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- The teacher in the poem asks the young reader to read “faster” and “older.” What might be the impact of reading “faster” and “older” be on young readers? On you? Consider benefits, downsides, and everything in between and around.

Even now, as a grown-up, I get fed up with people telling me how to do things when I'm asked to read "faster" or "louder". When I was a child, I was more frightened that I was being 'instructed' from the position of 'teacher' - was it because I was different that the teacher was only criticising me for my wrongdoings? For children, the status of teacher is synonymous with authority, and these comments and demands are tantamount to their being denied by 'authority'. What's more, everyone's ability to understand and direction of understanding is different and the same amount of time does not mean that the same text will be fully understood; providing a set amount of time for them to read and understand on their own may be a better approach.

- What might the power of reading slower and younger be? For young readers? For you? How and why might you read slower and younger as part of this learning practice?

Reading slower and younger may offer readers the opportunity for deeper understanding of the story and self-discovery. For me, reading slower allows me to more fully enjoy and deeply understand the text and to re-examine the world in a way that I cannot experience in my everyday life. And even when slowing down to read, books that are more suitable for younger people are better suited to more easily allow me to understand, vicariously and fully immerse myself in the story. So I choose to read books for a younger audience and use them to slow down and appreciate the detail and depth of the story.

- The speaker in the poem talks about the way her reading settles “inside my brain, slowly becoming a part of me.” In what ways do you want to make this justice-centered learning practice a part of you? How do justice-centered stories help you to deepen the way you understand your own identities and impacts?

By reading justice-centred stories, I can see how different human beings approach and deal with the same event, and understand and respect their perspectives. This will allow me to more consciously assess and question my own perceptions and actions, and how these in turn may affect the people and society around me. At the same time, most of the justice-centric stories, articles and news will deal with important current and historical events on a societal level. All of these stories can help me to re-examine my own identity and the impact of different classes of people on society as a whole. By seeing things from a different perspective, I can better understand my place in this complex society.

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In the article, "Recommitting to the joyful classroom" by Sophia Foster-Dimino, I really liked how it mentioned, "They need lessons that intimately link the struggles of their families and communities to past and present struggles for justice around the world." This led me to compare how the poem and the other article have a similar feel of how adults are unintentionally teaching children how to think a little more complex and not letting the natural way of things happen. Children need to learn in a way that connects to them for them to relate and understand what is being handed to them.

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Reading 'faster' and 'older' might change the way that somebody processes and internalizes information. It is adhering to social standards of how things should look, rather than focusing on what's important- how the student is connecting/ relating to then applying the information learned.

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In this platform, it's becoming clear that short text posts are much more readable than long ones. If you have a long and complex idea, break it up into smaller pieces, or hold onto that idea and use it to respond to someone else's post.

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Cassidy "Reading" by Woodson Initial Response

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Cassidy "Reading" by Woodson Initial Response

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After considering Woodson’s poem “Reading”, I have been reflecting on what Woodson meant by reading “older”. This may be because of the learning experiences I have had in the Speech and Hearing program, but I interpreted this to mean that the teacher was asking that the student use a different dialect (such as General American English). This had me thinking about the importance of personal narratives and how the way young readers’ personal narratives are often influenced by the stories they read (and have read to them). When we ask young readers to change the way they tell the stories of others, how does it impact the narratives they share about themselves?

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I think that asking a child to read faster and more grown up like is a major disservice to them and does show an impatience on the teachers end. I have been a reading intervention teacher for a while and you do have moments when you are feeling like you want them to change the way they are reading not just helping them with phonetics and sentence structure. In those moments I try to really think about whether they are ready for that feedback and I try to frame it as fluency help. I can think of one student that became a much more accurate reader over the year last year but he sounded like a robot. So I modeled reading in a more engaging way. I always gave the prompt, "try to make it sound exciting for your friends listening" and it got them out of their heads and allowed them to have a little fun with the reading.

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This article immediately grabbed my attention. I can see comparatives through Woodson's poem and Johnson's article by comparing a struggle and how "reading faster"  or "older" is not always the answer. Johnson struggled in her first year teaching, wanting so badly to invoke social justice into her students minds during a political time that perpetuated hate speech. The students didn't take her approach kindly and her classroom became chaotic. When she finally was able to let things flow naturally and allow the students voices to be heard, then real learning and understanding began. It's not an overnight experience, it is a graceful climb. Students need to feel and make connections of the curriculum with their personal lives making it real. Not by "reading faster" or "older" as connected to Woodson's poem where a person cannot grasp the content and make connections. -Amy

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Tying the poem and articles from this week together - 

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Tying the poem and articles from this week together - 

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Balancing together the “Reading” poem, “Howling at the Ocean” and
Recommitting to a Joyful Classroom,” I can connect the ideas expelled in the interest of teaching identities to students.  In the “Recommitting to the Joyful Classroom” article, like myself reading something that not only engages me but teaches me something significant in life keeps me focused on what I’m learning.  I feel like that was expelled to me in the “Reading” poem surrounding justice-centered stories, expanding our knowledge to things that matter and what will stick with us.  In terms of my own identities in terms of places for repair, healing, and more when it comes to exploring education through a justice lens I am seeing the importance of inclusion.  Allowing space for conversations of social justice that allow for repair, healing, and responsibility.

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Frances (Francie) Lefebvre's Response to "reading" 

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Frances (Francie) Lefebvre's Response to "reading" 

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The impacts of being told to read “faster” and “older” on young readers could be immense. For example, to start with being told to read “older”, it sets the idea that where they are right now in their timeline is not valid or adequate enough. Telling them to read “faster” puts immense pressure on them, and is also not a valid measurement of success or “smartness”. I think as an adult and having past experiences and stability in my life, when I thought of what it would feel like to read faster or older it kind of just seemed like a fun challenge. But, that is because I’m at a different point in my life than kids who are new to reading are. Maybe the benefits of reading older or faster could be not necessarily comprehension based but just setting a goal and finishing it, I could see if that is the lens the teacher was assigning this it could be slightly beneficial. But, it didn’t seem that way in the poem.

Reading slower and younger could have benefits for adults as it allows for curiosity and taking time, which many of us don’t have the privilege of slowing down anymore. For young readers, it may open up new understandings or allow them to investigate words they may not be fully familiar with. For me I feel like it would take the pressure off of reading as I always feel like I need to get it done super fast, especially school assigned readings. I may read slower and younger to allow for a more broader audience to feel as though readings are accessible to them.

Justice centered learning practices are really important to me, and I feel as though linking it with childrens books and working with kids allows for an optimistic approach in change and uplifting communities, it can be hard (but obviously important) as an adult reading and witnessing the harsh reality of our country, I tend to lose sight of the positive future of children. Justice centered stories help me deepen the way I understand my own identities and impacts by providing a base to reference in a safe environment and especially as I’m working with Bookmobile Babe and offering free books to kids in the park, I can see that we do have a future ahead of love and gratitude.

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I really appreciate you pointing this out. This has been difficult for me to adapt to as an adult because I was often taught things in a very "right/wrong", "there is only one option" sort of way. I also wonder what the possible impacts might be on young learners when they are told that something that they do, that feels natural to them (like reading slowly, or "young") is "wrong".

I also love the idea you presented about the importance of space in learning.

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Zapoura, you asked if we could edit our posts so that they show our name. My first post was anonymous, so I edited it to have my name in the Title, but it wouldn't edit my name at the top.
The problem is, for future, if you click on the Join Discussion Here, one still must sign in for the name to be applied.

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Constance Jones.      The problem with telling a child to read faster

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Constance Jones.      The problem with telling a child to read faster

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The first thing that occurs to me about telling someone to read faster specifically, and not necessarily the same with slower, is that it can be so easily interpreted as impatience. As a parent and as someone who volunteered with young children for years, we must be careful with insinuating that children are not important enough for us to let them live at their pace. What does that do to their self-esteem? How do we hand down anxiety to children by insisting they 'keep up', they maintain at some preconceived notion of development?
I am not an early child development expert, so I have no statistics backing up my fears. I was once merely a child and I am a parent of a child. I know that there is something inherently curious in children, that they are naturally inclined toward a scientific method, and that our systems can destroy such curiosity. I don't know that there's necessarily harm in telling a child to be faster, read faster, but I also don't know that it's harmless.

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The teacher in the poem asks the young reader to read “faster” and “older.” What might be the impact of reading “faster” and “older” on young readers? On you? Consider benefits, downsides, and everything in between and around.

I remember when I was younger I was told to read books at a higher level by my family, as a young reader being told to read faster and older was aggravating to me.  I was asked to explain what I was reading after each chapter, but it felt like my brain couldn’t process what I was reading and it was difficult for me to understand it.  Reading at a higher level was hard for me, but it also challenged me to work harder to grasp the detail and be able to describe it to someone else which could be considered a benefit now that I look back on that time.  Though as a downside I was often left frustrated and felt like it was too much of a challenge at times.

What might the power of reading slower and younger be? For young readers? For you? How and why might you read slower and younger as part of this learning practice?

Reading slower, and younger for me gave me time to understand what I was reading.  As a kid if I was reading younger, or my level I was able to explain what was happening in the book in great detail and could tell I was learning.  I think as a young reader it gives you more time to think about the vocabulary, and what the book is relaying.

The speaker in the poem talks about the way her reading settles “inside my brain, slowly becoming a part of me.” In what ways do you want to make this justice-centered learning practice a part of you? How do justice-centered stories help you to deepen the way you understand your own identities and impacts?

As someone who doesn’t enjoy reading as much as I used to, I think that justice-centered learning is something that can teach us more about identities we might not be exposed to.  I think these can help us to deepen our understanding of our own identities, and impacts by diving out of the normal.  I feel like when I go with friends to bookstores they’re looking for the most popular books, but as young readers and students, I think justice-centered stories can expand our knowledge of things that matter.

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Why I Love Children's Literature?  On "Reading"

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Why I Love Children's Literature?  On "Reading"

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Video has captions!

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Sky58, I wonder if you can add your name to your post.  Also, your words about therapy and how doing things regarded as "childish" can help us process childhood trauma makes me think a lot about the various kinds of trauma that we all experience in this country when it comes to race.  Whether it's being taught to not talk about it or experiencing oppression because of it, there's a pervasive and collective trauma that has not been healed here.  Maybe this is another reason I'm drawn to starting people off with children's stories -- to heal our little selves who were brought up with such false stories.

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-What resonates between the poem “Reading” and “Recommitting to the Joyful Classroom”  Where do you see intersection in the ideas across the poem and article(s)?  Holding your specific identities, what are you seeing in terms of the places for repair, healing, responsibility, release, and more that you might lean into this term when it comes to exploring education through a justice lens?

I think it resonates in the reading, such as there’s no one way to do things or read and understand. It is important to have joy in education and have kids be excited to share their life story and their value to others and to connect and understand diverse cultures. I like that our education is not just about efficiency, it's also that sometimes it takes more space and time to discuss and learn important values about everything. An example is having the hardest topics but it makes the students think about how it connects to the world in education. I enjoy when education connects to people's stories. It makes it exciting and I learn more than just knowledge but also about  others. I like when teachers have students write their own weekly journals from your own learning and connect it to your own life. I find it very healing. I feel my voice matters and is heard. It gives a space for repair, healing, and release.

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-What resonates between the poem “Reading” and “Recommitting to the Joyful Classroom”  Where do you see intersection in the ideas across the poem and article(s)?  Holding your specific identities, what are you seeing in terms of the places for repair, healing, responsibility, release, and more that you might lean into this term when it comes to exploring education through a justice lens?

I think it resonates in the reading, such as there’s no one way to do things or read and understand. It is important to have joy in education and have kids be excited to share their life story and their value to others and to connect and understand diverse cultures. I like that our education is not just about efficiency, it's also that sometimes it takes more space and time to discuss and learn important values about everything. An example is having the hardest topics but it makes the students think about how it connects to the world in education. I enjoy when education connects to people's stories. It makes it exciting and I learn more than just knowledge but also about  others. I like when teachers have students write their own weekly journals from your own learning and connect it to your own life. I find it very healing. I feel my voice matters and is heard. It gives a space for repair, healing, and release.

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-The teacher in the poem asks the young reader to read “faster” and “older.” What might be the impact of reading “faster” and “older” be on young readers? On you? Consider benefits, downsides, and everything in between and around.

First I don’t enjoy people telling me what speed I should read. Everyone has their own speed and tone and personality. The benefit is the story will end quickly if you are in a hurry. The downside is that  you can not soak in the details where you can try to connect details to your own life. I think we have to try to find a balance. Sometimes when you are reading, you can tell you are reading the background of the story or the important parts of the story. By knowing the basic knowledge of each section of the paragraph or sentence, you can tell what parts are more likely to be the good part of the story then you can speed through to get to the good part.

-What might the power of reading slower and younger be? For young readers? For you? How and why might you read slower and younger as part of this learning practice?

I think when you’re younger you are still learning about how to read and gaining more knowledge including how to read advanced vocabulary words. Some people are born with talents and others born with their own speed. For me when I read it slower I understand better because I can hear more clearly.

-The speaker in the poem talks about the way her reading settles “inside my brain, slowly becoming a part of me.” In what ways do you want to make this justice-centered learning practice a part of you? How do justice-centered stories help you to deepen the way you understand your own identities and impacts?

I think everyone learns at their own speed in a different style. Everyone has their own learning disability. We are not robots so we have to let the system know, or the people around us, that  reading is different for everyone including how they transfer the knowledge into their brains. It’s not exactly like copy and paste. It’s more like re-read and repeating until you understand the knowledge or have someone explaining to you ways to transfer the knowledge to your brain. It doesn’t matter what speed you can read, as long as the knowledge eventually will be in your brain and restore it in your memories. Reading social justice stories makes me a better person by learning important knowledge. These stories make me feel like I matter and also encourage others that they matter.

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-What resonates between the poem “Reading” and “Howling at the Ocean”?  Where do you see intersection in the ideas across the poem and article(s)?  Holding your specific identities, what are you seeing in terms of the places for repair, healing, responsibility, release, and more that you might lean into this term when it comes to exploring education through a justice lens?

I think it connects to how there’s no one way to do things in life and realizing everyone has their own unique ways of doing things and expressing and questioning. I really like how Johnson realized that each student has their own story to tell in their own way to express and there’s no one way to do it. Helping kids and giving them safe space and love and free space to share justice and help change the world from everyone’s voice perspective. Everyone likes to feel they matter and be heard. This ties into the poem in a similar way.

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“Reading” by Jacqueline Woodson
When I was younger, my church ran a volunteer organization where we would help young kids to read. We would sit with them while they read, and help them with difficult words. I was 10 years old and no one ever had to tell me “Don’t tell these 7 and 8-year-olds to read faster.” I would never tell a child that, while I may think it every once in a while, I refuse to get frustrated with a child because they’re struggling with english. I don’t think there are any benefits to reading “faster” or “older” if that’s what you want the child to do, you should ask them to read more, then “faster” and “older” will come. However, I believe that there are significant benefits to reading “slower” and “younger,” my therapist has encouraged me to do “childish” things to help with my childhood trauma. Doing things like coloring, and reading younger books, helps people who experienced trauma in their childhood and needed to grow up too quickly.

I think justice-centered learning is a lens that we need to learn to see through, especially if you're not part of a marginalized group. It’s easy to just buy the popular books by the most popular authors, but looking through books with a justice-centered learning lens, would make you look closer to books that feature charters of different races, abilities, and that are different from the “norm.” Justice-centered learning can validate children from all over. One of my favorite children's books is Aaron Slater, Illustrator by Andrea Beaty, it's part of the Ada Twist, Scientist series. Aaron Slater is a young boy who struggled with dyslexia but he loved books and telling stories, eventually he learns to tell stories through his art, and at the very end he does learn to read, even though it’s a struggle. I’ve never related more to a children's book, I struggled so much with reading when I was young, and I wish this book existed when I was little.
-Sylvia

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Click HERE to access the Week 2 discussion prompts and readings.
This week, we're trying another kind Padlet format called Grid Try to keep things short if you submit text.  Try video or audio if you like! One short paragraph is good to start and then you can create new posts to extend your thinking!