compiled by Sheldon Miner BA3
sheldonminer@hotmail.com

Allington, R., (2002). What I’ve Learned About Effective Reading Instruction. PHI DELTA KAPPAN.  740-7

Allington feels that the way teachers instruct the classroom will increase a child’s understanding of the material. The book states that when a school has good teachers, they are better and more effective than “proven programs.” There were various teachers selected from across the United States, who teach in low income and racially diverse areas. Allington says that by following the six Ts: Time, Texts, Teaching, Talk, Tasks and Testing, children will have a better understanding of the material used and taught in a classroom.

Anderson, L. (1991). Using Reader-Response Theory In The Introductory Literature Classroom.      College Literature, 18, 141-5.

Anderson looks at what she calls the “rhetorical approach to literature.” According to this, when most people read, child or adult, they bring with them expectations, biases and assumptions. She notes that this has been a concern of Marxist critics for years. Many children come from different backgrounds, therefore, there would be a vast difference in the response. It is recommended that readers should “recognize the assumptions they bring and confront their biases and expectations.” Although this article was written about college level students, the same basic principles can be applied to elementary reading. The students felt that because a teacher gave them the story, they should be looking for something important. Also, they felt that because the story was fiction it should be entertaining, and should have heroes and great battles.  An example given was “The Stout Gentleman” by Washington Irving. The typical response was that they did not understand what Irving was trying to say. This may be the case, but what Anderson would like to do is “get the students to articulate such responses and then move them to another level of analysis.”

Atlantic Canada English Language Arts Curriculum: Primary-3. 181-5

The Nova Scotia curriculum for the K-3 level notes that children should do typical response activities (personal and critical).  At the same time, it demands that they also respond in other ways, such as, puppet-shows, writing a poem, or a play, for example. However, when responding in journals or logs, the teacher should use effective questioning techniques. They note that the questions should not just have the child re-tell the story, but should “promote both critical and creative thinking, as well as open-ended questions that have more than one right answer.” Questions like this will promote thinking before, during, and after reading.

Atlantic Canada English Language Arts Curriculum: Grades 4-6. 115-6

This section looks at Reading and viewing, which creates a meaning-making, problem-solving process. To create this, the Nova Scotia Department of Education feels that reading must be purposeful, meaning centered, interactive, as well as modeled, practiced and supported. This process is intended to help the children to enjoy reading, and help them get more meaning out of a book.

Bauer, G., (2002). Why Boys Must be Boys, in Readers Digest. Pp 125-34

Although this case study was conducted on a grade eight boy.  What was said in this article can also be applied at the secondary level. Liam, the child, did not like doing book reports on books he did not like reading. Liam said, “I get frustrated when I have to write my opinion. I don’t know what the right answers are.” Bauer feels that boys learn differently than girls. Boys such as Liam are interested in fantasy and comics, and so he suggests that these genres be used as stepping stones to fiction, or other genres. To close the gap, a school district in Ontario has made many schools create “male centered” activities for boys. Citing Montgomery, he notes that boys are kinesthetic learners (“...they learn best by moving their bodies, rather than sitting and listening”). This is where a need for more ways of responding are needed, such as plays and sketching and so on. Bauer also believes that fathers should be heavily involved with their children in the home. Along with this home emphasis, Bauer says that schools should invite males to come to the school, and speak of “career choices and life experiences.”

Beers, K. (1996). No Time, No Interest, No Way! The Three Voices of Aliteracy. School Library Journal, 42. pp110-114.

This very informative article looks at possible reasons as to why both girls and boys like or dislike reading. During a study at a school in Texas, Beers recognized three different subcategories of aliterates, which she has labeled Dormant, Uncommitted, and Unmotivated. The Dormant readers were fortunate enough to have their parents read to them at a young age as a source of entertainment. Uncommitted and unmotivated readers however, did have their parents read to them, but it was before bed, and it was not seen as a source of entertainment. The problem here is that reading was not frequent, which meant some of the children began their school year with “little aesthetic experiences with books.” The Dormant and avid readers joined book clubs, which increased their love of reading. Beers goes into detail on what each reading group likes to read. For example, unmotivated readers like the read aloud sessions. She believes that parents can change this by taking them to the library or enrolling them in book clubs. Teachers and librarians are recommended to have more non-fiction books, and perhaps to read shorter non-fiction books in the classroom instead of a novel. Reading to children at a young age often will help them read more books and enjoy reading.

Blake, B. (1998). “Critical” Reader Response in an Urban Classroom: Creating Cultural Texts to Engage Diverse Readers. Theory into Practice, 37, 238-43.

In Blake’s article she raises some interesting points about engaging children, and gaining critical responses from them. She notes the problem of multi-ethnic intercity children, who cannot relate to the majority of the books read in a classroom. Blake studied a class in Chicago, interviewed some children, and discovered that they found the books boring, although challenging. The problem here is that they cannot relate their own life experiences to these types of books. The teacher allowed children to write their own stories, plays and so on, and share them with the class. It was discovered that this created something that all children could relate to, and it allowed for much more in-depth responses. Not all children can relate to White Anglo-Saxon middle class society, therefore the interest is lost.

Bond, T. F. (2001). Giving the free rein: connections in student-led book groups.  Reading Teacher, 54, 6. 574.

    Bond, a teacher, found that her students were not excited, motivated, or engaged in in-depth conversations about what they had read when the discussion group was led by the teacher. She found that her students would only read what they had written, and move on to the next person. They were not talking. After doing some research, Bond stated that the student led groups in her class. Her discussion groups consisted of five roles, each completing a different task. She did not set many rules, and the children had to choose what role they wanted. One guideline was for the students to write down something every day or every other day. She found that discussions about authors, characters and plots were highly discussed and children even connecting their past experiences to the book, which was previously not happening.

Bowen, D. N. (2002). Using Biography in the Elementary Classroom. School Library Media  Activities Monthly 18, 10. 23-4

Through talking with teachers and library media specialists, Bowen has come up with some interesting ways to engage and encourage children to read biographies. Rather than simply sitting and writing about what they have read, instructors have made responding much more fun and interactive. These activities included biography party and a getting to know you poem, among others. They feel that these activities were a success. One teacher, however, had a problem of switching the children to a different genre.

Campbell, K. (1998). Face to Face: Kids warm up to biographies. Christian Science Monitor, 90, 140. pB8

Campbell writes that biographies are becoming more popular at the secondary level then they had previously been. Barbara O’Connor, an author, believes that students should start reading biographies at the grade four level. She says that this is not only because they show children that they have normal lives, and sometimes can overcome obstacles along the way, but they also show the students that they can look at the world and perhaps see a difference in it as a result of one person that they may have read about. Most importantly, it was noted that many the fourth grade students are looking for role models other than parents, and people in their communities. Campbell believes that biographies can give this to them. Campbell discovered that during this biography boom, many of the new ones are focusing on women and minorities, which were not previously popular.

Cline, Z., Reichelderfer, M. A. (2001).  Teaching Ideas: Reading Parties: Helping Families Share the Joy of Reading. Reading Teacher, 55, 3. 236-40

This program was created by the Even Start Program, who recognize that parents play an important role in their children’s success in school. She notes that many parents cannot help their children because they themselves do not have the skills needed to help the children. The Reading Party consists of four parts: an icebreaker, a choral reading, a parenting session and a closing activity. Parents, even if they do not speak English well, are encouraged to read aloud to the group. Also, when they answer questions or share concerns,  the parent receives educational supplies for their children, because some of the attendees are from low income families. Cline and Reichelderfer see these parties as a success, because they are helping both the parents and the children at the same time. The main point is that the parties conform to the needs of the community. One reason for the success of the program is that the parents do not see receiving educational supplies as a handout, but it is reenforced that they have earned it through the various activities.

Davies, K., (2000). Kirkryods Infant School, Kirklees: Young boys’ underachievement in literacy. www.standards.dfee.gov.uk

Davies, head of the Kirkryods infant school in Yorkshire England, along with the teachers discovered that a vast amount of Year 1 boys were underachieving in literacy. She states that one possible reason is a lack of teacher time. It seems that much of the teachers’ time was devoted to a few students who were having difficulty with reading and writing. She feels that the “literacy hour” should fit the students, rather than having the students fit into it. The school followed a three step program which they called (1.) Reception Year, (2.) Year One, and (3.) Year Two. Obviously, this is to help children comprehend the stories they read, but it will also keep the teacher from becoming tired and frustrated. At the end of this project, Davies discovered that “boys outperformed girls in the Level 2 and were above score for writing in the last two years.”

Dybdahl, C., (2001). Teaching Reading Through Poetry.  LitSite Alaska;                           http://litsite.alaska.edu/uaa/workbooks/readingpoetry.html

This concise article provides teachers with some alternate ways to respond to poetry. Dybdahl’s main point is that not many students have an urge to read poetry, and a love of poetry is something that must be developed. She believes that the main thing that will aid this process is reading the poetry aloud, and it should simply be enjoyed. Many students feel they do not get the “right” meaning, and she does not want students to worry about this. Rather, she tells children to  think “about YOUR response,” meaning there is no right answer, for children have diverse backgrounds.
 

Enciso, P., (1994). Cultural Identity and Response to Literature: Running Lessons From  Maniac Magee. Language Arts, 71, 524-33.

This analysis of Maniac Magee by Enciso and a split four/five class has turned out some very intriguing information. Enciso wanted to use previous knowledge of what students already know, in regards to culture, to use the text to “call attention to our cultural identities.” Personal experience, prior knowledge, and mass media have shaped the views of this class which is predominantly white. Enciso also notes that student responses to multi cultural texts can also be influenced by the “teacher’s cultural biases.” It is therefore important for the instructor to remain neutral and analyze only what is in the book. One child assumed that the African American boy only had a chocolate bar because he stole it. Enciso tries to extract as much information from the children as possible. I believe that she has accomplished her goal of making the children aware that it is only skin color that makes everyone different, and trying to break down the barrier of cultural differences.

Fisher, H., (2001). Achieving the Best: Gender and the Literacy Hour. British Journal of Special Education 28, 1. 30-34

Fisher looks at a different aspect of the literacy gap in this article. Using the students in her classroom for the study, Fisher looked at what boys and girls have in common in regards to reading preferences. It has been reported that most boys do not read non-fiction, however this was not the case for Fisher’s boys. Her survey asked them if the literacy hour had directed their reading into fiction or non-fiction, and their response was fiction. She also found out that the boys did not really stick to one particular genre, rather they enjoyed poetry and various others. Poetry, of which has been believed that boys do not approach, was enjoyed by both boys and girls in her class, although they did have different reasons for liking it.

Gender and Achievement. The Standards Site:        http://www.standards.dfee.gov.uk/genderandachievement/more_index.html

This site is also concerned with the literacy problem of the youth. The issue of boys and reading is ubiquitous throughout almost all schools, and as this problem persists, the gap between boys and girls becomes larger as they continue their school career. However, they discovered that while some boys are doing quite well in school, many girls are now in the same boat as many of the young boys: underachievement. Both boys and girls are not giving as much as they can to literature and the activities which follow. The Standards Site believes that underachievement may be linked to local context, social class or ethnicity. This is why they feel that each school should be encouraged to create their own programs and ways of tackling the literacy problem. No two schools can use the same program, because the children are not clones of each other. This is why schools should create their own techniques, because they know the children and what they might need to change.

Getting Guys to Read (2002). NEA Today 20,6. 23.

This article was focused on John Scieszka, creator of guysread.com. He created this site because he feels that not enough attention is given to the boys. He claims that when it comes to reading, boys need special attention. Scieszka also noted that boys read much different stories than girls do. Boys like short chapters, humor and sometimes gross stuff. He therefore believes that children should be encouraged to read what they want, and not what others would like them to read. Some sort of reading is better than no reading. He has also created that site to get more males involved with reading. He feels that some boys may regard reading as feminine because most teachers, and librarians are female.

Glazer, S., (2002). Seeing Red: Are Teachers Hurting Instead of Helping When Using the “Red Pen?” Teaching Pre K-8, 32:7, 88-9.

This shocking, but informative article dealt with an important aspect of teaching and mentoring. This article was in regard to a summer “dialogue journal” which the children were expected to read several books and make journal entries on what they felt and what they thought of the book. Glazer noted that “a written response was needed to guide a child to make connections to her experiences, and that an exchange of ideas with the teacher would direct the child to make connections to her relationships and justify her advice.” However, the teacher was not content with what Elizabeth had written. The teacher was more concerned with testing how she and her classmates abided to the directions than she was with teaching. Testing the ability to follow directions was her main focus, rather than determining if the child understood the story and how well he or she critiqued it. The teacher and mentor, when responding, should be looking at how the child felt about the story and create a positive conversation with the student, rather than putting them down by saying they should not have used pencil. The student’s accomplishments should be praised.

Guthrie, J., & Alvermann, D. (Eds.). (1999). Engaged Reading; Processes, Practices and  Policy Implications. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Aided by the National Reading Research Center, Guthrie and Alvermann have compiled several articles discussing reader development and how to motivate young readers. Encouraging reading, motivating, and challenging the students is what this book is based around. The main problem is how to entice children to read. One contributor (Kathryn H. Au) felt that we always read with some purpose in mind, and so reading is motivated by these purposes. Basically, to motivate children to read, they should first read what they are interested in. Give them choice.

Gunning, T., (2000). Nonfiction Biographies. Creating Literacy Instruction for all Children.  Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon. 374-5

This selection out of a chapter discusses the importance of reading and responding to biographies. Not many children run to gather the biographies which discuss important events, they would prefer to read the biographies on sports heroes, and singers. Gunning feels that the children must be motivated to read the non-popular biographies. He tells teachers to choose the right subject, saying that the selection should “ have led an interesting life and should be someone that the students can relate to.” In the Zarnowski study, it was discovered that when the children responded in journals the subject came alive, and they understood that their historical figures “were real people with real problems that had to be overcome.” Through this it was intended that students sometimes felt feelings towards their subject, depending on what they had gone through, and connected with people who have helped to shape the history of the world.

Humphrey, J., (2002). There is no simple way to build a Middle School Reading Program. PHI DELTA KAPPAN. 754-7

Humphrey draws attention to the fact that many middle school children are having troubles reading. This is because many of the reading problems went unaddressed when in a secondary school setting. Unfortunately, in some middle schools, children do not have access to trained reading teachers, therefore their reading and comprehension skills go unaided. To combat this increasing problem, Humphrey points out that the government has created standards for each grade level. He also feels that 7the state should “provide schools and teachers with very specific information” in areas such as comprehension, vocabulary building and understanding various genres. To get the reading levels up, new materials and equipment (textbooks, computers and a wide variety of reading materials) are needed, for he strongly regards “reading as a vital and productive part of middle school instruction.”

Hyatt, K. Reading Boys. [Online]. Accessed 06/25/02:
 http://www.umaine.edu/research/UMTReading.htm

A research of boys literacy, composed by Wilhelm and Smith, has found some information, which does not fit with the generalization of boys not reading. They have discovered that there is a large difference between literacy in the school system, and out of the school system. Their concern is that “assessment of boys’ literacy achievement is weighed entirely by their success in school.” It was found with the boys in the study that they read many different genres outside of school, and thought that it was important to read.  The boys read materials which were not offered in schools, such as comics and speciality magazines, to name a few. Wilhelm and Smith discovered that none of the boys had a dislike for literacy, they only rejected school literacy. They recommend that teachers should broaden their vision on what they think constructive reading is. Give the students a choice of what to read and get to know the students, to see what interests them.

Ingham, C. (2000). Responding to Poetry.
http://www.lessontuttor.com/ci.html

Although this helpful guide is intended for helping grade eleven students get a grasp on poetry, the basic underlying principles on comprehending poems can also be used for young adolescents in elementary. One main problem with children is that they are intimidated by the complexity of poetry, and many children are unfamiliar with it. Ingham believes that when these two handicaps are looked at, there is the concern of comprehension. “They [children] must fully understand a poem before they can speak or write about it.” When children are exposed to more poetry, they will become more comfortable with it. To create a comfortable feeling with poetry, Ingham provides a step-by-step guide on analysis, including sample poems and questions.

 Koskinen, P. S. (Ed.), Grant, R., Guthrie, J., Bennett, L., Rice, M.E., McGough, K. (1994). Developing engaged readers through concept-oriented instruction. The Reading Teacher 47, 4. 338-40

The concept orientated reading instruction project was created for the children to motivate them to read and give them a means to explore the world around them. Used in a grade five American classroom with a mixture of diverse backgrounds, using what the researchers call observe and personalize, search and retrieve, comprehend and integrate and communicate to others researchers found this program to be a success. They concluded that the students were beginning to read more, not only in quantity, but also more frequently. Students were also found to be discussing books more with family and friends. In fact, when it came time to move on to a different activity, the students protested against leaving what they were reading and the activity that they were working on.

Leggo, C. (1998). Open(ing) Texts: Deconstruction and Responding to Poetry. Theory Into Practice, 37, 186-192.

Leggo looks at deconstruction in a simplistic form. He feels there are three main areas in the deconstruction process: critical, literate and creative. Using deconstruction for responding to poetry is helpful to children, for it is such a different genre than what they are used to. Leggo notes that “instead of a hidden meaning that must be revealed, the poetic text is a site where the reader’s imagination, experience, understanding and emotions come into play.”  Therefore, there are not any incorrect responses. This will in turn build a child’s confidence in their analysis of poetry. Leggo believes there should be plural responses, and expresses this by quoting Marshall(1992). Marshall stated that “we need to hold in our minds a place for interpretations that are other than ours.”

Love, R. (1993). Gender Bias: Inequities in the Classroom. IDRA Newsletter, 20, 2.11-12

This article addresses the problem of biases, not only in literature, but also in math and science texts. Love feels that when this occurs it has damaging side affects for both boys and girls. The boys and girls see themselves portrayed in particular roles which will reinforce the stereotypes. In a study of various books, it was found that boys are portrayed in energetic roles, completing various roles, while the girls were more passive, having jobs like nursing, and home makers. The children see a narrow field of what jobs a boy and a girl should do later in life.
 

Millard, E. (2001). Boys girls and writing. [Online]. Accessed 06/25/02:
 http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/Pubs/millard.html

Millard looks at the Kirklees Gender and Writing Project, which took an in-depth look at how the writing of boys and girls differ. The children reviewed what they thought was their best writing, and what needed improvement. Girls and boys do not like to write about the same genres or events which occur in a book. At home, it was noted that many girls will write for fun, whereas the boys mentioned they liked drawing and working on computers rather than writing. It is thought that boys get their ideas from drawing. They can use it to get their thoughts together before they write. However, Millard notes that many teachers will not allow the boys to draw until they have written a story. As a result, when asked to analyze their writing, they chose small pieces and were only concerned with correcting their grammar, and not developing their thoughts. Millard notes several ways which teachers can get boys more interested in writing, one of which being that to gain good composition, there should first be visual stimulation, where the students have a chance to draw and use story frames to develop thought.

Murphy, J. (2001). Boys will be boys: A public Librarian leads her first book group for the opposite sex. School Library Journal. p31

There were many reading programs for mothers and daughters, but there were not many which focused on the son. Murphy created parent-son book group, which meets once a month, not after school for the children are too tired, but on Saturday afternoons. To engage the boys, Murphy created little activities that went with the reading selection, which she felt kept them focused. Murphy feels that girls respond differently than boys do to a selection. The instructor can ask girls up-front what they felt about the book, whereas the boys will respond better when they are doing an activity while talking to them at the same time. She referred this to action talk as William Pollack had noted in his work. She also kept them engaged by allowing them on occasion to bring in their favorite non-fiction books, giving them a choice of what to read.

Norman, J., (2002). Reading Between The Lines: Boys’ Literacy.                                      www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/8305/boys_lit.html

This article on literacy looks at possible reasons why boys are behind girls in terms of reading and writing. He feels that being able to read and write will make people feel part of society, and that literacy is a “springboard for learning.”  He feels the possible reasons why boys are behind is because there are no real male role models. He feels that fathers are not seen writing and reading enough. For example, one child said that his father “writes cheques.”  Also, Norman claims that boys are slower to develop, and that they prefer to be outside. They are better at physical activities, and they “prefer short tem activities.” His last view is very interesting, and is something I have not come across yet. Norman mentions that boys are generally told not to show any feelings, or emotions. Therefore, Norman raises the question, why would boys want to read about other people’s emotion and then write about it, expressing their feelings, since the majority of texts, poems and poetry are emotion? This, Norman feels, “clashes with their attempts to suppress emotions.”

OECD PISA Study. pp13-26 [Online]. Accessed 06/27/02:\
 www.pisa.gc.ca/pisa/81-590-xpe.pdf

Chapter one of the PISA report discovered that Canada is doing relatively well in literacy when compared to the rest of the world. Canada was ranked second in reading overall. This they note is a huge improvement, for Canada was once a “mid-ranked country.” However they also noted that as the students get older, both boys and girls, the gap between them increases. Girls lead the way in literature and boys lead in math and science. The literacy issue is not just something Canada has to worry about, PISA also found that girls are doing better in literacy than the boys are in many countries. They feel this has to be rectified at a young age, because they will go on without a high level of reading ability, and when this happens adults are at a “significant disadvantage in Canada’s labour market.”

Poetry Teachers [Online]. Accessed 06/24/02:
http://www.poetryteachers.com/poetclass/excitedpoetry.htm

This website is an excellent source for helping teachers get their students to have a greater appreciation for poetry, which can be difficult otherwise. Bruce Laskey, a popular children’s poet, notes ten possible ways in which this goal can be attained. He feels that by following these, children will come to love poetry. Some possible ideas are: (1) read poetry kids will enjoy (ie: Shel Silverstein), (2) Find poetry the children will relate to (kids with a dog will enjoy poetry about dogs), (3) gigglefritzes (give a giggley student a funny poem to read), (4) Celebrate special occasions with poetry, among many others.

Reading Facts. [Online]. Accessed 07/15/02:
http://www.headsprout.com/readingfacts/

This website has a reading program for parents or even schools to buy for their children to increase reading skills and fluency. They feel that students have to be taught to read, which differs from what some people believe-that they will read when they want or when they are mature enough. Also, children need to be taught even if the parents are reading to them on a regular basis. They feel that a reading program should include phonemic awareness, phonics, sounding out, and blending, among others. The key time to start teaching is during the age range of four to six. They feel that teaching after the age of six is a game of catch up.

Richards, J.C., Gipe, J.P. (1993). Getting to know story characters: a strategy for young and at-risk readers. The Reading Teacher 47, 1. 78-9

Richards and Gipe have developed a program to help at-risk students get more out of a book by analyzing a character through the project Getting to Know my Character. It is felt that this is a good follow up activity because much about the story can be learned from the character such as mannerisms, characteristics, actions and conversations which will help to increase their reading comprehension.

Sabesta, S. Scott Foresman. [Online]. Accessed 06/27/02:
 http://www.scottforesman.com

Sabesta looks at the problem of literacy and trying to motivate all children to read. It is not just motivating them, but also keeping them motivated that is important. It was noted that interest in reading declines from grade one to six (McKenna, Kear, and Ellsworth, 1995). It was felt that to get the children motivated, the teacher and school has to give them choice of what to read (Reutzel and Gail, 1997) and get the students familiar with various genres of books. Sabesta also feels that reader response can help motivate the students. Rather than writing and talking all the time, Sabesta believes other activites should be used. Morado and her associates (1999) discovered that “increased enthusiasm for reading and better understanding of setting, plot and character” was formed when the response activity was a play. Also, when reader awareness is expressed and the children understand it, it will also increase motivation. It should be expressed how reading is important in the work force. This is one way Sabesta felt awareness could be expressed. He felt it was a “sure essential in motivation.”

Schwartz, W. (2001). Closing the Achievement Gap; Principles for Improving the Educational Success of All Students. New York: ERIC Clearinghouse. (ED460191)

This article looks not at the gap between boys and girls, but at the gap between minorities and white and Asian students. Thus far, Schwartz believes that closing the gap has been relatively unsuccessful. She feels that the key to closing the gap is having parents and guardians read to their children at a very young age, and as she notes, they must “make a long-term commitment to educational improvement.” Getting all races to an even level, has some power and support behind it, creating an “upsurge.” There are also several things which teachers, parents, the community, the school and the state can contribute to closing the gap. One point she noted was to place students of color “in high ability classes in the early grades.”

Scieszka, J., (2002). Guys Read.
http://www.guysread.com

Scieszka is heavily involved with children’s literature, including teaching and writing numerous books. He has also created this informative website to create awareness of boys literacy. Through this technology, Scieszka wants to motivate the adults, from teachers and parents to the publishers. Like other people, he too is concerned that boys score lower on standardized literacy tests than the girls do. He also noted that boys are more often placed in remedial classes or even held back. Scieszka feels there are not enough male role models, boys are slower at developing reading skills, and that many books are not appealing to them. He does offer some possible solutions, such as getting more men as role models reading, form a Father-son book club. For instance, they could “meet at a gym to talk about books, and then run around too.” Also, let the boys know that non-fiction is reading too. His goal is to make noise and draw vast amounts of attention to boys literacy.

Short, K., Kauffman, G., Kahn, L., (2000). I Just Need to Draw: Responding to literature across multiple sign systems. The Reading Teacher, 54. 160-171

This was a great article which addressed the issues of making and responding to meaning when children have completed reading literature. During a study of two classrooms, they feel that children should be encouraged to use many different responses, or “sign systems,” as they call it. The authors feel this way because, in their regular lives, children “move between art, music, math, drama” and various others. They came to this because they feel that when many children were responding in journals, some felt it necessary to incorporate drawing. The students should be given the choice of what activity they feel will best describe what they thought the story, or poem meant. Meaning that not every child will do the same activity, which in turn, will create more diverse thoughtful responses. Through the study of the children, and the use of several sign systems, the children felt that the “availability of a range of systems gave them the opportunity to think more broadly.”

Simmons, J.  Spotlights [Online]. Accessed 07/02/02:
www.scre.ac.uk/pdf/spotlight81.pdf

Simmons believes that as soon as a student enters the secondary level, regular reading should be taken place, to encourage reading in a positive light. To lessen the gap between boys and girls, she speaks of a Reading incentive Programme. It is a voluntary program for both boys and girls, where they read a wide variety of genres. The program has three levels-gold, silver, and bronze. She notes that when the program was over, she observed boys taking out more books than before. But also to encourage reading, the local football team coach came and presented the certificates, and the children could have their picture taken with him, and have it in the newspaper. At first the program only allowed fiction books, but after the boys were questioned, they could read anything. On world book day, the results were shocking, Simmons noted that “for the first time, equal numbers of boys and girls received certificates.” In conjunction with single-sex meetings once a week, the program was a success, and continues every year in this school.

Singh, M., (1998). Gender Issues in Children’s Literature. ERIC Digest.                                     http://www.ed.gov/databases/ERIC_Digests/ed424591.html

Singh talks about the typical gender portrayals, and how they could easily  be changed. She claims that the way gender is portrayed in books will create an image in the child’s mind on how they should act in society. It is not only boys’ roles, but also female roles which are stereotyped. According to these stereotypes, girls should be passive and boys should be strong, powerful and emotionless. She notes that if book selections are changed to gender sensitive texts, it will allow the children to re-examine “their gender beliefs and assumptions.” However, it is not always easy to change the book selections in schools, due to the problems of available money,  people and organizations donating books, and books that are easily accessible. Teachers are restricted to money and what is available to them.

Sokal, L., (2002). Help Wanted: Boys’ Reading. Canadian Child Care Federation, 14,12-14.www.ldac-taac.ca/english/research/boysread.pdf

It has been made evident through many reports that boys have been behind girls in terms of reading ability. This report looks at possible hypotheses as to why this is. Sokal reports that most boys are a year and a half behind girls of the same age. This could be because reading is seen as a feminine act. It is felt that boys see reading this way because the mother spends more time with the children than the father, and most early teachers are women. This is what sets the foundation to reading. Sokal feels that more males reading to children would change this. There also needs to be a variety of books available to the children. They are interested in different subjects. Sokal noted that only one third of a school library has the types of books boys have an interest in. The third reason given is that most books show boys in stereotypical roles. Sokal believes that some boys cannot meet the standards which are portrayed to them, which in turn leaves them “feeling inadequate.” Her solution for this is to have books which demonstrate various male roles.

Strauss, V. (2002). Spotlight on Single-Sex Schooling. Washington Post. [Online]. Accessed 07/02/02: www.washingtonpost.com

This article addresses the issue of literacy in the United States. Strauss looks at the advantages of single-sex classrooms and how they may benefit both boys and girls. The Bush administration feels that single sex education should be encouraged, not only in private schools, but also in the public school system. Strauss looked at one school where the principal felt that boys and girls do learn differently, and concluded that they should not be in the same class setting. The advantage of this, she believed, would give the students more self confidence. The principal which initiated this system in his school discovered that the boys were doing much better academically. As in many schools, there is the peer-pressure aspect to learning, where boys feel it is not cool to learn. However, when in a class by themselves, the boys did not feel this way. This he encourages because he feels that if students are not focused at an early age, “all is lost.”  There are, however, opponents to this mode of learning, who feel that the students under these conditions will not have the social skills needed to interact with the opposite gender.

Swindall, V., Cantrell, J. R. (1999). Character interviews help bring literature to life.
 Reading Teacher 53, 1. 22.

Swindall and Cantrell look at making the activity of responding to a book more interesting, fun and interactive. They believe that through character interviews the children will create more meaning for themselves. It allows reluctant readers to interact with the characters, looking at their traits, emotions, and how they think the character would respond to a question the student has created. They have noted that reluctant readers my be reluctant writers, but they have discovered a way around this. They felt that the size, shape, and color of the paper they write the questions on  can “influence students’ enthusiasm for the task.” The authors suggest that books chosen for the interviews should have strong character development. They include a list of recommended books to use. The activity is not simply an interview, Swindall and Cantrell believe there should be some follow up activities as well.  When the interview is over, the children were able to see how characters interacted and, as the authors noted, were able to analyze the relationships between characters.

Shuman, R., (1993). The Past as Present: Reader Response and Literary Study. English Journal, 82, 30-3.

Shuman addresses the issue of having a class of diverse backgrounds and not enough books which reflect that. He feels that some schools are promoting one way of life over another. Shuman refers to Heller and Morgan, who note that western values are on a higher pedestal than others. “In a pluralistic society,” they say, “students need to be educated to deal with a broad variety of people, mores, and customs.” It seems that this has been slowly changing, however, for Shuman reports that American literature has been expanded to include authors such as African Americans, Jewish Americans, Latin Americans and Native Americans. Shuman’s main point is that teachers should be aware that there are many diverse backgrounds, and to know as much as they can about differing cultures and their literature. Also, to make these books available and accessible. He feels that if this is not done, than many inner-city student for example, will become discouraged with the school, and perhaps “limit their future possibilities.”

The Literary Express (2002). http://www.mdk12.org/practices/support_success/mspap/tips/reading/bonnie/literary_express-reading.html

Trying to improve the school system in Maryland, USA, this site looks at the Reader Response theory of Judith Langer. She believes that through carefully crafted questions, children are able to make more meaningful responses on what they have read. To do this there are several steps to take. (1) Stances (“the stances should help children turn teacher -directed questions, into self-directed ideas”) (2) Global Understanding (this allows teachers to see if the students have the basic understanding of a text. If they do not, the student will re-visit the text), (3)Developing Interpretation (by asking interpretation questions, the student will then “revisit the text to extend their meaning”), (4) Personal Response (this allows students to examine their “meaning in relationship to the world around them), (5) Critical Stance (“As students evaluate the author’s use of technique, students are able to discover latent meaning in the text studied”).

Useful Instructional Strategies for Literature-Based Instruction.                                       http://www.eduplace.com/rdg/res/literacy/lit_ins4.html

This website has described several different ways for students to respond to literature, each with different reasons as to why mentors or teachers should use them. They speak of Scaffolded Instruction, which gives students support when they begin to learn. Eventually, the teacher will allow the child to become more independent, if this does not happen the process continues. Modeling helps to construct meaning. The teacher can also use this through demonstrating response activities and discussions and with reading aloud. Having Choices allows the student to read and write what they want to, this in turn allows “them to actively construct their own meanings.” Finally, Prior Knowledge Activation gives the student a chance to “use prior knowledge to interact with a book.” When all of these are taken into consideration, they feel that it will allow “active construction of meaning.”

What research suggests schools can do to improve boys’ performance. [Online]. Accessed 07/02/02: http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/Research/boysact.html

This article looks at why there is a large gap between the learning levels of boys and girls and how it can be remedied in the school system. They feel that boys have more special needs than the girls do, however there is no “simple explanation” as to why there is a gap between them. Regardless, there is a gap, and they note that teachers should challenge stereotypical thinking. They also identify points which can be applied in the classroom, such as, placing the under-achievers with the high achievers, give information in small doses, and have more discussion, group work, and active involvement, among others. They also believe that students should not receive a mark on an assignment, but the teacher should give them constructive criticism.

Willard’s Male Mentor Program. Teaching Pre K-8, 26, pp 45. (1996).

The Willard school believes strongly in having male role-models. They want this because some children do not have male figures in their home to look up to. Willard school believes that a male figure can be given at the school for students to look up to. Eight men teach at the school and encourage the students as much as possible by talking with them in the hall, having lunch with them, and even going to activities in their community. They have also created a male mentor program for when boys need to talk, and they have held a formal dinner for the boys in the school. It can encourage male students to know that there is always someone to talk to. One teacher in particular follows up on his students to track their process when they leave his classroom.

Worthy, J. (2002). The Intermediate Grades: What makes intermediate-grade students want to read? The Reading Teacher 55, 6. 568-9

Worthy looks at different ways to get children reading, both boys and girls. Students sometimes feel that reading is a chore when school and teachers give rewards, points or grades, and therefore feel they do not have to do it (Kohn, 1993). However, Worth has come up with two possibilities to get children engaged. Engaging instruction wants teachers to do more read alouds, show excitement in books that will also get the children excited and also, students questioned said that they did not always like doing responses or worksheets about what they have read. The students found drama, read alouds, and role-playing among others much more motivational. The second he termed as choice, and variety in reading material. Students want more choice in what they read, and Worthy also noted that the children were discouraged because there was a lack of new material in their library. He feels that a child is reading is better than a child not reading. A child who starts reading a wrestling magazine which he is interested in, Worthy notes, will move on to more challenging reading materials after he sees how fun reading is.

Worthy, J. (1998). ‘One every page someone gets killed!’ Book conversations you don’t hear in school. Journal of adolescent & adult literacy 41, 7. 508

Using prior research information, his son and his friend, Worthy address the problem of boys literacy. In particular he examines the problem of reluctant readers. Although they are labeled as reluctant readers in school, many boys, including his son, are avid readers outside of the classroom. They love to read outside of school because they have a choice of what to read, and they have in-depth conversations with their friends about books. This does not occur in the school, and thus they are labeled reluctant readers. Worthy’s son and friend offer suggestions which could help the reluctant reader situation, such as to let students choose what to read, and to have in-class discussion with friends about a book, and what they like to read. A follow up when they were in grade eight revealed the same information. They still disliked teacher selected reading material, although their reading interests outside of school have changed to such things as magazines and newspapers. They continued reading outside of school, and enjoyed it.

Wragg, T. (1997). Oh Boy! London Times Educational Supplement. 4-5.

Wragg looks at the issue of boys underachievement. However, he elaborates on what will happen to the boys in their adult life if the problem is not addressed at a very young age. In regards to work, Wragg notes that the much of the work industry has changed from manual labor to computerized and mechanized labor. This places the boys at a disadvantage, and as a result many will then be out of a job. He notes that in their adult lives the men will have to “retrain several times during their working lives” because they do not have a concrete foundation of learning to apply to the workforce. Wragg blames this on the differentiation between the male and the female brain, noting that females use both sides, and the males only use one side. He then went on to create a ten point plan to help parents and educators prepare the children better for the world ahead of them.
 

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