I worked in one school where levels were used as a way to help students make significant progress in reading.  In this school, students were encouraged to read books only on their level and the teachers also met in small groups to read with 4-6 students at a time.  (Of course, the whole process is much more complicated than I am describing, as all you teachers know...)  The idea was that this was the best way to close The Achievement Gap. (cue scary music.)  I felt very conflicted about telling my students their reading level.  I felt that there was a certain joy in reading that would be taken away when a child was prescribed books.

I moved on to a new school that was just starting the process of leveled books and no policy had been set.  So my partner teacher and I took the stance that we would not tell kids what their reading level was.  These incredibly brilliant children soon realized that all of our assessments, despite our silence, were our way of finding their reading level.  So my students actually asked if they could know what their level was.  I told them my philosophical dilemma, they took a vote, and all but one decided they wanted to know.  That one student said he wanted to determine this on his own but would appreciate my guidance if he was way off...I told you they were brilliant.

So I told them.  One student was a much lower level than he thought he was.  His eyes filled with tears as I let him know.  It felt terrible. But then he wiped the tears away and said, "Miss Howe, I am going to make it to level ___."  Amazing.  This group of children actually went beyond what I would expect 4th graders to understand about leveled books.  Was this a fluke?

This year I am in a school where we have a pretty strict policy of NOT letting the students know their levels.  As I walk around the room I see kids engrossed in a lot of books, loving reading time.  It is true, however, that many are reading below or above what they should be reading.

So what is the proper balance?  As a teacher, a large part of my job is to create a literate future.  Some students can pick up a book that is too hard, too easy, just right, or somewhere in between and they will be ok.  But some students will not make the progress they need to make.

All of this has been on my mind as I have been teaching and now as I consider how I will organize my bookstore. On Friday, as I was reading The Magician's Elephant to my students, a single line in Kate D's beautifully written book made one student's eyes widen and he gasped with a smile on his face as a secret in the story was revealed.  Love.  For reading.  He had it.  I thought about the eyes of the student from my last school as they filled with tears and then determination.  I believe there is a balance to be had.  We need engaged, passionate readers.  But we also need readers who are determined to be readers, regardless of the challenge.