My favorite part of the article (and most interesting) was, “No one is too cool or too old to be touched by the magic of having someone read aloud to him or her.”

My primary object is to motivate my students to read or to enjoy read alouds. Sometimes they will say, “Oh no, you are not going to read again!” However, when I am reading, even if some have their heads down, most are listening. (Oh, I am not saying 100% of my students are listening, but I have the attention of most). Very seldom when I am finished a reading do they not have a question(s) and/or comment(s) about the content of the reading. A student will always ask when I am going to read again, and even though that question may be stated in a negative way, this tells me they are interested in the next chapter or another story I may have for them.

Interestingly, I did not enjoy read alouds in high school…I wanted to be the reader, the person who read who put feeling and passion into the story!! When my teachers read the pace was too slow for me and I became bored. I could not get “hooked” as compared to when I was reading, aloud or silently. Even before reading this article I thought about being in Mrs. Hartley’s class and she was reading The Bronx Masquerade to her class. I sat there and thought, “Now if only my teacher’s would have read with the enthusiasm and expression as Mrs. Hartley, I would have been sitting on the edge of my seat!!!! She keeps the story going at a good, steady pace, yet stops to ask the most pertinent questions, and then quickly moves on. Thanks, Donielle, because I have tried to pick up the pace when I am reading aloud to my students!!

Another good point in the article was; Students want what they do in school to matter; Isn’t this the bottom line with students? They want to see relevance, importance, and significance to what they are doing in school. Special Education students are infamous for asking, “Why do we have to do this?” “How is this going to help us after school?” I have a little dialogue I go through that explains why reading is important and how it does relate to the world after high school. I always put it in plain words and explain to them that reading is like a friend; someone you can spend time with in your leisure time. I want them to realize that reading can keep them keep up to date with what is going on in our world and from there, they will be able to form opinions, compare and contrast ideas and develop new insights into a range of topics. I always mention that reading, of course, increases your reading level skills and before you know it you have developed a like/love of reading.