Tools for Success-Encouraging Non Readers to Love Books

By Cindy Sargent - Adam Scot C.V.I. secondary English teacher

It was the first day of school and I entered my classroom with high hopes and even higher expectations. I had been assigned a Grade 10 Locally Developed class for the first time and I was excited about the possibilities. Armed with brand new novels and freshly printed assignment sheets, I stood at the front of the room and looked out at a sea of dispassionate and dejected faces. Reading, writing and communicating were not these students’ strong points. For their entire educational career they had been the students with no stars on their papers, no A’s on the report card and no trophies at graduation. Now here I was hoping not only to educate but perhaps to change some attitudes.

I was enthused about my first assignment-an independent novel culminating task. I knew my grade tens would have difficulty with a novel that was at a grade 10 reading level so I had chosen simpler, easier novels hoping to encourage them to start and most importantly finish a novel. I knew that these novels were studied in grade 4 and 5 but I felt that it was more important that my students feel comfortable reading despite the juvenile content.

I enthusiastically introduced myself to the class and asked them to tell me a bit about themselves. I was floored when I heard their honest and straight forward responses.

“I just got out of Brookside-I was there for three months.”
“I once got arrested for stealing cars. I did it to support my cocaine habit.”
“I don’t live at home.”
“I live with my Dad and I never see my Mom because she’s on drugs.”

One by one they showed me a glimpse of their lives and I instantly began to realize that curriculum would have to come second in this classroom and care and compassion would have to come first. However, I was still holding my first assignment and I felt that I should carry on. As the students filed past me, receiving their copies of Tuck Everlasting and Old Yeller I felt a twinge of inadequacy. The conflicts and struggles in these novels were so far removed from what my students were facing on a daily basis.

We carried on with my plan for the following four weeks. Every day each student would dutifully read for 15 minutes and then they would write down five points about what they read. It was uncomfortable for all of us. For fifteen minutes I watched students zone out, drift off and tune out. They fidgeted, squirmed, whispered, stared into space-anything but read. Many of them insisted on being read to by the EA and peer helper. When I encouraged them to try to read on their own, they insisted that they couldn’t read it without help. After four weeks, most students had only finished half of their novel. I had wanted them to write book reports for the culminating task but I had to eliminate that idea because it seemed fruitless to write a book report on half a novel. Instead I asked them to write me a response about how they felt about the novel. Inwardly, I nodded in affirmation when I heard their comments.

“It was too long.”
“It was for little kids.”
“It was boring.”
“I couldn’t relate to it.”

By asking my seventeen year old students to read novels that were more suited for eight year olds, I was once again instilling in them the belief that they were “out of place”.

Rather than try to force students into reading what I deemed to be interesting, I felt it was time to see things from their perspective. My colleague, Curtis Bryan bought a large selection of novels from the Orca series. These novels are written at a grade six level but they deal with controversial issues that are much more suited to the interests of my students. Prostitution, drinking, relationship problems, vandalism, rebellion against parents were all issues that are explored in a mature and interesting way. I handed them out and watched my students’ faces light up. The novels are short, the print is somewhat larger than other novels and the covers are colourful and eye-catching. The titles are short yet compelling: Grind, Kicked Out, No More Pranks, Truth, Overdrive were all titles that instantly intrigued my students. I happily observed my “non-readers” as they quietly read for twenty minutes then wrote down their responses. The whole tone of reading time changed. Students arrived on time with their novels. They began reading without prompting and they read quietly and independently for longer periods of time. They complained when I told them reading time was over. They read novel after novel and they proudly announced to the class when they had finished one. Some of my weakest students took their novels home and read in the evenings and on weekends. They talked about what they were reading with their fellow classmates and they encouraged other students to read certain novels. The enthusiasm was contagious and I found myself taking novels home to read them too. I would come to class and talk to the students about what I had read and which novels were my favourites. The experience bonded the class together because we were actually doing an activity that everyone was interested in and excited about.

This time, the culminating task activity was a success. Students had to choose their favourite ORCA novel and they had to prepare a promotional brochure that used graphics and text to “sell” their novel. When the brochure was complete, students had to present their brochure to the class and promote their novel. The presentations were interesting and enthusiastic. Students that had in the past refused to participate orally in class were willing to present. The brochures had been created with pride and the students put a lot of time and effort into them.

This experience taught me a valuable lesson about reaching slow or non-readers. Trying to encourage them to read by giving them material that they cannot connect or relate to is futile. Students want to read about teenagers that face the same problems and struggles that they do. They want to read a novel that they aren’t embarrassed to carry around because it’s children’s literature. They want to feel successful and in order to do this we have to give them the tools for success. For me, these tools were simple novels that dealt with complex, mature issues that captured my student’s interest and made them want to read on and talk to others about what they are reading.

In this classroom, success in not an “A” on the report card. For me, success can be seen when a student who has never completed a novel before, walks into the classroom, eagerly takes out their novel, reads quietly and independently and then writes or talks about what this novel means to them. That is a good day.

BACK