From: Meghan McCarthy <meghanmccarthy007_at_yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, 04 Feb 2011 10:35:59 -0800 (PST)

I'm actually talking about this on my blog right now. I had many attention problems growing up and had a hard time reading. In the 4th grade my t ea cher sent me to a doctor for testing. I did an interview with my mothe r on this very topic and I'm posting it in bits and pieces. You can read i t here:

http://childrensbooks-goodbadugly.blogspot.com/

I think i t is important to realize that people like me can go on to succeed AND =0 Ap ublish! Also, it's about picking the right reading material. The child must find something he or she is interested in! I'd say I was and AM a rel uc tant reader. I will get very into reading something if it's the RIGHT so mething.

Meghan McCarthy



______________________


__________

From: Claudia Pearson

To: "Boagjohns_at_ao l.co m" ; gmkruse@wisc.edu; ccbc-net_at_ccbc.education.wisc .e du Sent: Thu, February 3, 2011 8:44:15 PM Subject: Re:
 T ryin g to define "reluctant readers"


So far as I can tell, there a re bas ically two types of reluctant readers. The first is comprised of those w ho have visual learning issues, dyslexia or decoding deficits or atten ti on disorders which prevent them from actually reading the words and se nt ences.

  The second type of reluctant reader can read the wor ds jus t fine, but has no interest in reading. This may be because the reader p refers other activities, but I suspect that a large number of these po te ntial readers have never made the cognitive leap required to fill in t he details fiction leaves out or only suggests.
  Kari-Lynn Wint ers st udied the ways in which integrating the arts with reading can help stu de nts make the necessary cognitive connections. Her research results and t he classroom activities she used are reported in her book, Beyond Words: Using the Arts to Enhance Early Reading Comprehension.
  Claud ia Pea rson coRA SCBWI SouthernBreeze pearsoncrz_at_earthlink.net
  S ee Award -winning illustrator, EB Lewis, at the Society of Children's Book Writ er s and Illustrators GA, AL, MS Spring Conference '11 in Atlanta - Regis tr ation is now open! www.southern-breeze.org
 
 
 
 

----
- Original 
Message ----- 
 From: 
 To: gmkruse_at_wisc.edu;ccbc-net@ccbc.educati
on.w isc.edu
 Sent: 1/29/2011 7:34:30 AM 
 Subject: Re: 
 Tryin g to define "reluctant readers"
 
 Hi, Ginny
 
 You are so wis e in you r writings. I too find it difficult to "define" a 
 reluctant reader. I think as librarians we need to try to discover the area in 
 which a re lu ctant reader is truly interested and try to find material to fit 
 his/ he r needs in that area AS A STARTING POINT. As a reader over a long life =0 
span - I call myself a very reluctant reader when it comes to fantasy! Whe n I 
 worked as a school librarian, I would put books on a table with n o notes about 
 them and see who took what. It is amazing what "reluctant r eaders" will select 
 if given a chance to make their own choices. 
H.M. Smith 
 
 In a message dated 1/28/2011 5:41:05 P.M. Eas tern S tandard Time, 
 gmkruse_at_wisc.edu writes:
 On 1/27/2011 6:52 PM, She rry Rampey wrote: "...you wanted to know what the 
 commonalities were amon g RR's, truth be told, they vary across the nation. They 
 can range from i nnercity kids, who may like urban fiction; or suburban kids who 
 like th e manga; or it could be the rural kids who like to keep things 
 realis ti c..." 
 
 
 Between grades one and twelve, my daughter Ann w as a " special education" 
 student. (That was the language used when Ann was y oung.) Ann learned to read 
 in first grade. She became not only an " av id reader," but a "life-long reader," 
 as well. Most recently Ann rea d Ted Kennedy's autobiography, and currently she's 
 reading the new bio gr aphy about Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. While Ann was a 
 girl, I n ot iced that the books suggested by teachers and other librarians to 
 sp ec ial ed students were definitely "reluctant reader" books, even series. Thes e 
 novels were, and they were action packed, featuring - for example - young teens 
 wh o were juvenile delinquents or drug users. There was a n assumption that some 
 or all of the kids - understood to be "challe ng ed readers" or otherwise 
 "reluctant" to read for pleasure - will wan t to read about kids in trouble or 
 troubled kids.
 
 One of my for mer school library positions was in Newton, Massachusetts. It was a fa bulous job with a bevy of high-powered volunteers in an absolutely terrific public school with a student population including black students bu ss ed there 
 daily from Boston. There was abundant funding for me to dev el op specialized book 
 and media collections, one of which was a "Black S tudies Collection." A certain 
 day in that wonderful school library is etched in my memory. That afternoon one 
 of the Black students from Bo ston asked me to recommend a book she could check 
 out to read over t he weekend. I eagerly showed her two or three of the newest 
 books in t he Black Studies shelves. She looked me in the eye and quietly said, 
 " Mr s. Kruse, I reall y prefer to read fantasies. Don't you have any fantasies to recommend to me?" 
 
 
 Sherry, I can't be certai n that r ural kids "like to keep things realistic," or 
 that only suburban kid s take to the manga, or or that urban students prefer 
 urban fiction. Be cause of my two experiences (above), because I once went to a 
 one-ro om rural school, and because as an adult I've lived in small towns, urban 0A & suburban neighborhoods and the city of Madison, I'm a "reluctant librar ian" 
 when it comes to trying to define, nail down or even label who an y of our young 
 readers actually are. 
 
 
 Cordially, Gin ny
 
 Ginny Moore Kruse
 gmkruse_at_wisc.edu
 Emeritus Dir ector, C ooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC), School of 
 Education, Unive rs ity of Wisconsin - Madison On 1/27/2011 6:52 PM, Sherry Rampey 
 wrote : "...you wanted to know what the commonalities were among RR 's, truth be told, they vary across the nation. They can range from innercity kid s, who may 
 like urban fiction; or suburban kids who like the manga; or i t could be the 
 rural kids who like to keep things realistic..." 
Between grades one and twelve, my daughter Ann was a "special edu cation" 
 student. (That was the language used when Ann was young.) A nn learned to read 
 in first grade. She became not only an "avid reader ," but a "life-long reader," 
 as well. Most recently Ann read Ted Kenne dy 's autobiography, and currently she's 
 reading the new biography abou t Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. While Ann was a 
 girl, I noticed that t he books suggested by teachers and other librarians to 
 special ed st ud ents were definitely "reluctant reader" books, even series. These 
 no ve ls were, and they were action packed, featuring - for example - young teens who were juvenile delinquents or drug users. There was an assumptio n that kids 
 who were "challenged readers" or otherwise "reluctant" t o read for pleasure 
 will want to read about kids in trouble or trouble d kids.
 
 One of my former school library positions was in Newton, Mas sachusetts. It was a 
 dream job with a bevy of high-powered volunteer s in an absolutely terrific 
 public school and a student population inc lu ding black students bussed to school 
 daily from Boston. There was ab un dant funding for me to develop specialized book 
 and media collection s, one of which was a "Black Studies Collection." I 
 remember a day wh en one of the students from Boston asked me to recommend a book 
 she co ul d check out to read over the weekend. I eagerly showed her two or three 0A of the newest books in the Black Studies shelves. She looked me in the ey e and 
 quietly said, "Mrs. Kruse, I really prefer to read fantasies. Do you have any 
 fantasies to recommend to me?" 
 
 
 Sh erry, I can't be certain that rural kids "like to keep things realistic," that =0 
only suburban kids take to the manga, or that urban stude nts prefer urba n 
 fiction. Because of the experiences I’ve described, because I once went to a 
 one-room school myself, and because as an adult I' ve lived in small towns, urban 
 & suburban neighborhoods and the city o f Madison, I'm a reluctant librarian when 
 it comes to trying to define , nail down or even label who any of our young 
 readers actually are. 
Cordially,
 Ginny
 
 Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse_at_wis c.edu
 Emeritus Director, Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC), S ch ool of 
 Education, University of Wisconsin - Madison 
 
 - 

Received on Fri 04 Feb 2011 10:35:59 AM CST