Day Nine: Are kids reading?

I over heard a conversation the other day about reading or print – “Print is dead. Kids just don’t read anymore. They just play video games.”  I twisted my head a bit and thought no I don’t agree but it wasn’t my conversation so I when back to my own work.

Then yesterday I pulled out A Wrinkle in Time. This old copy was 211 pages. A slim little book that I finished in a few hours. It occurred to me that long ago when this book came out most of the mass paperbacks for kids were about that size – about 150 to 200 page.

I looked across my book shelf to see Judy Blume books at 150 pages, Tuck Everlasting at 139, and The View from Saturday (E.L. Konigsburg) at 159 pages. Sure there are others that were larger but my gut memory was that this was pretty common.

Then along came Harry Potter with the first book having 341 pages and the final book being 634 pages. I recall folks saying kids won’t read it. Ha! Each book of hers got longer and longer. We – kids and adults – did not put it down.

On my shelf there is the Inkheart series each being about 534 pages and geared for a bit younger reader. There is Chains, Forge and Ashes each by Laurie Halse coming in at about 300 pages a book. There is Hunger Games series with MockingJay the last of the books coming in at 398 pages.

Sure this is a very random collection of books but what I have found and what I see in students is that they are reading. They are reading longer books, books in series and reading both print and digital. They read graphic novels. They read way more non fiction books and articles on line then when I began teaching in the “dark ages” before digital books.

Reading is not dead – I am always amazed during my book group, of retired teachers, when we get to picking a new book. We have a list a mile long but there are always new ones that pop up. Last time we met there were six new books suggested within a minute of asking the question “What shall we read for next month?”  Every time I turn around someone is mentioning – oh in my book group we are reading ——— fill in the blank.

I know I am a teacher. I know my friends are readers but I think as a whole we are not that different from others. People do read, they are still reading and they want their kids to read. I know the parents of our ELL students want their child to be a reader.  My parents of high poverty students all said they wanted and needed their kids to be readers.

So when you hear that silly phrase – print is dead or kids don’t read – you might give them a funny look and tell them to look around, walk into a library, check out the local book store. We are still a society that reads!

So what are your reading for fun?