The Learning Spark

I recently read Tim Shanahan’s blog post about his reading pet peeves and it really got me thinking about my own. So, without further ado, here are my top 5 pet peeves about teaching reading. Pet Peeve #1: Telling a child they can only read books from their “assigned reading level.” Nothing kills the love of reading faster than telling someone that they can’t read a book because it’s either too easy or too hard for them. Just imagine the shame and embarrassment these restrictions might cause a student, especially if noticed by his/her peers. When students read for pleasure, they should be free to select books and topics that interest them and teachers should encourage that. Additionally, reading levels tend to be rather arbitrary and unreliable. A student who knows a lot about a topic will be able to navigate a more complex text on that topic.  As a parent, I have experienced both ends of the spectrum on this issue. When my son (with dyslexia) was in the 3rd grade, I made sure that he