“The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr. Seuss

I thought it was appropriate to start this post with a quote from Dr. Seuss as it is his birthday month.  There is nothing better than getting lost in a good book.  In fact, I’m often sad when I finish a book.  I miss the story and the characters.  As a teacher, I want to instill that love of reading into my students.

I’ve spent most of this school year in a Literacy Leader cohort through the State Dept of Education of SC.  Through this cohort, I’ve reflected and changed my teaching of reading.  My goal for this year was to re-vamp my reading center and make it a place students want to go.  The transformation is very Barnes and Noble-esque…we even have free Wi-Fi.  I’m only missing the coffee bar. Hmmm…something to work toward!

Students have leveled books for Just Right Reading, there are baskets of different genres, a Featured Book section featuring books from our current unit of study, a featured author basket, a New Arrival basket complete with baby blanket and stuffed animals, a big book section and a poetry section.  Students have comfy chairs and pillows to snuggle into and get lost in a book.  Oh yes…they can also get lost in their iPads.  The students have leveled readers on their iPads as well as other books of interest.

As a life-long reader, I have just transitioned to e-books in the last 2 years with my iPad.  I was concerned at first that I wouldn’t like the feel of reading a book on the iPad.  After all, strong in my memory of childhood, is curling up with a stack of books and enjoying the pictures, the pages, and the smell of my favorite stories.  I have long run out of room in my house for any more books but my iPad is ripe and ready for as many books as my iTunes gift card can support. I’m on board the e-reading train! My students also love reading from their iPads.  They even create their own stories in a wonderful app called eBook Magic that I can then share with the other students in the class.

I am a voracious reader…a walking-down-the-hall-trying-not-to-bump-into- things, head-under-the-cover-hiding-the-flashlight, will-even-read-the-cereal-box-when-I-have-nothing-else-to-read reader.  I want my students to find that love in whatever way they can. The iPads are helping transform even my struggling readers into life-long readers.

What kind of reader are you?