The Book Whisperer (26 page)

Reading research: attempts to explain reading problems in; on creating motivation ; scholarly opinions on independent reading

Reading workshops: book commercials and reviews; building knowledge of genres; getting student feedback on; identifying books in genres; implementing book groups ; key components of; library time; organizing discussions on genres; quiet time during; topics and structure for; transforming classroom into

Real reading;,
See also
Independent reading

Recommendations: basing on reader's notebooks; book talks vs. personal ; books and websites for reading ; investigating industry; love of reading informing; making for students; reading children's books for; taking from students; using reader surveys to provide

Reis, Sally

Reluctant readers

Renzulli, Joseph S.

Response entries in reader's notebooks

Responsibility: involving students in learning goals; reading as student's

Rewards: for incentive programs; reading providing own

Rights of the Reader, The
(Pennac)

Robinson, Jen

Rosenblatt.

Round-robin reading

Samuels. A.

Schmidt, Gary

Scholarship.
See
Reading research

Scholastic Reading Counts

Scott, J. A.

Self-identity: changing opinions of self; improving readers'; reading identity of teachers; shaping with book choices

Self-reflection activity

Share-reading

Sharing: reading preferences with students ; responses to reading

Shining, The
(King)

Short stories

Six Flags Reading Contest

Sixth Grade Nickname Game, The
(Korman)

Size of books

Skinner, B. F.

Spoilers

Spyri, Johanna

Stand, The
(King)

Standardized testing: independent readers' performance with; preparing students for; testing reading as genre; using traditional comprehension tests

Stanovich, Keith

Stevenson, Robert Louis

Struggling readers

Student-teacher relationships: building ; as one reader to another; sharing honest reading preferences

Students: assessing achievement of; building knowledge of genres; carrying books everywhere; celebrating their milestones; choosing own books; creating book commercials and reviews; discussing how they choose books; effect of independent reading on; encouraging reading of; end-of-year feedback from; engaging in reading; example of notes on genres ; exposing to great literature vs. love of reading; fitting reading into daily life; hearing teacher's responses to reading; immersing in books ; improving achievement of ; incentive programs for; influence of teacher's reading on; initial responses to reading; learning how to teach from; learning how to use texts; leaving book choice to ; making lifelong readers; new reading strategies and; nurturing relationship with ; pairing for oral reading; preparing for standardized testing; raising expectations for reading; reactions to traditional reading practices ; reader's notebooks of ; reading requirements for ; reading workshops for; resistance to reading in; response to reading logs; responsibility to read; self-identity as readers ; taking recommendations from ; teaching book care; “Ultimate Library List” compiled by

Tchudi, S.
teachermagazine.org

Teachers: celebrating student milestones; confronting initial responses to reading ; conversations with students for assessment; creating learning conditions; developing lifelong readers; differing approaches to literacy by; encouraging readers ; expressing excitement about library visits; importance of reading to; inspiring reading in others; making own book choices; modeling reading habits; organizing discussions on genres; personal reading improvement plan ; reader's notebook for; relationships with students ; self-reflection activity for; sharing book responses with students; showing students how to use texts; using end-of-year evaluations; validating student's reading choices .
See also
Modeling

“Teaching Children to Read”

Teaching practices: author's experiments with ; book commercials; book groups; book reports ; book talks; discussing book selection; effectiveness of grammar warm-ups; emphasis on reading as fundamental; end-of-year evaluations; expanding reading in class; framing reading as its own reward; freedom within reading requirements; impact of whole-novel teaching on readers; incentive programs; independent reading within curriculum; limited number of concepts per book; little support for independent reading; personal responses to Miller's; preparing for standardized testing; reading logs; reading workshops; replacing warm-up lessons with reading; responsively encouraging reading; resulting in demotivation; rethinking whole-class novels; round-robin and popcorn reading; student forms; students' reactions to traditional; substitutes for oral reading; testing reading as genre ; traditional comprehension tests ; traditional language skill techniques; unexamined wallpaper; whole-class novels.
See also
Curriculum; Reading requirements; Reading workshops

Testing.
See
Standardized testing

Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS)

Thomas.

Time: expanding classroom reading ; reporting accuracy of reading logs; required for whole-novel teaching practices; setting aside personal reading

To Kill a Mockingbird
(Lee)

Townsend, Atwood H.

Transactional theory of reading

Trinity Meadows Intermediate School

Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
(Mercado)

TumbleTalkingBooks

Twain, Mark

“Ultimate Library List”

Underground readers

University of Colorado at Bolder

Validating reading choices

Vega, Denise

View from Saturday, The
(Konisburg)

Weaver.

Websites for reading recommendations

Wednesday Wars, The
(Schmidt)

Weinbrenner, Susan

Well-Wished
(Billingsley)

What Really Matters for Struggling Readers
(Allington)

Whispers sections

Whole-class novels: alternative teaching methods for; impact on literacy ; rethinking approach to

Wilder, Laura Ingalls

Wilkinson.A.G.

Winter's Tale, A
(Helprin)

Wordsworth, William

Wrinkle in Time, A
(L'Engle)

Writing

Yellow Brick Roads
(Allen)

Zimmerman, Susan

Writing a book is hard work, and not only for the writer. My greatest hope is that this book is worthy of those individuals who provided unflagging support to me during the process. We share one vision—our commitment to children and the goal of inspiring and motivating them to read.

First, I must thank my publisher, Jossey-Bass. I accepted their offer to publish this book because their earnest belief in helping teachers and students shone like a beacon from every person I met. Leslie Iura, Paul Foster, Dimi Berkner, and Christie Hakim championed the book from the beginning and gave me a great deal of leeway while writing it. I appreciate their confidence. Discovering Paul's love for
Where the Red Fern Grows
was an added bonus! Thanks also to Julia Parmer, Pamela Berkman, Carolyn Uno, Carrie Wright, and the rest of the editorial and marketing teams who worked in the trenches to bring this book to publication.

The dedicated team at
teachermagazine.org
gave me my start in 2007 when they hired me to write an “Ask the Mentor” column and later offered me “The Book Whisperer” blog. The seeds for this book were planted at
teachermagazine.org
. I am grateful to Virginia Edwards, Mary-Ellen Phelps Deily, and Anthony Rebora for their support. I also appreciate the many readers of the blog whose comments make me think and who inspire me with their teaching knowledge and consideration for the students in their classrooms. Thanks also to Jen Robinson, who regularly links to my blog on her own outstanding Web site.

To call Elizabeth Rich an editor misrepresents her contribution. Elizabeth brought me to
teachermagazine.org
, advocated for my work, and eased my fears about writing this book when she agreed to edit it. Every line has been filtered through her shrewd judgment and instinct for storytelling, and this book is better for it. Never afraid to push me when she thought I could do more, Elizabeth taught me how to be a writer, to look for the turtles, and to see a bigger vision for this book than I first thought possible. Thank you, E, for being not only interested, but interesting. You are more than my editor; you are family.

This book would not have been possible without my principal, Dr. Ron Myers. Ron is the epitome of an instructional leader—dedicated to his own professional growth and that of his staff. He always says, “It is about the kids, not the adults,” and never allows us to lose sight of the reason we are in education—to improve the lives of children. From reading drafts, to opening his home, to writing the afterword, Ron has been a tireless promoter of this book. Ron, even though you are a University of Oklahoma fan and tell corny jokes, I will work for you as long as you will let me.

When Susie Kelley loaned me her copy of
Mosaic of Thought
all of those years ago, she put my feet on a path to better teaching. Susie is the most generous person I know, giving freely of her books, her ideas, and her friendship. Watching her teach and talking to her about instruction is like taking a master's class every day.

I am grateful to Heather Freeman and Mellie Joiner, who snuck me in to meet Janet Allen, and introduced me as an author. Also thanks to Debbie Brooks, assistant principal extraordinaire, who calls me “friend,” and means it. I appreciate the many administrators and teachers of Keller Independent School District who supported the creation of this book.

I never believed I could write a book until I participated in the National Writing Project. Thanks to the leaders of the North Star of Texas chapter at the University of North Texas: Leslie Patterson, Carol Wickstrom, Janelle Mathis, Joan Curtis, and Terisa Pearce. Special thanks to Carol, who read my book and provided advice. A shout-out to my fellow teacher consultants, who cheerfully asked me how the book was going each time we crossed paths, and especially to Audrey Wilson, Kerri Harris, and Jennifer Roberts, who kept me from getting a big head about it. You ladies are the teachers I want to be when I grow up.

Thanks to Alexandra Leavell, who taught me the difference between
research-based
and
research-proven
, and who convinced me that I could present at the National Council of Teachers of English conference. I am also grateful to Jeff Anderson, who paid it forward by sharing his experiences as a teacher and writer, and never considered me a stalker.

My husband Don knows more about teaching reading than any spouse should. He read every draft numerous times, ironed my work clothes for eight months, brought me dinner at the computer almost every night, and told me that he wished he could have been in my class. The knowledge that we will totter off into old age together, happily reading our beloved books, makes me smile from ear to ear.

I am blessed with two remarkable daughters, Celeste and Sarah, who reminded me that I needed to spend time playing dominoes and watching movies with them in order to stay sane. Thanks, girls, for sacrificing so much Mom time.

A special thanks to my mother, who taught me how to read and, in doing so, gave me everything—my education, my career, and my life's passion.

I am indebted to the marvelous students I have taught over the years. Thanks to all of the parents and students who agreed to be in the book, sent me pictures, and cheered me on. Your words and accomplishments deserve to be heard.

DONALYN MILLER is a sixth-grade language arts and social studies teacher at Trinity Meadows Intermediate School in Keller, Texas. In her quest to spread reading freedom, Donalyn teaches staff development presentations on campuses and in conference rooms across the country. Her articles and essays appear in national publications such as
Library Sparks Magazine
. In “The Book Whisperer,” her blog for
teachermagazine.org
, Donalyn shares her ideas and strategies for teaching reading and inspiring students to read.

Donalyn lives atop a dragon's hoard of unread books she calls “the Miller Mountain” with her husband, two daughters, and granddaughter. In her spare time, Donalyn travels, visits old friends, and daydreams—all inside the pages of her treasured books.

EDUCATION WEEK PRESS is the book publishing division of Editorial Projects in Education (EPE), home of the independent newspaper
Education Week
and other highly regarded print and online products. Among those products is
teachermagazine.org
, a Web site devoted to news and information for K-12 teachers and the home of Donalyn Miller's blog “The Book Whisperer.” In addition to her blog, Miller's popular column “Ask the Mentor” on
teachermagazine.org
inspired this book. EPE is a nonprofit organization based in Bethesda, Maryland; its other entities include the EPE Research Center,
edweek.org
, Digital Directions, the Teacher Professional Development Sourcebook, and
TopSchoolJobs.org
.