free reading

For its summer reading club, my department puts no restrictions on what kids may read. They don't have to read particular titles or genres, fiction or nonfiction. They don't have to read library books. They don't even have to read in the traditional manner; read-alouds and audiobooks count. The only thing we ask is that books be "right for them," "at their level," etc., and even that's on the honor system.

The lack of restrictions makes it easier for the kids (fewer rules to follow) and for staff and volunteers (fewer rules to enforce). It also taps into that wonderful, literacy-promoted practice known as free voluntary reading, the premise of which is that if people are free to choose their own reading material, they will enjoy reading more, which encourages them to read more and become better at reading. My opinion is that any assigned reading should stay in school; it's summer, for crying out loud!

So, this story from one of my coworkers irked me. She lives in another library district, and she took her 10-year-old son to the library to sign up for summer reading. The library in question requires that members read a certain number of fiction and a certain number of nonfiction books. Moreover, it requires that members spin a wheel to determine which shelf they can choose a book from.

Mom's eyebrows went up, but Son enjoyed spinning the wheel. They went into the stacks and found the corresponding shelf, and Son chose a book. He carried it back to the librarian's desk for approval. Whereupon the librarian told him it didn't count, even though he'd picked it off the specified shelf, because it was a comic book.

Oooh, it makes me mad just writing about it! Graphic novels and comics are legitimate literature that exercises and promotes literacy. I could not believe that after complying with all those restrictions, the boy's chosen book still didn't fit this library's notion of what constitutes summer reading.

My coworker's planning to write to the library director. My hope is that the librarian who shot down the comic book was acting under misinformation. But at too many libraries—public libraries— comics and graphic novels are still the red-headed stepchildren of "real" books.

Last week’s Washington Post article, “Question for the Ages: What Books When?” included some choice quotes from Jon Scieszka, newly minted U.S. National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature . “There is nothing sadder than making books only a school project,” Scieszka said. “Reluctant readers don’t want to be quizzed at the end of every chapter. They don’t want to feel like they are stupid.”

The article used this quote in the context of educators being “less willing to experiment with new or unusual books” in the face of No Child Left Behind. I’m sure there’s a lot to that, but to me, Scieszka's quote spoke less about the importance of teachers’ reading choices for their students and more about students’ own choices.

So, I was glad to see yesterday’s Chicago Tribune article, “In Praise of ‘Stupid Reading’: Author a Voice for Kids’ Choice”. It describes Scieszka’s support of all free-reading choices: comics, magazines, online stuff, audiobooks, nonfiction, ‘stupid’ books, and so on. People familiar with Scieszka’s work—his own writing or his literacy advocacy efforts—won’t find any surprises here. But it’s great that his message is being spread by the big-time media.

In the public library, from the school assignments I see, I feel like I’m seeing Scieszka’s message being taken half to heart. I see a lot of genre reading assignments for elementary school students; students are assigned to read a book of their choice that fits that month’s assigned genre. (This is in addition to books read as a class.) So, on the pro side, kids are responsible for choosing the book they read. On the con side, they’re still fulfilling requirements set by the teacher. It’s still, as Scieszka puts it, “only a school project.” It isn’t truly free reading.

The genre assignment that really kills me is “humorous fiction.” Nothing drains the funny from funny like analysis. Children will choose funny books all on their own (and God knows, there are plenty to choose from), so there’s something distinctly and distastefully ironic to me about requiring a child to read a funny book as part of a school assignment.

My hope is that in addition to group reading assignments and these genre reading assignments. But that seems like almost too much to hope, for the average kid. When so much energy is being spent on assigned reading, and “free” reading in the context of a school assignment, is there any left to simply enjoy?