Dialogue on Children's Literacy

I recently had the opportunity to gain some valuable knowledge on the reading curriculum from the classroom of Mrs. Kathy Cotter, a second grade teacher in Norwood, MA Public Schools. My questions varied from the role of literature in her classroom to how books are chosen, and the need for diversity in the classroom.

Mrs. Cotter started off by saying that literature has a place across all disciplines. Literature can transform disciplinary boundries, and can be all encompassing for every subject area in elementary education. Mrs. Cotter says that she hopes that by reading to her class, the children can aquire language development, background knowledge and an appreciation for certain authors and their backgrounds as well. Like most teachers, Mrs. Cotter explained that the importance of reading is to allow kids to fall in love with reading, and ultimately be able to choose their own books (based on topic areas, and skill levels etc).

My next question to Mrs. Cotter, was just how the books are chosen for her classroom. She explains that oftentimes, the children enjoy learning about the certain holidays such as Columbus Day, as well as other holidays so they can learn about the history, background and other information based on their readings. Also, Mrs. Cotter enjoys presenting mulitple books from the same author, which allows the students to compare books, as well as learn about the author in a sense that they probalby wouldn't be able to before.

Finally, Mrs. Cotter says that she chooses books that excite her, knowing that the excitement that she creates around the book, will help to rub off on the kids. This way, her students understand that the book truly is exciting, and help for the students to buy into the idea of reading the book (and enjoying it as well).

Mrs. Cotter then explained her theoretical persepctive on literature in the classroom, in which she explained its importance in everyday life, and across certain disciplines. She hopes that by utilizing literature in this manner, students will have a respect for the works of authros, their writing styles, and their backgrounds as well. Mrs. Cotter closes out this question, by saying that its really important that readers can connect to the literature to their own life, or to other writings. This will stress the importance of what they are reading, and allow them to pay attention to details in hopes of being able to make a paralell to their own experiences, or past knowledge.

In closing, it was a great experience getting to hear about the reading/literacy program in another second grade classroom (as I am in a second grade classroom now for my practicum.) Hearing from a veteran teacher such as Mrs. Cotter allows younger educators to understand how reading can truly transform a students, if they buy into it. To become a true reader, it really does take an educator that is dedicated to presenting diverse, varying texts, in hopes that students will find their literacy niche, and fall in love with reading, as so many students have.