Pages

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

IN THE ZONE


In February, I heard Nancie Atwell at our state reading conference. Atwell did a two hour workshop on her newest book, "The Reading Zone" which I had actually read and loved a year ago. Before February, I had talked to my kids a lot about engagement. Since February, we've been talking about going into their "Zone." My kids know that when you are in your "Reading Zone" you:
  • Aren't aware of anything going on around you.
  • Feel like you are in the book.
  • Have a movie in your head.
  • Can hear the characters' voices in your head.
  • You want to tell other people about your book.
  • Often want to keep reading, even when time is up.
  • Easily make/exceed  your page goal.
  • Aren't bothering or distracting other readers.
Today, my kids "zoned" with their books for 45 minutes- quite a change from the 15 minutes they could do when we started in the fall. Most of the kids are showing some really good growth in the end of year assessments, I firmly believe that the biggest contributor to this growth has to do with making sure the kids were exposed to great books and spent lots of time in the "Zone." 

No comments: