Chapter 1 Summary
The ten reasons discussed in “Why Do We Share Literature with Kids” video was very helpful and had insightful reasoning that I believe every teacher/librarian/parent should be aware of. All points that were discussed hit key reasons why literature plays an important role in a young child’s life, and one of the most important reasons to me had to be the discussion of the language and vocabulary development a young child can have by reading 20 minutes a day. As a second grade teacher, it saddens me to see my students struggle to read books at their grade level and simple Consonant Vowel Consonant (CVC) kindergarten books. In my classroom, I always try to incorporate books that show empathy, imagination, and books that transmit culture. Reading books that show empathy, especially in the younger grade levels, capture the students’ attention and help them understand a situation better. Unfortunately, I have noticed that technology today has taken away a lot of imagination from students. I love incorporating technology in my classroom, but their thinking and imagination is often limited to the creativity shown in video games, like Fortnite. For instance, when I read books with animals talking or dressing as humans, my students say “That can’t be real” or “Animals don’t really do that,” which at times takes the fun and imagination away from a good book. Showing young children how make-believe things can be fun or creative and showing them diversity through reading books with various cultures can not only create a fun environment, but it can also promote cultural awareness and acceptance among the students in their developmental growth, as the video reassures.
As I begin reading my young adult (YA) literature books, I will keep in mind another reason that was discussed in the video, which is to create lifelong readers. I will put myself in the shoes of a young reader as I read and see how I would be able to relate to these books. I can ask myself questions such as “Am I reading this story because I relate to it?” (autobiographical), “Am I reading to experience the story vicariously?”, or “Am I reading for pleasure?” (aesthetic reading). Questions such as the ones mentioned will help me put myself back in a YA mindset so that I am able to relate to readers at this age.
The second video found in this chapter was “47 Charming Facts About Children’s Books”; and, as I was learning about these interesting facts, I couldn’t help but think of how I would be able to incorporate these into a classroom/library setting. As a Harry Potter fan, the fact that J. K. Rowling wrote the names for the Hogwarts houses on an airplane sickness bag while aboard a flying plane grabbed my attention. That's when the idea that I can use these facts written on a bulletin board as a “Did you know?” segment to grab my students’ attention came to my mind. If I was entertained the whole time, I could only imagine that children and YA readers would be captivated by these fun facts about some very famous authors.
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