Good for you!!? I've seen so many horror scenes of teachers and librarians prohibiting kids from selecting books they were interested in because they were at "the wrong level." This happened both with readers that were advanced and? those who were behind.?
Remember what increases vocabulary and comprehension is the VOLUME of reading- not "reading at a certain level."? AR, my pet peeve, only increased the profits of the company that created it - not the reading achievements of a nation of kids.? All of those "tests" cost a fortune but didn't measure any significant degree of comprehension.? Those dollars could have gone into more quality books. ? And it created a generation of kids that would only read something that "gave them points." By the way, if you are leveling books by AR, beware!? Their levels often don't match up with other leveling systems.?? And they never selected their books by any standard of "quality literature."? Therefore, many libraries are full of substandard books that are not examples of quality children's literature. carolyn -----Original Message----- From: Lisa C. Haag <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Tue, Aug 11, 2009 2:43 pm Subject: [MOSAIC] leveling books I, too, have struggled with the "to level or not to level" issue.? ? After reading the thoughts of the two sisters (of Daily 5 and CAFE fame) I've decided not to. On their website they tell the story of a student who went to the public library and could not find any books because there was no "red tub". This child only had experience with leveled books, and didn't know how to find books on his own. If we do choose to level books, we need to make sure kids know how to find books that are a good fit for them outside the classroom.? ? Of course, my decision not to level means one huge job avoided. :)? ? Lisa? 2nd/OR? ? PS There is an explanation of how they organize their libraries on the website, though it may be a page for members only.? ? _______________________________________________? Mosaic mailing list? [email protected]? To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to? http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org.? ? Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.? ? _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
