Last week, Kim Yaris and Jan Burkins invited me to begin this conversation about text complexity and cognitive dissonance on their blog. Over the next few weeks, I’ll share more about this here and return to this space to link up the posts below as I go. Much of what I’ve been learning has emerged from my work with reluctant and struggling readers in classrooms. Curious to know what others are discovering as well.
- What distinguishes a reluctant reader from a struggling reader?
- From “they can’t” to “here’s why” to “let’s try”: formative assessment that serves readers well
- Scaffolding texts and reading experiences
- Could balance empower struggling readers and writers?
- Guiding reluctant and struggling readers with quality assessment and just right interventions
- It’s not about us: intervention is about working in service to readers, not pedagogy
- Reader’s workshop, choice, and the Common Core LEARNING Standards
- Building vs. activating background knowledge
- Five ways to help readers manage frustration
- Pose, pause, pair, pounce bounce: facilitating rich conversations about text
- Using grammar to get the gist: a guest post from literacy coach Catherine Leach
2 Comments
I think these are important questions and directives for fixing them. Reluctant readers can be struggling readers and struggling readers reluctant. They aren’t mutually exclusive. I think anyone who believes they aren’t good at something or they can’t do it, there is an outgrowth of reluctance and an adamant refusal to try because of attached fears. I’m eager to see what your conversation develops into.
I agree Starr–they aren’t mutually exclusive. The fear you speak to is an important consideration, and I’m finding that managing frustration has much to do with helping readers recognize, tolerate, and manage it. It’s not always a bad thing, necessarily. Inasmuch as we needed to shift instructional approaches in order to help readers grow, we needed to begin shifting mindset too.