Good Readers

Good readers often enjoy reading. There is a common saying, "practice makes perfect". I believe this pertains to reading as well as many other skills. The more someone reads the better they will become at reading. With experience in reading, good readers acquire strategies such as making predictions, connecting reading to background knowledge, making connections with the real world, asking questions, expanding vocabulary, and visualizing. Good readers are also aware when they need to re-read a section or research more about the topic being read. Comprehension is the goal of reading and when this is not met a good reader will make an effort to identify what is needed to understand the text. There are many tools which help readers become good at reading.

I believe that I am a good reader when I want to be reading. If I am interested in the subject matter of what I am reading, I become captured in the text and devote my concentration to just that. I have noticed that when I am reading text of my choice I make connections and predict what will happen among other strategies. On the other hand, when reading something I do not enjoy I find that I make minimal efforts to comprehend all aspects of the text. This is why I want to give my students choice when it comes to reading. When they are able to read about something they enjoy, practicing reading strategies will be more effective. I really like the idea of literature circles because students are allowed to choose books of their interest. The roles that they can assume (such as word finder, connector, character analyzer, etc.) will help build reading strategies while also giving students the chance to listen to other points of view. Teaching students these life-long skills is pertinent because it will help them with an indefinite amount of other tasks. It is something they will need in order to do their best in real life experiences.