De aaibaarheidsfactor, Rudy Kousbroek

:rereads post: ...I think I did.

Looking for lessons in the age of climate change, Megan Mayhew Bergman rereads Watts’s 1951 naturalist classic.

How is it June! I can’t believe it. I got through some good books this month, too. From epic fantasy and rereads to audiobooks and contemporary romance, check out all the books I read in May 2022.

Summer is here and that means I can catch up with my kid lit book pile. To start this summer, I picked up a few books that were rereads for me. Rereading is a great activity for readers because it … Continue reading →

Reading your work in progress is a large part of the writing process, and you may start to doubt yourself after one too many rereads. Here, author Siena Sterling shares how to get past the fact that you’ve reread your book too many times.

October Reading Wrap Up 🎃 Last month was such a great reading month! I read 7 books in total! 2 rereads and I think almost entirely new favorites! #fallreading #fallaesthetics #autumnvibes #bookblog #bookish #readingtime #bookworm #bookcommunity #readerlife #cozyvibes #bookishphotography #bookishaesthetic #booktography #bibliophile #booklover #cozyaesthetic #ariverenchanted #acourtofthornsandroses #onceuponabrokenheart

The Harry Potter Reread has morphed into a rewatch briefly, which means that it probably sprouted some feathers and gained surround sound hearing, and is fuchsia rather than it’s usual cheery cherry color. (I don’t know, rereads are probably colorful. At least, they are in my head.) So… what is there to say about Chris […]

Described by Vogue as “a devilishly fun ride” and the New York Times as “taut and incisive”, Erin Somers’ new novel ‘Stay Up With Hugo Best’ is one of the most interesting debuts we’ve read in ages. Here, the author shares the novelists who’ve inspired her, the childhood favourites she rereads time and again, and her top picks for 2020.

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Interrupting Chicken meets Click, Clack, Moo in this zany classic-in-the-making! With rollicking rhythms, nonsensical refrains, and too many chickens to count, this modern classic will inspire unstoppable giggles and endless rereads. Bawka-bawka! Mr. Watson has 456 chickens in the sink, on the bed, in the bread box. When his partner, Mr. Nelson, threatens to leave, Mr. Watson takes his chickens to town to sell only for them to escape! Young readers will follow Mr. Watson all around town as he ga

Can you find genuine safety in a religious space that doesn’t accept things like sexual expression? Can an LGBTQIA+ person be a Christian? Cassidy Hall explores these questions and other similar ones in her riveting philosophical memoir. In Queering Contemplation, Cassidy shares her perspective of being queer and its connection to her view of spirituality. It contains conversations involving those who narrate their stories as immigrants, people of color, queer, and disabled. We follow the author's brilliant anecdotes and tales about her path of enlightenment, from her first panic attack at work in 2011 to her first conference with the International Thomas Merton Society at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. Whether she's experiencing the peace and beauty of monasteries or speaking to amazing open-minded individuals, Cassidy's book conveys deep messages and insights that are worth contemplating and sharing with others. Queering Contemplation is the type of book that compels you to constantly pause and reflect on its words since it's filled with many thought-provoking ideas from multiple people. I especially loved Assata de la Cruz's perspective on embracing boredom and rejecting the constant busyness epidemic in today's world. Cassidy Hall's lyrical words complement the book's spiritual topics excellently. I found myself joyfully revisiting her many poetic words, including her description of the inward monastery as "the place within ourselves of our deepest welcome, our clearest belonging." The book has an interesting collection of themes: diversity, religion, mysticism, silence, self-love, self-awareness, and more. Finally, Queering Contemplation is a must-read for all queer people seeking to become more spiritual and to embrace Christianity. I look forward to multiple rereads after enjoying engaging stories from awe-inspiring characters and their views.

Do you have a student (or several students) who struggle with poor reading comprehension? In this post, I share the step-by-step process that I use to improve my students’ reading comprehension! I wrote this post primarily for Kindergarten through 3rd grade teachers. However, if you are a Kindergarten teacher, some of these ideas may not apply to you (although some may). At the end, I’ll address Kindergarten separately. 🙂 Photo Credit:  KK Tan,  Shutterstock Gather More Information First, if I notice that a student has poor reading comprehension, I try to gather a little more information. I look for answers to the following questions: Does the child have good (or better) listening comprehension? (Can the child successfully discuss and answer questions about texts read aloud to him?) Is poor decoding affecting comprehension? At what reading level does the student comprehend (if any)? Is poor fluency affecting comprehension? (Is the student reading so slowly or disfluently that it’s difficult for him to comprehend? Is the child spending so much time and effort sounding out words that he doesn’t have any brain power left to focus on meaning?) Are there specific comprehension skills (i.e., retelling, inferring, asking questions) that the child excels at or especially struggles with? Does the child tend to invent (incorrect) answers to comprehension questions, or does she simply say, “I don’t know”? As you probably already know, so many different factors can affect comprehension! In order to appropriately address the problem, I always try to pinpoint what the underlying cause is. For example, sometimes students can decode texts that are much harder than what they can comprehend. This is why, when I assess students’ reading level, I always take comprehension into account. The Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System is my favorite tool for determining students’ reading levels because it incorporates decoding, fluency, and comprehension assessment. Let’s say that a student can decode a Level L text with high accuracy. But her comprehension is poor unless she reads a level H text or below. This means that she should be reading Level H or Level I books during guided reading. A Level L text is too difficult for her to understand, even if she can decode it perfectly. Or, to give another example, you may find that a student’s fluency is holding him back from successfully comprehending a text. In this case, I would, again, move the child back to an easier reading level at which he/she can read more fluently (and give more attention to comprehension). Moving students “back” levels is not necessarily a bad thing! It just means that you are providing them with opportunities to be successful with decoding and understanding texts. This builds confidence and is necessary for them to move forward! But, of course, if none of these issues is at play, it may just be a matter of comprehension! Sometimes neither decoding nor fluency is the problem, and a student simply struggles with understanding what she is reading. If this is the case for some of your students, keep reading—I’m going to share exactly what I do to help solve this problem! Establish the Importance of Comprehension When our students come to us, we rarely know EXACTLY what they understand to be true about reading. Do they believe that it’s all about decoding the words? Did their previous teacher focus on reading speed? So when a child struggles with comprehension, I make sure that I am sending the right message: that comprehension is the ultimate goal of reading. To do this, I: Outright tell the student (repeatedly) that understanding the text is extremely important! It allows us to enjoy and learn from a text. Reading isn’t very much fun when you don’t know what the book is saying! Make sure to always address the content of the text right after we read it (rather than jumping straight to phonics or other teaching points). Use thinkalouds during individual, small group, and whole group instruction to show that I am thinking about what I’m reading, I also share how I notice and fix my own problems in comprehension. Make the Child Responsible for Checking Comprehension When I set out to improve a child’s comprehension skills, the very first thing I do is to make him responsible for checking his own comprehension. To do so, I use a simple stop-and-check strategy. Before I read a text with the student, I place sticky notes at various stopping points. I might put them at the bottom of each page, at the end of a chapter, or even after each paragraph. Then, as the child reads with me, he is responsible for stopping at each sticky note. He retells what has happened in the text (since the previous sticky note). If he can retell successfully, he continues reading. If not, he goes back and rereads. If you use this strategy, you’ll want to try to determine the largest amount of text that a child can read and still recall (this may take some trial and error). As time goes on, the amount of text that a child can read and retell should increase. Your sticky notes should grow farther apart! Although I originally provide some feedback about the child’s retellings, I eventually begin asking, “What do you think—did you understand that part? Should you go back or continue reading?” Again, I’m trying to put the responsibility on the child for monitoring his own comprehension. When I see that the student is successful with this strategy, I begin asking him to place the sticky notes himself. Next, he decides on stopping points beforehand (i.e., after every chapter) but does not place any sticky notes. Eventually, the goal is for the student to use this stop-and-check strategy independently: without my assistance, and without any sticky notes. This takes time, of course! Focus on Literal Retelling After we’ve worked on the stop-and-check strategy for a couple of days, I also begin incorporating a whole-text retell. In addition to having the student retell individual parts of the text, I also have him retell