# data[].attributes.body
Writing for me can be very therapeutic and can help me spawn some creative thoughts. By having our students write down their thoughts on a book they read in a journal it can lead to them becoming better writers. The more you write the better you become at it and having our students journal their thoughts can do just that.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When you attempt to envision a "writer," I'd posit most of you see a quirky recluse, hunched over a desk in some cabin, crumpled paper strewn about as they obsessively work on the next great American novel.

To me, writing is so much more than that. Writing is thought put to page, which makes all of us writers - even if we don't have the chops to spin beautiful prose.

Personal and non-fiction writing is a fascinating topic because I get the sense that many successful people are secretly regular writers:

Warren Buffet has described writing as a key way of refining his thoughts (and that is a man who reads and thinks a whole lot).

Richard Branson once said "my most essential possession is a standard-sized school notebook," which he uses for regular writing.

Bill Gates has described writing as a way to sit down and re-evaluate his thoughts during the day.

In these cases, writing has just become another tool for thinking, expression, and encouraging creativity; cabin dwelling novelists be damned.

So, should people who don't consider themselves writers bother with trying to make writing a regular habit?

Writing can be an incredibly useful outlet for many people, but let's look at some of the research on how writing can affect the mind, and you can make the decision for yourself.

Writing makes you happier

It seems much of the literature on the benefits of writing deals with "expressive writing," or putting what you think and feel to paper (or, let's be honest, to the keyboard).

For instance, one form of expressive writing might be thinking about and writing out your goals in life-an activity that research [1] has shown is beneficial for motivation.

Even blogging "undoubtedly affords similar benefits" [2] to private expressive writing in terms of the therapeutic value.

Expressive writing has also been linked to improved mood, well-being, and reduced stress levels for those who engage in it regularly.

Research [3] by Laura King shows that writing about achieving future goals and dreams can make people happier and healthier. Similarly, there's plenty of evidence [4] that keeping a gratitude journal can increase happiness and health by making the good things in life more salient.

And Jane Dutton and I found [5] that when people doing stressful fundraising jobs kept a journal for a few days about how their work made a difference, they increased their hourly effort by 29% over the next two weeks.

Many people shun expressive writing because they don't fully understand what it means. It doesn't necessarily mean spilling your guts in essays starting with "Dear Diary."

Writing leads to better thinking + communicating

Laziness with words creates difficulty in describing feelings, sharing experiences, and communicating with others.

Constantly having that "tip of the tongue" [6] feeling, or being able to flesh out thoughts in your mind only to have them come stumbling out when you speak is very frustrating. It paints an unfair picture of you, and regular writing can keep this from happening.

In both emotional intelligence and in "hard sciences" like mathematics, writing has been shown [7] to help people communicate highly complex ideas more effectively.

Writing helps eliminate "it sounded good in my head" syndrome. It forces ideas to be laid out bare for the thinker to see, where it is much less likely that they will be jumbled up like they are in your head (hey, it's crowded up there).

Is writing an outlet for handling hard times?

The connection with expressive writing and traumatic events is quite complex.

On one hand, I've seen a study or two that shows especially stoic people tend not to receive many benefits when they write about their troubling times.

On the other hand, there are some pretty amazing studies that conclusively show writing about trauma is a powerful way to come to terms with what happened, and to accept the outcome.

In one interesting study [8] that followed recently fired engineers, the researchers found that those engineers who consistently engaged with expressive writing were able to find another job faster.

The engineers who wrote down their thoughts and feelings about losing their jobs reported feeling less anger and hostility toward their former employer. They also reported drinking less. Eight months later, less than 19% of the engineers in the control groups were reemployed full-time, compared with more than 52% of the engineers in the expressive writing group.

In an older study [9], writing about traumatic events actually made the participants more depressed... until about ~6 months later, when the emotional benefits started to stick.

One participant noted: "Although I have not talked with anyone about what I wrote, I was finally able to deal with it, work through the pain instead of trying to block it out. Now it doesn't hurt to think about it."

It seems that timing is critical for expressive writing to have an impact. "Forcing" the process to happen may only worsen things, but if it is an activity that is engaged in naturally, the benefits seem to be clear for many traumas [10].

Writing keeps you sharp with age

Writing is a thinking exercise, and like physical exercise, it can help keep you "in shape" as you age.

While the only research that I've seen discussed [11] mentions hand written ideas as a good cognitive exercise, I don't think the leap to typing is all that far.

Just like how friendships help keep you happy and healthy through their ties to social interaction and dialogue, writing seems like the private equivalent - it keeps you thinking regularly and helps keeps the mental rust from forming.

Writing leads to increased gratitude

Counting your blessings is an activity that is proven to enhance one's outlook on life.

As the authors noted one study [12], subjects who reflected on the good things in their life once a week (by writing them down) were more positive and motivated about their current situation and their future.

The thing was, when they wrote about them every day, the benefits were minimal.

This makes sense. Too much of any activity, especially something like reflecting on one's blessings, can feel disingenuous and just plain boring if it is done too often.

In spite of this, it is interesting to me that writing about the good things in your life has such an impact. Perhaps because it forces you to really look at why those things make you happy.

Writing closes out your "mental tabs"

Have you ever had too many Internet tabs open at once? It is a madhouse of distraction.

Sometimes I feel like my brain has too many tabs open at once. This is often the result of trying to mentally juggle too many thoughts at the same time.

Writing allows abstract information to cross over into the tangible world. It frees up mental bandwidth, and will stop your Google Chrome brain from crashing due to tab overload.

Although I've heard it argued [13] that the information age might be making memories worse, I'm inclined to cite the quote about Hemingway from that very same article:

Hemingway's words came from experience. When his wife lost a suitcase that contained all existing copies of his short stories, the work was, to his mind, gone for good. He had written himself out the first time around. He couldn't recapture it-whatever it was-again.

Getting important ideas down alleviates the stress caused by anticipating this dreadful outcome. I've personally never felt inclined to not work on something just because I "archived" the idea with some notes or an outline-in fact, I'm more likely to work on it since it has already been started!

Remember these wise words from Mitch Hedberg:

I sit at my hotel at night, I think of something that's funny, then I go get a pen and I write it down. Or if the pen's too far away, I have to convince myself that what I thought of ain't funny.

Don't let that happen to you!

Writing leads to better learning

Information often better stays with us when learn as though we need to teach.

This concept of having a "writer's ear" never fully clicked with me until I started writing regularly.

There's a certain discipline required to create interesting written work that demands the individual be receptive and focused on finding new sources of information, inspiration, and insight. I've read books, listened to podcasts/radio, and watched videos I may have normally put off in order to learn something interesting that I might write about later.

Simply being a curator of good ideas encourages deeper thinking, research, and "heading down the rabbit hole" in order to find unique takes on topics that matter to you.

Committing to creating a volume of work also allows you to tackle big ideas more effectively.

From humble beginnings, writing around a certain topic for some time will allow you to build off of older thoughts, utilizing what you've already written down to develop ideas on a grander scale (I'm sure many writers have had a paragraph lead to an essay, which lead to a series of articles, which lead to a book).

In this way, writing encourages a specific style of personal development. You'll begin to want to build on ideas, which will lead to a further exploration of your interests and a better understanding of your subject matter as you push onward into new topics and angles.

Writing is leadership at scale

Despite the fact that the world is now being suffocated by 'new media,' there are obviously a lot of interesting opportunities that an "anyone can publish" world brings about.
We're doomed.
The ability to leave an impact at scale through your words alone is a pretty amazing concept.

The emails I've personally received, both for my personal work and my writing at Help Scout have been truly humbling. There's a bit of a "creative shock" the first time someone emails you thanking you for the work you've put how, and how it has helped them.

Without a doubt, the positive feedback for this "leadership at scale" leads to a feeling of gratitude and happiness for the writer.

Even in the face of criticism, writers learn to build thick skin like few others. Criticism, even unwarranted criticism, is the breakfast of champions.

Sources

[1] http://psp.sagepub.com/content/27/7/798.abstract [2] http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-healthy-type/ [3] http://psp.sagepub.com/content/27/7/798.abstract [4] http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/psp/84/2/377/ [5] http://pss.sagepub.com/content/23/9/1033.short [6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tip_of_the_tongue#Causes [7] http://www.edutopia.org/blog/writing-executive-function-brain-research-judy-willis [8] http://amj.aom.org/content/37/3/722.short [9] http://psycnet.apa.org/index.cfm?fa=search.displayRecord&uid=1987-01227-001 [10] http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/171/1/78 [11] http://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748704631504575531932754922518 [12] http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/gpr/9/2/111/ [13] http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/literally-psyched/2012/04/30/on-writing-memory-and-forgetting-socrates-and-hemingway-take-on-zeigarnik/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When you attempt to envision a "writer," I'd posit most of you see a quirky recluse, hunched over a desk in some cabin, crumpled paper strewn about as they obsessively work on the next great American novel. To me, writing is so much more than that.

# data[].attributes.body
Even though throughout my entire life I've hated the idea of reading I think I'm beginning to see that reading can actually be a fun activity to do and also can be beneficial. In this article it talks about how reading helps us expand our ideas and helps keep our minds younger and sharper.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The importance of reading is completely undeniable. The next time someone asks you: "Why is reading important?" you will have an educated and thorough answer to respond with. If you're not the biggest fan of books, that's ok! You're not alone! But before you shut down books and reading all together, take the time to learn more about the importance of reading and all the incredible benefits that come with it.

Challenge yourself by stepping out of your comfort zone, and you may even surprise yourself with a newfound passion. You'll be amazed to see the places reading can take you.

Why is Reading Important?

Why is reading important exactly? What's all this talk and excitement really about? There's plenty of reasons why reading is a beneficial practice.

1. Reading Expands the Mind

For starters, reading helps to expand the mind and give us more ideas. Reading has been proven to keep our minds young, healthy and sharp, with studies showing that reading can even help prevent alzheimer's disease.

The study closely examined 294 eldery women and men in their 80s, and gave them mentally stimulating tasks, including reading and writing. They were also given memory and thinking tests annually in their last years to keep track of their progress. After they died, autopsies showed that those who had engaged in such activities had a slower rate of memory decline compared to those who hadn't read.

Reading also develops the imagination and allows us to dream and think in ways that we would have never been able to before.

2. Reading Allows for Creative Thinking

Another one of the many reasons why reading is important is that it allows for creative thinking. Reading can inspire you when you are feeling bored, down or in a rut.. It can help give you that very needed pick-me-up without having to search too far for it. Reading helps get the creative side of your brain thinking, unlike television that really does not use much creative brain power.

3. Reading Helps Improve Concentration

If you are still unconvinced or unsure about the importance of reading, or feel as though it's not beneficial for you personally, then it's important to note that reading actually helps improve concentration. Reading can train our mind how to focus properly, which is invaluable in nearly everything we do on a daily basis - whether it be as we study or even in our careers and in our personal relationships. We could all benefit from practicing our concentration skills.

Reading takes us out of that 'multi-tasking' mindset that are constantly in. It allows us to really focus on one single thing that we are doing, and be fully present in it. This focus can allow us to be successful in other parts of our lives, such as on the job. Those who are capable of focusing for longer periods of time can get more work done and be more efficient, which can mean working less overall hours or being seen as a more valuable worker.

Why Should You be a Bookworm?

On top of all the major reasons why reading is important, such as the fact that it expands the mind, allows for creative thinking and helps improve concentration, there are also many other reasons as to why you should be a bookworm.

1. Reading Can Give You a Greater Perspective

Another one of the reasons why reasons why reading is important is that it allows for a greater perspective on the world and on others. Reading can take us outside of our closed-off bubble, allowing us to see a different view on the world, one outside of our own. Reading is a chance to live through the lives of others without stepping outside of our comfort zone or even traveling anywhere else. It's a chance to live another life without even leaving your home. It will transport our imagination to places we've never been before, and perhaps never even knew existed.

2. Reading Can Help You Destress

Many of us have a lot of things stressing us out in our busy and hectic lives, and we are always looking for new, concrete ways to deal with these anxieties. Well, believe it or not, reading can actually help you destress.

Sometimes, there's no need to spend lots of money on professionals and programs to achieve a sense of calm, and a simple book can solve everything. Reading is the ideal way to relax and calm those anxious nerves that are constantly at work.

In fact, a recent study found that a mere six minutes of reading was shown to reduce muscle tension, and slowed down the heart rates of readers as well.Overall, it reduced stress levels by an impressive 68 percent. If this isn't enough to convince you of the importance of reading, then we don't know what will!

3. Reading Can Provide a Sense of Belonging

If you are ever feeling a little lonely or lost, a book can also be your best friend. It may sound kind of silly, but it couldn't be more true, and there's nothing to be ashamed of. We've all been there, and we could all use a good read and some comfort..

Reading can really provide a sense of belonging, giving us a sense of hope during tough times, reminding us that we are not alone. Reading about others who also went through a hard time and managed to face their challenges can serve as a real inspiration. If they can get through it, then so can you! Sometimes, a good book is exactly what we need to keep on going.

4. Reading is a Great Conversation Starter

Not only is reading good for the soul and the mind, but another one of the many reasons why reading is important is that it makes for a great conversation starter. Reading provides you with a great deal of new information, and can connect people from all over the world.

Regardless of where two people may be from, if they've read the same book, it will always connect these two people together. You never really know when a book that you read will come in handy in conversation. Perhaps it will be what will land you the job in an interview, or perhaps will even help you become closer to a romantic partner that you've got your eye on.

5. Reading Helps Your Vocabulary

Reading can help improve your vocabulary. Saying new words out loud helps you better recall them and pick them up, making these new words part of your own daily vocabulary. Those with a higher vocabulary are considered to be more intelligent, and are often taken more seriously in a work setting, which can open up better career opportunities. According to a paper from the University of California Berkeley, exposure to new vocabulary leads to higher scores on intelligence tests.

Overall

It's safe to say that reading can change your life for the better, and the importance of reading is undeniable. If you think that you hate reading books, then perhaps you just have yet to find the genre for your own personal style - but keep trying, and keep searching for what's right for you. A book is one of the most powerful things in the world, offering you new opportunities to learn, grow and be inspired!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why Is Reading Important and the Reasons to Become a Bookworm

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The importance of reading is completely undeniable. The next time someone asks you: "Why is reading important?" you will have an educated and thorough answer to respond with. If you're not the biggest fan of books, that's ok! You're not alone!

# data[].attributes.body
We have talked about having classroom libraries when we are teachers and it honestly is something that we all need to do. We need to create a section of the classroom that has a variety of books for a student to be able to explore. When I was in 8th grade my language arts teacher did this and had this reading corner and I remember on a few occasions actually picking up and a reading a book from this corner.

# data[].attributes.body
Read alouds are something that I generally think is for the younger grades. But there are so many benefits to this use of reading and it can be effective in helping students better understand what they are reading and as Rebecca Bellingham talks about giving them a chance to put themselves in the story, discuss with the class, and comprehend what is happening. Within this article is Rebecca's TedTalk and she shares her use in third grade, but this can even be used in 6+ grades. I can remember doing read alouds in 7th grade and it gave us more opportunities to share and express thoughts.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Name this show. " Take a look. It's in a book..."

When Reading Rainbow ® aired in 1983, it was in response to research being published around the summer reading loss phenomena. Public Broadcast Service (PBS) wanted to create a show that would provide students access to reading experiences during the summer months. Twila Liggett, co-creator and executive producer of Reading Rainbow ® said, " I wanted to do something to mirror what I did in the classroom, which was read to kids out loud, get kids involved in the experience of reading, and have kids talk to each other about reading. Those became the three basic elements of Reading Rainbow " (Rossen, 2017).

Within a short time, the show became part of PBS's yearlong television programming and was embedded into classrooms across the United States. As a student in one of those classrooms, I remember the feeling of being invited into the reading experience by host Levar Burton. I remember the magic of having books read aloud and the interaction between the host and me, his audience. I did believe I could go anywhere because the books were a passport to faraway places and a lens into myself.

Why the Read-Aloud?

Hearing books read aloud has that effect. In her TEDxYouth talk Why We Should All Be Reading Aloud to Children , Rebecca Bellingham, a teacher and literacy consultant (among other things) shares that "... reading aloud gives kids a special kind of access to the transformative power of story, and the experience of what real reading is all about, which is to deeply understand, to think, to learn and discuss big ideas about the world, about the lives of others and about ourselves.

In a classroom, we can imagine a teacher gathering students around her/him and inviting students to sit comfortably on a reading carpet or ease restfully into a bean bag. The teacher reveals a picture book and begins the artful process of inviting the students into the reading experience. We would expect to see and hear the teacher decoding those tricky words and pausing to ask questions, all while performing with voice, tone, and actions. This intentionality to artfully reading aloud, allows, as Bellingham notes from an interaction with one of her students, to " get inside a book " (2015). And haven't we all had that experience of getting inside a book .

Why Our Students Don't Outgrow a Read-Aloud

As students move up in grades, these experiences become fewer and fewer. As students grow up, they move off the reading carpets. As students grow up, fewer images accompany the pages they may hear read aloud. Yet, Meghan Cox Gurdon , in her book "The Enchanted Hour" blends research and experience to advocate for why reading aloud to students from books with illustrations should continue up the grades. Citing a Cincinnati Children's Reading and Literacy Discovery Center research from 2017, she notes that MRI imaging showed statistically significant brain activity when children listen to books AND see the illustrations (Gurdon, 2019). She notes that a child's listening comprehension level is higher than his/her reading comprehension level and his/her reading comprehension will not catch up until the eighth grade (Gurdon, 2019). Therefore, all students, regardless of grade, would benefit from having pictures books read aloud using an artful AND standards-based approach. To help teachers craft their artfulness of reading aloud from books that support the rigor of the learning objectives, books, such as " The Artful Read-Aloud: 10 Principles to Inspire, Engage, and Transform Learning ," have been written as educational resources for teachers.

In another such book "The Power of Picture Books: Using Content Area Literature in Middle School," the authors make a case that picture books in the middle grades are a means to meet national or state content standards while engaging our students with the topics of the content (Fresch & Harkins, 2009). In CTL's work with PreK-middle school teachers, our Artful Reading program supports teachers in identifying rich picture books that lend themselves to such learning experiences. A sampling of our texts include "Blueberries for Sal", "Iggy Peck Architect", "Henry's Freedom Box", "Invisible Boy" and "On a Beam of Light." Inside these modules, teachers explore ways to artfully read aloud, using the texts as a catalyst to engage students around national literacy standards and the National Core Arts Standards.

Looks Like. Sounds Like. Feels Like.

The professional learning teachers receive includes time to read the texts included in their modules and make connections to their English Language Arts standards. They embed questions they will pause to ask during the real-aloud that are aligned to these standards. The professional learning also engages teachers in using rubrics for their own professional reflection. As part of the work we do with teachers, we ask teachers to use a rubric to self-evaluate and then receive feedback from peers as they work through the process of refining their practice and delivering an artful read-aloud. The criteria include varying speed to match the action(s) of the story, varying tone to match the mood of the story, varying voice to match the physical description(s) of the character(s), and using movement to illustrate actions and vocabulary. Because reading aloud artfully doesn't just happen; reading aloud artfully takes practice.

Artful Reading is a program designed by literacy and arts specialists that reflects mindful text selections that will stir conversation and emotions. Students explore the topics of Fresch & Harkins, 2009). friendship, anti-bullying, empathy, acceptance, diversity, perseverance, and many more. Reading about such topics in a safe classroom setting is important to the well-being of our students. Through research, we know that neurochemicals release when we read close to and with people we love that reduce both stress and anxiety (Gurdon, 2019). The intimacy of a read-aloud can help the students and teacher explore these topics through a safe progression, regardless of grade. The "right" picture book has the power to connect students and content at an affective level (

There are many quality books to choose from and Scholastic offers a recommended list of and read more (Oczkus, 2012). 100 Best Read-Aloud Books . This is not a comprehensive list; there are many others that could be added. Some books lend themselves better to a read-aloud than others. In "Jim Trelease's Read-Aloud Handbook", we're given considerations to keep in mind choosing books to read aloud. Some of those are selecting books we, ourselves, enjoy reading; giving ourselves permission to stop reading a book if it becomes clear after reading that it's a poor choice; and picking a book that is less familiar to students (Trelease, Trelease, & Giorgis, 2019) . But the first step is to select the book. In Chapter 2 of "Best Ever Literacy Survival Tips: 72 Lessons You Can't Teach Without," tips are suggested to plan for a read-aloud. One lesson is for the teacher to set aside a consistent time and place slot of 15-20 minutes per day to read aloud. Carving out uninterrupted time sends the message to our students that reading is valued ( Trelease, Trelease, & Giorgis, 2019) . Another lesson of the 72 is that 15-20 minutes is a recommendation and it is okay to break the rules

Be responsive to how your students are reacting to the time together. You may find 15-20 minutes is not long enough and they are craving more time to interact with a text during the read-aloud. When a teacher meets this request for a second and then third read, vocabulary acquisition increases by 15 to 40 percent ( Trelease, Trelease, & Giorgis, 2019) .

References

Rossen, J. (2017, May 19). Take a Look: An Oral History of Reading Rainbow . Retrieved from https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/93884/take-look-oral-history-reading-rainbow

(2015, December 29). Why we should all be reading aloud to children: Rebecca Bellingham: TEDxYouth@BeaconStreet. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/ZBuT2wdYtpM

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Name this show. " Take a look. It's in a book..." When Reading Rainbow ® aired in 1983, it was in response to research being published around the summer reading loss phenomena. Public Broadcast Service (PBS) wanted to create a show that would provide students access to reading experiences during the summer months.

# data[].attributes.body
After reading the articles I decided to do some research on the literacy rates in America and what I found was surprising. I found that about 43 million adults in the US fall into the illiterate/functioning illiterate categories. It's surprising how a country like ours that boasts being the greatest in the world has failed about 21% of the adults living in this country when it comes to one of the most important skills to have.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The first step in solving a problem is seeing it clearly. This article, part one of an ongoing series, defines the broad scope and depth of the literacy crisis in the United States, among both children and adults. Future installments will address the complex ecosystem of schools, government agents, nonprofits, and more that are tackling this challenge; survey librarians on what they are doing to improve literacy in their communities; and highlight case studies and best practices of those making a difference.

According to the International Literacy Association, there are 781 million people in the world who are either illiterate (cannot read a single word) or functionally illiterate (with a basic or below basic ability to read). Some 126 million of them are young people. That accounts for 12 percent of the world's population.

This is not just a problem in developing countries. According to the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES), 21 percent of adults in the United States (about 43 million) fall into the illiterate/functionally illiterate category. Nearly two-thirds of fourth graders read below grade level, and the same number graduate from high school still reading below grade level. This puts the United States well behind several other countries in the world, including Japan, all the Scandinavian countries, Canada, the Republic of Korea, and the UK.

The NCES breaks the below-grade-level reading numbers out further: 35 percent are white, 34 percent Hispanic, 23 percent African American, and 8 percent "other." Nor is this a problem mostly for English Language Learners. Non-U.S.-born adults make up 34 percent of the low literacy/illiterate U.S. population. New Hampshire, Minnesota, and North Dakota have the highest literacy rates (94.2 percent, 94 percent, and 93.7 percent respectively), while Florida, New York, and California have the lowest (80.3 percent, 77.9 percent, and 76.9 percent respectively).

WHY IT MATTERS

The risks to people who can't read or can barely read are significant, including:

HEALTH The American Journal of Public Health reports that the inability to read and understand health information accounts for $232 billion spent in health care costs each year. It also affects life span. A study by Harvard University found that people who had at least 12 years of education had a life span a year and a half longer than those with less education.

It's not just that low literacy leads to poverty and poverty to poor health care. Even after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, the relationship between reading level and health remains. Studies have linked low literacy to problems with use of preventive services, delayed diagnosis, adherence to medical instructions, and more.

EMPLOYMENT The National Council for Adult Learning points to annual costs of $225 billion in nonproductivity in the workforce, crime, and loss of tax revenue due to unemployment tied to low literacy. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has data showing a strong relationship between educational attainment and employment.

POVERTY The National Institute of Literacy says that 43 percent of adults with the lowest literacy levels live in poverty. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the official poverty rate in 2018 was 11.8 percent, down slightly from 2017. But 17.6 percent of Hispanic people and 20.8 percent of African Americans were classified as being in poverty, much higher than the average, and both groups saw an increase from 2017. Literacy and income are tied closely together, though race-based discrimination affects Hispanic people and African Americans in the employment market, making it harder to earn incomes comparable to white people even at equivalent educational levels.

GENERATIONAL LITERACY Adult poverty in turn impacts children; 61 percent of low-income families have no children's books in their homes, which affects the child's ability to develop the skills to begin reading on their own. The Annie E. Casey Foundation reports that 68 percent of fourth graders in the United States read at a below proficient level, and of those, 82 percent are from low-income homes. The National Bureau of Economic Research says 72 percent of children whose parents have low literacy skills will likely be at the lowest reading levels themselves. The pattern sets in early: the American Library Association says a child who is a poor reader at the end of first grade has a 90 percent chance of still being a poor reader at the end of fourth grade.

CRIME The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has data showing that 75 percent of state prison inmates are either classified as low literate or did not complete high school. The Literacy Project Foundation reported that three out of five people in prison can't read, and 85 percent of youth offenders struggle to read. A study by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy found that providing general education to people in prisons reduced recidivism by 7 percent.

Many of these statistics are related, says Sharon Darling, president and founder of the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL). "There have been all kinds of initiatives to deal with literacy, by governors, foundations, school boards, and we've seen some progress. But these things are the petals of a flower, and literacy is the stem."

Darling founded NCFL 30 years ago to work for literacy not only with children but also the adults in the family. The ideas that parents could help children and that generational literacy was a problem weren't necessarily novel, but there were unexpected findings. "In the first year, we found 50 percent of parents in our programs got better jobs. We weren't aiming to improve employment, but quickly realized we needed to look at this." She points to a 2010 National Institutes of Health study that found that improving a parent's-specifically a mother's-literacy outweighed any other method of improving literacy.

Parents who are struggling with literacy are also more likely to struggle with employment and income and, in turn, pass those struggles down to their children. Darling says that working with the parents helps both them and their children. "These are parents who feel so defeated. Their children start having problems in school, and the parents think, 'That's what happened to me, too.' They thought they were stupid."

Far from it. Darling tells the story of a mother who lived with her children in a car who enrolled in an NCFL program and eventually went on to earn two master's degrees. Each of her children also hold master's degrees. Another family lived in a garage, but the parents were able to earn GEDs and go on to community college. Climbing out of illiteracy and poverty allowed them to help their children, who then both received full rides to UCLA. One is working on a PhD.

While NCFL has served more than 20 million families in its 30 years, Darling says much more can be done. "The achievement gap is still stubborn for children in poverty. The biggest change asset is the home and family. We've not taken advantage of resources for that. We have to look deeper."

STALLED PROGRESS

At first glance, things have improved drastically over the past two centuries. Our World in Data, an online publication that tracks global problems, notes that only 12 percent of the global population could read in 1820, while today 12 percent can't read. That impressive turnaround helped reduce inequalities within industrialized countries, including the United States. In 1870 in the United States, more than 75 percent of communities of color were illiterate, compared to not quite 25 percent of the white population. By 1980, those rates had come close to closing the gap.

But while the literacy gap improved, overall literacy has remained stagnant and, in the short term, possibly declined. In 1992, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) began testing students in fourth and eighth grades every other year. The 2019 results showed an increase in literacy from those first tests in 1992, but also marked a slight decline from the testing done in 2017. The 2017/2019 data comprises 17 states/jurisdictions that had scores decrease, 34 states/jurisdictions that stayed the same as in 2017, and one state (Mississippi) that showed an increase in literacy rates.

All racial/ethnic groups saw improvement from 1992. But when compared to 2017, white and African American students both scored lower, while Hispanic students did not have a noticeable change.

In 2010, the NCES began tracking the adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR) for public high school students. The ACGR is defined as the cohort of first-time ninth graders in a particular school year, with that number adjusted by any student who transfers in or out of the class after the ninth grade. The percentage of the students in this cohort who graduate within four years is the ACGR. In its most recent reporting from 2016-17, the adjusted cohort graduation rate of public high school students was 85 percent, the highest since measurements began. Some 91 percent of Asian/Pacific Islanders, 89 percent of white people, 80 percent of Hispanic people, 72 percent of American Indian/Alaska Natives, and 70 percent of African Americans graduated from public high schools that year.

EARLY ACCESS

Getting children to read at their grade level is, as mentioned above, a critical factor in setting them up for future literacy. Risk factors include whether the family has access to books and whether children are being read to before they can read themselves. The National Institute of Literacy reports that only about half of children are read to daily by family members. The reasons could be myriad, tied in part to poverty and lack of literacy in the adult members of the household.

Pew Research Center found in 2019 that 27 percent of U.S. adults said they had either not read or completed a single book in the previous year. Adults who had only a high school diploma or hadn't completed high school were far more likely to be nonreaders (44 percent) than those who had some college (22 percent) or completed college degrees (eight percent). Lower educational attainment also correlates with lower rates of smartphone ownership, and smartphones are increasingly used for reading ebooks.

Household income also played a role, with those at the lowest income levels the most likely to not have read a book. The study also found variations among different racial/ethnicity categories: 22 percent of white adults, 33 percent of African Americans, and 40 percent of Hispanic adults said they had not read or completed a book. In the case of Hispanics, location and origin is key: 56 percent of Hispanic people not born in the United States were more likely to not have read a book, compared to 27 percent of those born in the United States.

This could be related to language challenges faced by immigrant students. NPR reported that English language learners (ELLs) lag in academic achievement. Only 63 percent of ELLs graduate from high school, and of those who do, only 1.4 percent take college entrance exams.

NPR also found that many ELLs are concentrated in schools with performance issues whose teachers are either poorly trained or not trained at all to work with this population. Often in those cases, literacy begins to lag almost immediately. When reading is hard and school performance suffers for it, students are less likely to read for pleasure. The National Institute of Health reports that ELLs may be more likely to have teachers with less experience, and they may also attend schools with more lower-income students and fewer resources.

Illiteracy and low literacy is among one of the most dire issues facing policy makers, educators, and communities across the nation, with adverse consequences that can ripple down through generations, affecting everything from employment prospects to health care. Though the statistics are alarming, solutions are in reach. Solving the literacy crisis will require creative collaboration among various stakeholders-and libraries have a crucial role to play.
Part two of our series will appear in the June issue of LJ, focusing on the literacy ecosystem: mapping the infrastructure of the landscape of who is working on literacy, including foundations, corporations, and charities, as well as governmental entities such as schools and libraries. Part three will appear in the August issue, examining literacy in practice and how libraries and librarians are addressing the crisis. Part four will appear in the October issue, spotlighting innovative best practices, case studies, and a look ahead at what's next. Amy Rea is a freelance journalist living in Minnesota.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Serious Is America's Literacy Problem?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The first step in solving a problem is seeing it clearly. This article, part one of an ongoing series, defines the broad scope and depth of the literacy crisis in the United States, among both children and adults.

# data[].attributes.body
It's important that we help foster and create a love for reading in our students and this can be done in so many different ways. I know for me personally growing up and going through elementary school I never really had the opportunity to really choose what I wanted to read for class assignments and when I did I had to choose from 3 different books. I believe that I would have personally benefited from a different system than this.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

# data[].attributes.body
When reading a book, we get much more out of it if we can talk about it with someone else so why don't we incorporate this as much into classrooms? Implementation of various activities like fishbowls, turn and talks, small group discussions, and symposiums are ways that students will benefit from reading. This gives students a time to engage in the text which can further their comprehension skills. And this is one thing that can help striving readers within the instruction.

# data[].attributes.body
To better support students in their reading and literacy abilities teachers need to provide students with resources and time to read something of interest. Students who read something that interests them would be more willing to read in comparison with an all-class read. Stephanie Harvey shares the importance of giving students the chance to read, providing them with a variety of books at differing levels, and giving students chances to share what they read. Students will further engage if we can implement some of these thoughts.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Stephanie Harvey discusses what striving readers need

# data[].attributes.body
There is such an importance in learning vocabulary as it impacts what you can read and comprehend. Allington expresses the importance of providing instruction that helps with learning vocabulary. This is a factor of reading that distinguishes a striving reader from a proficient one. We need to better teach vocabulary through various strategies. This links to various strategies that are not only effective but also could make it fun and something students can do together.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
"I love the taste of words. They have a taste and a weight and a colour as well as a sound and a shape."

-Philip Pullman

A 2008 article from The Washington Post showed how " Students Dig Deep for Words' Origins." The article noted that Phil Rosenthal was one of the few high-school instructors in the United States teaching an etymology course. According to Rosenthal, students take the class because they want to brush up on their vocabulary skills before taking the ACT or SAT, and/or because they have a genuine interest in the history of words. (It was also reported that a few students sign up for the course thinking they will be studying insects.)

This article brought to mind my failed attempt at introducing middle-school students to the study of words. I took too much ownership of the unit. If I had approached word study as a process of shared inquiry, my students and I would have had a much more meaningful experience.

Here's what we know about vocabulary development: There is a strong connection between a student's vocabulary and his or her reading ability. The same is true for a student's ability to listen, speak, and write. In fact, we now recognize that each person actually has four vocabularies, one each for reading, listening, speaking, and writing (listed here from largest to smallest). Obviously, there is much overlap, but students will always be able to recognize more words than they can produce.

In addition, giving students long lists of vocabulary words with little or no context is not an effective way to teach vocabulary; students must be actively involved in word study for it to mean anything to them. Simply put, if students don't use the words they are studying, those words will not become part of the students' "producing" vocabulary. To develop an effective vocabulary program, consider the following types of student-friendly activities:

Vocabulary-Building Activities

Previewing in Context

1. Select 5-6 words from a chapter or selection students are about to read.

2. Have students turn to the page in which each word is located. Ask the students to read the word in context and try to figure out its meaning.

3. Have students write down what they think each word means.

4. Discuss possible meanings and arrive at a definition in this context.

Self-Collection

1. Have students collect interesting words from different sources, preferably non-school sources.

2. Have students identify each word and the context in which it is used.

3. Next, have them analyze the word using its context, word parts, and dictionary definitions.

Language Families

1. Divide the class into eight groups, and have each group research one of the Indo-European language groups (Albanian, Armenian, Balto Slavic, and so on).

2. Afterward, have each group present their findings to the class. (Let the groups choose how they want to present their findings.)

See minilesson for "Discovering Word Origins (Etymology)."
Prefix, Suffix, Root Study

1. Assign students 3-4 word parts (prefixes, suffixes, roots) each week.

2. Give students strategies for learning these word parts.

3. Assign students one word part daily. As you take roll, have students write the word part, the definition, a sample word, and a sentence using the word.

4. Then have them brainstorm for familiar words that will help them remember the meaning of each word part.

5. Challenge them to combine the word parts they have studied into as many words as possible (perhaps in 5 minutes' time or as a challenge assignment for the next day). Special cards can be used for this purpose.

6. Also challenge them to create "new" words using the word parts they have learned. To qualify, a new word should make sense and might be actually used.

7. Ask students to share their new words; partners should try to guess what each one means.

8. Have students reserve a section of their notebooks for word parts they come across in newspapers, magazines, and their other classes.
Special Note: Thoughtful Learning's writing handbooks contain extensive lists of prefixes, suffices, and roots.

Word Sleuthing I

1. On a regular basis, present students with a list of five or six mostly familiar words that contain the same root, prefix, or suffix. (Make the last one or two more challenging than the other words.)

2. Read the list of words out loud two or three times. Then have students define the word part that is common in all of the words. Ask them how they determined the meaning. Then, using the known word part, have the students define the challenge words. Again, ask them how they determined the meaning.
Note: For extra credit, encourage students to provide some of these lists of words.

Word Sleuthing II

1. Provide students, on their own or in pairs, a word to investigate on the Internet. They should try to find as much as they can about the word, starting with its etymology. Instruct them to find information about the word from at least _________ sources (you determine the number) in addition to online dictionaries.

2. After their research, have students present their findings to the class. (Let students choose how they want to present their findings.)

Word Contest

1. For an end-of-the-week activity, have students, on their own or in pairs, be ready with pen and paper. Then give them 3-5 minutes to list as many words as they can containing a particular prefix or root. (Suffixes may not work as well.)

2. The winner is the individual or team listing the most words. (But make sure that each word is real.)

Reading is far and away the primary way for students to build their vocabularies, so encourage them to read all sorts of print and online materials. Along with that, employ a variety of activities (like the ones above) to help students appreciate the richness of the language. The combination should produce positive results.

Want more vocabulary-building activities?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Blog post: 7 Effective Vocabulary-Building Activities

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
"I love the taste of words. They have a taste and a weight and a colour as well as a sound and a shape." -Philip Pullman A 2008 article from The Washington Post showed how " Students Dig Deep for Words' Origins."

# data[].attributes.body
The best way to check for comprehension of books is to do class discussions. This is a great tool because not only will the teacher be able to find out what the students have learned from the stories, but the students will be able to learn about what the others have read and possibly find a new book to read when they finish their current book. This resource is a guide to leading class reading discussions and is a great place to start if you are unsure of what to do.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The teacher, bless his little pea-pickin' heart, wants you to read a chapter from your German history textbook. You haven't a whit's interest in German history, or any other history. But you still have to read it. Then, try these little tricks:

1, SKIM -- do a quick "read" of catch phrases, section titles, photos, drawings, etc. Now, s kim it again. (Seriously.) This will give you -- I pinky-swear -- a basic idea of the topics or issues. If it's a nonfiction (say, government class) book, and the chapters are AGONIZINGLY LONG and OMG WHEN IS THIS GONNA STOP??? then skim your chapter by reading it by sections. This is simple, because a textbook is likely to have sections, anyway.

2. READ FIRST (TOPIC) SENTENCES -- Since the first sentence of each paragraph often states the main point of that paragraph (while the other sentences elaborate on that point), you can skim it by just reading the first sentence. In some cases, you can get enough information by only having to read the first sentence from each paragraph.

3. OUTLINE -- read a whole paragraph, then write the main point of the paragraph. Under that, write one or two subpoints. Then on to the next paragraph. When you review, this is a good place to start.

andifnoneofthatworksandyoustilldontunderstandwhatyouread -- PUNT !!

Try this instead: (#4) TALK TO SOMEONE -- discuss what you have read with someone, whether they have read it or not.

IN CLASS, YOU SHOULD:

Classroom participation strategies

How to participate in an interactive class

In many of your classes, you will be expected not just to listen to your teacher, but to do quite a lot of talking as well. You need to be ready to:

answer questions from the teacher;

answer questions from other students;

put questions to the teacher and/or to other students;

summarise a discussion or an argument;

report to the whole class on a small-group discussion.

Often a class will be divided into small groups to make the discussion easier, but sometimes you will be expected to speak in front of the whole class.

In some classes you will earn marks for taking an active part in class discussions - or, put another way, in some classes you may get less marks if you do not actively participate.

Why have in-class discussions at all?

Teachers and professors encourage active participation by their students because:

they believe that by discussing, sharing and comparing their ideas and understandings in class, students can:

deepen their own understanding of what they are learning, and

learn from each other, as well as from the teacher and the textbooks;

it helps them to know if:

the students understand what is being taught, or if

they need further explanation or other help.

Preparation before class

Ensure that you do the pre-reading early, so that you have time to think about what you have read before class.

Preparing questions

Make a note of anything you are not clear about, and prepare a question to ask early in the tutorial to clarify your understanding. This will demonstrate your interest in the topic, and indicate to the tutor that you have done the required reading.

Preparing responses

When you read, try to engage with the ideas critically and actively. Make a note of any ideas about which you have strong opinions, positive or negative. Think about how you would refer to these ideas in the tutorial, or express your views about them. What language would you use?

Note-taking during discussions / Discussion grades

Discussion can be a very useful source of ideas on a topic, not only from the teacher, but also from the other participants. So it is sensible to make a note of any ideas which may be useful to you in writing assignments or broadening your reading.

In most small classes there is an expectation that you will contribute actively to the discussion, and not simply be a 'silent participant'. In most courses, grades are given for active participation in class.

For that reason, you may also want to make notes about the words and the body language that people use as they participate in class discussions and debates.

Using visualisation

Before class, think about the questions and comments you have prepared, and visualise in your mind how the discussion will go. Most importantly, imagine yourself taking part: using people's names, getting their attention, asking questions, and commenting on what you've read and on what other people are saying.

The more positively you do this, the more it will help you in class.

In class: Taking the floor

Note: We say the person who is speaking "has the floor". This expression comes from very formal meetings (e.g., in Congress) where each person stands up (on the floor) to address the other people present, and sits down when they finish.

So when you get everyone's attention and start speaking, we say you "take the floor"

Make eye contact with the person managing the discussion, and when you have something to say, raise your hand to let them know. Leaning forward in your seat can also serve as a signal that you wish to speak.

Sitting opposite the teacher or professor may make it easier to signal your interest in speaking. Sitting behind other people, or right at the back of the room, will definitely make it much harder.

Think about thewhen you take the floor in a discussion.

Think of the discussion as a busy highway, and you as a driver waiting to enter from a side street. Often in order to force your way into the traffic, you need to pull out in front of another car - it is not always possible to simply wait for the traffic to stop to let you in.

There are times when you need to break in while someone else is speaking in order to make an important point. It is not rude to do that if you use suitable language. Here are some appropriate phrases to use when you want to someone else who has the floor.

Interacting with the others

Commenting on what a previous speaker has said

Think of the discussion like a tennis match, in which you can expressed by another participant.

In a general discussion it's best to be able to use people's names.

Agreeing or disagreeing with a previous speaker

When you enter a discussion, it is good to link up with what has already been said - for example, by or with a previous speaker.

Shaping the discussion

Linking the discussion back to the pre-reading

Another useful participation strategy is to link the discussion back to the reading. For example, to point out a consistency or inconsistency between the discussion and the readings.

Limiting the scope of the discussion or of your contribution

Sometimes international students comment that they do not understand the context of a discussion or lack the necessary local knowledge. It can be useful to start by conceding what you do not know. In that way you can qualify your contribution and to what you do know about.

Comments based on your experience and knowledge can make the discussion richer and more interesting.

Sometimes it is useful to broaden the scope of a discussion by . You may not be aware of the specific context being discussed, but may have a more general understanding or awareness of the topic.

Speculating: remember, there is not always a 'right' answer

In an academic discussion there is often not a 'right' or 'wrong' answer. Rather, there is an expectation that a range of ideas will be discussed and that they will be supported with reasons and evidence. However, even if there is a 'right' answer, and you get it wrong, the teacher or professor will still appreciate your effort in contributing to the discussion.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
READING COMPREHENSION AND CLASSROOM DISCUSSION

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
1. Ways To Improve Reading Comprehension and Retention. 2. Significant Contributions To Classrooms Discussions. 3. Ensuring Good Grades For Discussions. This packet uses website text to explain how to read for comprehension and how to prepare for, and participate in, classroom discussion.

# data[].attributes.headline
Time Spent Reading and Its Relationship to Proficiency

# data[].attributes.subject
Time Spent Reading and Its Relationship to Proficiency

# data[].attributes.body
Over half of the student population reads less than fifteen minutes per day. At this level, proficiency drastically decreases and causes students to perform below grade level. With that being said, 23% of students who had troubles reading in third grade were likely to be held back and not graduate high school by the age of seventeen. But, as this resource shows, adding an extra 6 minutes of reading per day to a students workload will allow for better growth and possibly allow them to meet grade level standards. It doesn't take much, students just need to be encouraged and supported.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Can reading practice help transform struggling readers into successful readers? And by doing so, can we change the trajectory of their long-term educational careers-perhaps even influence their odds of graduating from high school and attending college? The following ten statistics about struggling readers and reading growth, originally included in a recent article series by Renaissance, show how even a small increase in daily reading practice could make a huge difference for all students.

Reading Practice by the Numbers:

1. 6 More Minutes

Results from the world's largest annual study of K-12 student reading habits found that students who started the year as struggling readers but ended the year at or above benchmark each day read just six more minutes than struggling readers who did not meet benchmark. Struggling-to-successful third graders also read 100,448 more words and had 11 percent higher reading comprehension than their peers, while struggling-to-successful sixth graders read 230,422 more words and had 9 percent higher reading comprehension.

Source: Renaissance/6 More Minutes

2. 15 Minutes Per Day

An analysis of more than 9.9 million students found that only those students who read 15 minutes or more per day made accelerated reading gains. Students who had less than 15 minutes of daily engaged reading time saw below-average reading gains, putting them at risk of falling behind their peers. Students who read between just over a half-hour and an hour per day saw the greatest gains of all.

3. 54 Percent of All Students

Worryingly, more than half of all students do not get enough daily reading practice. A mere 18 percent of students read 30 minutes or more per day, and another 28 percent had 15 to 29 minutes of daily engaged reading time. The remainder-54 percent- read less than 15 minutes per day!

Source: Renaissance/15 Minutes Reading

4. 23 Percent of Third Graders

In a longitudinal study of nearly 4,000 students, researchers found that nearly 1 in 4 students (23 percent) with "below-basic" reading skills in third grade had not graduated high school by age 19. Among "proficient" third-grade readers, only 1 in 25 (4 percent) did not graduate. This means proficient third-grade readers were nearly five times more likely to graduate high school than their peers with below-basic-reading skills.

Source: Renaissance/23% of Third Graders

5. 82 Percent of Sixth Graders

In a longitudinal study of nearly 13,000 urban students, researchers found that 82 percent of sixth graders who had failed an English class did not go on to graduate from high school. Another 6 percent of those students who had failed English in sixth grade graduated late, while only 12 percent of those sixth graders who had failed an English course went on to graduate high school at all.

Source: Renaissance/82 Percent of Sixth Graders

6. 30 Points

If you think reading practice doesn't matter for older students, think again. NAEP results show that students who read more frequently have higher scores-and the score gap between frequent readers and infrequent readers gets bigger as students get older. Among nine-year-olds, there was only an 18-point difference between children who reported reading "never or hardly ever" and those who read "almost every day." By age 13, the gap widened to 27 points. At age 17, it further increased to 30 points!

7. 13,700 Words

Some researchers estimate that children learn 1 new word for every 1,000 words read. Between kindergarten and twelfth grade, students with an average daily reading time of 30 or more minutes are projected to encounter 13.7 million words-so they should learn around 13,700 new vocabulary words from independent reading practice alone. In contrast, students who read less than 15 minutes per day would learn only 1,500 new vocabulary words from reading. That's a vocabulary gap of 12,200 words!

8. 35 Percent More Minutes

How can we encourage students to spend more time reading? Set personalized goals! A study of more than 4.2 million students found that students with personalized goals set as part of a research-based reading practice program read 35 percent more minutes per day, read more difficult books, and had 4% higher literal comprehension scores than students who used the same program but without set goals.
Source: Renaissance/35 Percent More Minutes

9. 70 Percent Higher Math and Science Scores

Reading skill matters for more than just reading! Students in the top tercile (i.e., the top third) of reading skill answered 70 percent more math and science questions correctly than students in the bottom tercile, even on questions with low reading difficulty. The top readers answered 66 percent of these questions correctly, compared to only 39 percent correct for the bottom readers.

10. Nearly 2X College and Career Readiness

Students who get lots of high-quality reading practice every day are much more likely to be college and career ready. A study of 2.8 million students found that students who read 30 or more minutes per day with high comprehension (85 percent or higher) were nearly twice more likely than typical students to achieve the college and career readiness benchmarks for their grade as typical students.

What Can We Do With These Numbers?

Of course struggling readers need high-quality instruction and intensive support in order to learn essential reading skills. The data suggest they also need time to practice applying those skills. What if we made a few additional minutes of daily reading practice a reality for all struggling readers? For all students? Could this help more students reach grade-level goals? Graduate high school on time? Stay on track for college and career success? Imagine the possibilities!

Want More Insights into Struggling Readers and Reading Growth?

Download the free Education Leader's Guide to Reading Growth to get even more research-driven insights to support the reading growth and achievement of all students at your school.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
All posts by Dr. Gene M. Kerns and Dr. Jan Bryan

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
10 Staggering Statistics About Struggling Readers and Reading Growth

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Did you know these 10 surprising statistics about struggling readers and reading growth? They show how even a small increase in daily reading practice could make a huge difference for all students.

# data[].attributes.body
Struggling readers need to be reading more than they currently do, but, a big part of why they don't is that they are simply not given enough time to do so. In order to do this, teachers should limit the amount of worksheets they give in literary settings and instead, give them time to read. While this might seem counterintuitive to comprehension building, there is nothing quite as beneficial to building reading abilities as reading. Just because a child can walk, doesn't mean that it can jump rope. This is similar to the idea of worksheets. Just because a student can feel one out, that doesn't necessarily mean that they can understand everything they read.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Listen to this post as a podcast:
Sponsored by Screencast-O-Matic and Microsoft Hacking STEM

I saw a video a few months ago that I haven't been able to get out of my head. In the video, a high school student named Jeff Bliss stood up in the middle of class and basically expressed his frustration to the teacher in the room:

Okay, now let's get something out of the way: Yes, this student was disrupting class and his behavior is disrespectful. I will acknowledge that. On the other hand, we don't know exactly what happened before the camera was turned on. Based on what he says in the video, my guess is that Bliss had just voiced some kind of concern, the teacher told him to quit complaining, and at that point, I guess he'd had enough.

What I have gleaned about Jeff Bliss from the internet is that at the time of the video, he was an 18-year-old sophomore. So apparently, at some point, he had not been successful in school. For some people, this takes away his credibility. For me, it makes him an even better source of information about why school isn't working for some students.

Disruptive behavior aside, the content of Bliss's outburst tells me that his teacher's primary mode of instruction is through packets. This was what got me. This is what made me watch this video six, seven, eight times over. Because I just believe him.

I believe him because I've seen it. I've seen classrooms where teachers deliver instruction overwhelmingly through worksheets, or packets of worksheets. I have seen my own kids' schoolwork come home, and I have asked friends, other parents with school-age kids, and colleagues who consult in lots of schools, and nearly all of them tell me that a lot of our students' instructional time is being spent hunched over some kind of worksheet.

That's a problem.

I want to spend some time looking at this problem from all sides: What distinguishes a "busywork" worksheet from something that delivers real value, why teaching with worksheets is usually not the best choice for learning, the reasons teachers default to worksheet teaching, and what other learning experiences would be better for our students.

Not all Worksheets are Created Equal

Let's start by agreeing on some terms.

First we need to define what we mean by "worksheet." Technically, a worksheet is anything printed on copier paper and given to students to write on. And since you can print just about anything on a piece of paper, we really can't say that worksheets per se are good or bad. That would be like saying "books" or "movies" are good or bad. It's a medium. A delivery system.

And there are plenty of instructionally rich things you can do with a worksheet: A graphic organizer is a wonderful tool for research, pre-writing, and notetaking. An excerpt from a primary source can be printed on a worksheet for close study and annotation. Worksheets can be used for analyzing data (like this collection from Maria Andersen), as scaffolds for notetaking, as tools for reflection, or as formative assessments. They can also be used as recording tools alongside more active experiences: data sheets for labs, planning sheets for group projects, and so on.

In my experience, when people criticize worksheets, they are referring to a specific type of worksheet, what I will call a busysheet, the kind where students are either doing work that's fairly low-level recall stuff-filling in blanks with words, choosing from multiple-choice questions, labeling things-or work that has no educational value at all, like word searches, word scrambles, or coloring stuff in cases where coloring adds no extra layer of understanding.

Sometimes the difference between a busysheet and a quality learning tool is obvious, and other times it's a judgment call. After talking to lots of educators about how they use worksheets in their classrooms, I think it's most accurate to say that every worksheet falls somewhere on a continuum: Some worksheets are clearly nothing but busysheets, while others, like note-taking sheets or data collection tools, directly support student learning; I'll call these powersheets. I think a lot of worksheets fall somewhere between the two. Because there is such a range, the only person who can really make the call is you.

Packets, to be clear, are simply a bunch of worksheets stapled together. They could contain a lot of powersheets, but when a student refers to them as frickin' packets, it's highly likely that they are mostly made up of busysheets.

Possible Busysheets in Disguise

Some formats have come along recently that have the potential to deliver the same kind of work we find in busysheets, only they don't always look like it. While each of these certainly could offer instructional value, they could also be just another way to keep kids still:

Computer programs or apps that have students performing the exact same activities we see on busysheets.

Interactive notebooks: These vary widely in quality, with some offering true interactivity and others just offering the same value of a worksheet, just colored, cut, and pasted into a notebook.

HyperDocs: If these are thoughtfully designed, they have the potential to offer wonderful variety, exploration, and differentiation, but they could also just be a new way to organize busywork.

The Problem with "Busysheet Teaching"

"Busysheet teaching" is when we use busysheets in place of other, better forms of instruction. This type of teaching might take the form of bell-ringers, homework, early finisher work, classroom centers, or even the main learning activity during regular class time.

So what's wrong with teaching this way?

It's disconnected from anything meaningful.
Busysheets isolate skills so much that students have trouble connecting them to real life. When a student sees little value in an activity, he is not truly engaged. Take this reading worksheet, which has students read a short passage about Maya Angelou, then answer four fill-in-the-blank questions about the passage.

This type of busysheet would most likely be used to teach reading comprehension or serve as a Black History Month activity.

Let's unpack these one by one.

Reading comprehension: Having students answer low-level recall questions about a passage of writing that offers no meaningful context doesn't do a lot to make them better readers. If the questions were more challenging, if they asked students to choose which textual evidence supports some particular idea, for example, that might move it up the continuum a bit more toward the power end, but is this the best way to give students reading practice? If students do this kind of work day after day, with passages instead of real books, they won't be reading enough. So much of what we call "reading instruction" is far inferior to having students read real books.

Black History Month: Giving students a packet of these types of busysheets-where the work and contributions of significant African Americans are reduced to one-page blurbs followed by some cute activity-is inadequate in so many ways. This article from Teaching Tolerance lists much more comprehensive and authentic ways to honor Black history in your classroom all year round.

It often misses the standards.
Even if they are labeled as addressing certain standards, the kind of work we see on busysheets often misses the mark. Take, for example, this typical grammar worksheet:

This type of worksheet, where students are asked to label or identify various grammatical constructions, has thrived for decades, and in the days before worksheets, it existed in the form of exercises from grammar books.

Apart from the well-established fact that teaching grammar outside the context of meaningful writing does nothing to help students become better writers, and in many cases makes them worse, the skills being practiced in this kind of worksheet don't actually teach or reinforce the goals set by our academic standards.

Here's what I mean: For convenience, I'll use the Common Core Standards as a reference. There is no mention anywhere in the standards of students being able to identify or label these verb tenses. Nothing. It does, however, require students to use them correctly in their writing. So it would make a lot more sense to show students these different constructions, then have them find places in their writing where they are using them. If they aren't using them anywhere, have them try it. They never ever have to actually know the names of the verb tenses or a whole lot of other grammatical constructions. Despite this, tens of thousands of students are required to complete busysheets like this every day. And I bet they get tested on the same kind of information, too. Meanwhile, little to no time is being spent giving them opportunities to use these constructions in their real writing.

It often has no instructional value.
By definition, a busysheet's goal is to keep students busy, not necessarily teach them anything. The most egregious types of busysheets are word searches, word scrambles, and and crossword puzzles, which might as well be a list of definitions with blanks next to them.

I have watched my own children do word searches for homework and stress out about not finding every single word because they would lose points. If there is any pedagogical justification for that, I certainly haven't found it.

It requires lots and lots of sitting still.
The more teachers use busysheets, the more students will sit and sit and sit. Yes, it's possible that there are teachers who use a lot of busysheets but have great alternative seating options in their classrooms, but my guess is that in most of the classrooms where busysheets are abundant, students are basically sitting in desks. This is far from ideal. In 2014, teacher Alexis Wiggins spent two days shadowing her students and was shocked to discover just how much time they spent sitting, and how exhausting that was. And we hear all the time about the studies that are confirming how dangerous it can be to sit for extended periods of time. So planning for extended periods of sitting, all day long, just isn't good for our kids.

It requires a ton of copying.
Anyone who has ever had to wait in line for a copy machine or found themselves staring desperately at a cryptic error message on the copier knows that relying heavily on worksheets wastes a lot of time and paper.

It gives you more stuff to grade.
Many teachers who use a lot of worksheets also grade them, calculating those points as part of a student's overall grade in a course. This approach creates two problems. One, it erases the value of formative assessment: If worksheets are meant to be used to teach students something or give them practice on skills they are learning, then why would students be penalized for making mistakes on them? I can see why teachers might give points for completion, but going through and marking wrong answers, then taking off points for something students are still actively learning is really missing the point: That's what summative assessments are for. The other problem is that this system creates a ridiculous amount of grading for the teacher. If you are going home with piles and piles of papers to grade, you're assigning too many things to be graded. If you can shift some of these activities from graded to "practice," you'll be giving students the practice they need without creating a lot of extra paperwork for yourself.

Why We Do It, and What to Do Instead

Teachers have a lot of reasons for leaning heavily on busysheets, and some of these may seem unavoidable. Let's look at the most common reasons, along with some ideas for what we can do instead.

1. No Textbooks, No Tech

If your school is short on materials and technology, it may be necessary to use printables to build your curriculum. Much of what we learn comes from reading things, so if you don't have good science textbooks, for example, worksheets and handouts can serve the same purpose. What's important is that we do this thoughtfully.

Even if you download a whole unit or curriculum, only use the parts that are going to provide value to your students, rather than just marching students through the whole thing.

Beware of cute: Some materials are so beautifully designed, they may make it hard to notice if they're thin on quality learning. If you can get both at once, awesome, but always scrutinize for the learning first.

Not all students need the same materials: Consider making some handouts and worksheets available to students as resources, rather than giving everyone the same stuff. Show them how to select the materials they need and where to store them for future reference.

2. Skills Practice

Many teachers use worksheets to give students practice in required skills. This seems to be most common in math (or, in the later grades, with things like chemistry equations). While this method obviously gives teachers some of the results they're hoping for, if you take a few things into consideration, you can probably refine the practice. Here are some questions to consider when heading to the copy machine:

How much practice is really needed? Does every student need the same amount of practice? Can they stop when they've had enough?

Would other activities be just as beneficial-or more beneficial-than practice problems? In this youcubed article, professor Jo Boaler describes four other ways to develop number facts and number sense. She also shared a strategy in a recent tweet where a problem is placed in the center of a paper and students use the corners of the page to show four different ways of solving the problem. These kinds of activities get kids to actually think and talk about the math they're doing, rather than just completing problem after problem.

I'm going to bring this up again: If you're recording a grade on practice work, especially if that grade is based on accuracy, it's not practice!! Keep this in mind when deciding how many problems are really necessary to give students the practice they need.

3. Differentiation

Teachers often find that creating leveled packets of work is a simple way to personalize learning for each student. But again, does that have to mean each child gets one of three large, comprehensive packets? Let's look again at the suggestion I made earlier, where handouts (containing information) and worksheets (offering practice) are offered as resources, and students decide which they need. To see this idea fully developed, check out Natalie McCutchen's self-paced math classroom: Students work through units on their own, and they decide how much practice they need before taking the assessments, so some students do a lot, while others do very little.

4. Grade-level Alignment

In some schools, teachers are required to teach the same thing as their grade-level counterparts, on the same day, and document the whole process in detailed, standards-aligned lesson plans. When I talk to teachers about why they're burned out, it's policies like these that they often cite as completely draining them. This type of requirement also causes many of them to resort to teaching entirely with packets: Find a workbook that says it's standards-aligned, then everyone use the same set of pages every week. Done.

This makes for incredibly dry, uninspired learning, and unfortunately, I don't have a good solution for it. My best advice is to share this post with your administrator so they can see the impact that this type of policy is having. I would also urge you to question the integrity of the standards label: Is the packet really getting kids to do what the standard says, or is it a "lighter" version of that? These packets may act as a stopgap for now, but if your team has been using the same set for several years, now may be the time to look more closely at them to see if some pages could be removed and replaced with other activities.

5. Sub Work

When we have substitute teachers, sometimes packets seem to be the only option. This is another tricky one. If you really have no other option, at least do everything you can to make sure the worksheets lean more toward the "powersheet" end of the continuum. Another option that can work if you know you're going to be out ahead of time is to train a few students to lead the class in an actual lesson, then let the sub know that the plan is to let these students teach. This would obviously require a lot of work up front, and you need to have built a classroom culture where students want to behave while you're gone, but I do think it can be done.

6. Crowd Control

In overcrowded classrooms it seems impossible to do anything hands-on, any kind of group work, anything interactive. Worksheets keep everyone in their seat and under control. This, again, is more of a systemic issue that could only truly be solved at the policy level. With that said, I still don't believe worksheets are the only option. Sure, you might not be able to do big, sweeping hands-on stuff, but you can do paired work, set up tasks around the room in stations, or even split the class in half so that only some are doing the "active" work while others are seated and calm, then switch. More than anything, just don't throw in the towel on this.

7. Bell-Ringers & Morning Work

In order to maximize instructional time, we are advised to make sure students have meaningful work to do from the moment they walk into class; hence the birth of the bell-ringer. I have definitely seen the value of a good bell-ringer, and saw a huge difference between the year that I didn't use these and the years that I did. But if that work isn't really meaningful or isn't helping most kids learn, it's a waste. Here are some other options:

Have students do self-selected reading for the first 10 minutes of class.

Give students a great anticipatory set to introduce the day's learning. There are so many options for these, like the thought-provoking images that Christina DeCarbo-Wagners now uses instead of morning work, or the "appetizers" recommended by math teachers Matt Vaudrey and John Stevens in their book, The Classroom Chef.

Establish morning choice: Why not offer students a variety of choices for morning work? In this fantastic post, principal Adam Dovico describes how one teacher made this shift, allowing students to choose between artistic expression, problem solving, computer time, leadership, collaboration, and game time. The big key in making this successful was that she rolled it out slowly, giving students experience with each station first before giving them more freedom to choose later on.

8. Some Kids Like Worksheets

For some students, busysheets give them a nice, calm, quiet activity to pass the time. But this alone is no reason to make them standard fare in your classroom. What you can do is make busysheets an option for free time, as something to do to decompress, or as one of several options students might choose to practice a set of skills or test themselves on some aspect of your content-not for a grade, but for practice.

9. Students Need Fine Motor Practice

Early childhood educators sometimes rely on worksheets for handwriting practice or to have students color, cut, and glue items to develop fine motor skills.

Although worksheets offer one way to give students fine motor practice, there are lots of other ways to do it, too. This post offers 40 ideas for fine motor practice, and this one offers 30 more.

Once a child has gotten to a certain level of fine motor development, do they still need to keep practicing it the same amount as other students?

More Ideas

If you're going to cut down or eliminate your use of packets and worksheets, you'll have a lot more instructional time, and that's a good thing. Here are some things you can do with that time:

The Challenge: Do a Worksheet Audit

Everyone teaches differently, and as we have established, all worksheets are not created equal. There is no single prescription for what kind or how many worksheets you should be using with your students. Only you and your students can know that for sure.

So my challenge to you is simple: From now on, every time you're about to use a worksheet, ask yourself if it's contributing to student learning or if it's actually just keeping them busy. If it's the latter, start replacing your worksheets with better, richer alternatives. Your students will learn better, school will be more fun, and you'll waste a whole lot less time in line at the copy machine. ♦

Come back for more.
Join my mailing list and get weekly tips, tools, and inspiration that will make your teaching more effective and fun. You'll get access to our members-only library of free downloads, including 20 Ways to Cut Your Grading Time in Half, the e-booklet that has helped thousands of teachers save time on grading. Over 50,000 teachers have already joined-come on in.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Are your worksheets contributing to meaningful learning, or just keeping students busy?

# data[].attributes.headline
Issues with Current Middle Interventions

# data[].attributes.subject
Issues with Current Middle Interventions

# data[].attributes.body
Reading interventions in the middle grades, like the grades below, focus on decoding, however, this is not the problem students have. As Alington said in his 2011 Article, students need intervention in reading comprehension. Students know how to read almost all of the words on every page of a book, however, they don't always know what they mean. In order to fix this, students need to be given books that challenge their reading capabilities, but are still comprehensible. A student should know no less than 95/100 words used in a book. This still isn't ideal. The goal should be 99/100 words are known and comprehensible. This will allow adequate challenge and great comprehension, allowing students to learn more about the story of the book and the English language. Here is a simple tool that will help students to get an estimate of whether or not a book will be in their reading capabilities.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Our Automatic Readability Checker takes a sample of your writing and calculates the number of sentences, words, syllables, and characters in your sample. Our program takes the output of these numbers and plugs them into seven popular readability formulas. These readability formulas (see below) will let you know the reading level and grade level of your text and help you determine if your audience can read your writing.

( Note: We also have separate readability tools to calculate grade levels using the Fry Graph, Raygor Estimate Graph, Spache Formula, and New Dale-Chall Formula, located here: Free Readability Calculators and Text Tools).

Directions: Paste in a sample of text and click "CHECK TEXT READABILITY." A sufficient sample size consists of 4-5 full sentences; approximately 200 - 600 words total. For larger texts, such as books, manuals, or dissertations, pull 1-2 sample sizes from each chapter. (Note: We limit the sample size to 3000 words. Sample sizes over 3K words are truncated.)

Paste a sample of plain text in the box. Your sample can be between 150-3000 words. We do not store or reuse your text in any way.
Our free readability formula tool will analyze your text and output the results based on these readability formulas. Our tool will also help you determine the grade level for your text.
1. The Flesch Reading Ease formula will output a number from 0 to 100 - a higher score indicates easier reading. An average document has a Flesch Reading Ease score between 6 - 70. As a rule of thumb, scores of 90-100 can be understood by an average 5th grader. 8th and 9th grade students can understand documents with a score of 60-70; and college graduates can understand documents with a score of 0-30.

2. The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level outputs a U.S. school grade level; this indicates the average student in that grade level can read the text. For example, a score of 7.4 indicates that the text is understood by an average student in 7th grade.

3. The Fog Scale (Gunning FOG Formula) is similar to the Flesch scale in that it compares syllables and sentence lengths. A Fog score of 5 is readable, 10 is hard, 15 is difficult, and 20 is very difficult. Based on its name, 'Foggy' words are words that contain 3 or more syllables.

4. The SMOG Index outputs a U.S. school grade level; this indicates the average student in that grade level can read the text. For example, a score of 7.4 indicates that the text is understood by an average student in 7th grade.

5. The Coleman-Liau Index relies on characters instead of syllables per word and sentence length. This formula will output a grade. For example, 10.6 means your text is appropriate for a 10-11th grade high school student.

6. Automated Readability Index outputs a number which approximates the grade level needed to comprehend the text. For example, if the ARI outputs the number 3, it means students in 3rd grade (ages 8-9 yrs. old) should be able to comprehend the text.

7. Linsear Write Formula is a readability formula for English text, originally developed for the United States Air Force to help them calculate the readability of their technical manuals. Linsear Write Formula is specifically designed to calculate the United States grade level of a text sample based on sentence length and the number words used that have three or more syllables.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
AUTOMATIC READABILITY CHECKER, a Free Readability Formula Consensus Calculator

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Automatically grade your text with our free readability test tools! These 7 popular readability formulas will help you find the reading level and grade level of your materials and help you determine if your readers can read your materials.

# data[].attributes.body
We read through these articles the importance of improving reading and the abilities that surround it. We see statistics and know that much research is done to help during the early elementary ages and that is necessary. As we can see in this diagram, students who do not meet the higher achievement of reading can even fail to graduate from high school. Yes it is that important! But we also learn that we need to address reading throughout middle schools and high school because without those skills and support, they will continue to be less likely to graduate.

# data[].attributes.body
This infographic shows the stunning truth when it comes to child literacy. 1 in 4 children grow up in America not knowing how to read. Some helpful ideas this infographic gives is that it’s important to start early because children are starting to acquire their first words. It’s also important to always be talking to a child because then they will start picking up more words. Alingoton (2012) discusses how important it is to have a child read everyday. This infographic backs up a lot of what Alington said in both of his articles.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why Reading To Kids Helps Them Succeed [Infographic] | Daily Infographic

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Get more information on the prevention of child illiteracy through reading and vocabulary building.

# data[].attributes.body
I was really shocked when I saw this map that indicates the percentage of the population of each state that has below a fifth grade level of literacy. I was really surprised about how many states were between 20%-30%. Alington perfectly talks about how there needs to be a change about the way school systems are teaching literacy. It’s important in school to incorporate a variety of different books and also let the students pick what they want to read sometimes.

# data[].attributes.body
In Alingtons (2012) article called “Every Child Every Day” he talks about the importance of writing. It states in the article that “Writing provides a different modality within which to practice the skills and strategies of reading for an authentic purpose.” Students are writing down meaningful thoughts when they are allowed and they are using the vocabulary they’ve learned from reading into their writing. It’s important for teachers to have short answer questions on tests because then the student is able to show exactly what they know.

# data[].attributes.body
A big part of both of the articles by Alington is the idea that students need to be allowed to choose what they read. By allowing student choice, students are more likely to want to read, rather than feel like they are forced to read. With that being said, many students don't know where to start when looking for a book, so, educators must be prepared to help. Attached is a list of books that would be appropriate for middle school aged children. This list however, is not all inclusive of middle school literature. This is just a starting block. Students should be encouraged to keep looking if they can't find a book that they like in this list.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Middle school students faced plenty of issues before the social, political, and economic upheavals of the past few years. At the same time, challenges to what students are allowed to read in school have made some of their experiences even more marginalized than they had been. With that in mind, we revised our recommendations to be even more inclusive, with an eye toward middle school books you may not already have in your library.

Today's classroom requires flexibility, especially with young readers. Not all middle school books have to be read silently or independently. Read some aloud to your students, give them audiobooks to listen to, or let them read one chapter at a time to each other. See what kind of conversations come up. Engaged students learn better, and you don't need a canned curriculum from some corporation to tell you that.

Remember, maturity levels vary widely, and you know your students best. Be sure to read the books first before you share them with your middle school students.

(Just a heads up, WeAreTeachers may collect a share of sales from the links on this page. We only recommend items our team loves!)

Best Middle School Books

1. Stamped by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi

This remix of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi's National Book Award-winning Stamped From the Beginning is an urgent exploration of how the history of race affects us in the here and now, created for young people. There's even a teachers guide.

Buy it: Stamped on Amazon

2. Everything Sad Is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri

Khosrou is not like the other kids in his Oklahoma middle school, but he knows how to tell a story. This true story of Khosrou's family and their escape from Iran in the middle of the night is an immediately gripping account of both middle school chaos and personal strife.

Buy it: Everything Sad Is Untrue on Amazon

3. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

This is the story of 16-year-old Starr Carter as she wrestles with her emotions after seeing her unarmed childhood friend killed by police, which has become a generational touchstone. Definitely for older kids-and definitely worth the conversations that follow.

Buy it: The Hate U Give on Amazon

4. All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue ... by Christina Soontornvat

This book is a thrilling and information-packed true story of survival about the 2018 cave rescue in Thailand. Full of interviews and firsthand accounts, the story will keep even the most active students on the edge of their seats.

Buy it: All Thirteen on Amazon

5. Hearts Unbroken by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Louise Wolfe is a Muscogee high schooler caught between family obligations and everything that being a teenager involves. Another one for older kids, this is an authentic coming-of-age story with a fresh voice.

Buy it: Hearts Unbroken on Amazon

6. Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman

When Amanda Gorman read The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison in eighth grade, she was inspired to become a writer. "It was the first time I had seen a dark-skinned girl on the cover of a book and that absolutely enthralled me. Reading Morrison taught me how to write unapologetically with a Black feminist voice that was my own," she said. Later in life, when she spoke at the presidential inauguration in 2021, Gorman raised the voice of her generation. Her book of poems is expansive and inventive, and it's one of the top must-read books for today's middle school kids.

Buy it: Call Us What We Carry on Amazon

7. The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan

Simply put, this is one of the most well-written books you'll ever find in YA lit. Protagonist Leigh Chen Sanders' voice is stunning in this expertly woven tale of love, friendship, tragedy, and imagination.

Buy it: The Astonishing Color of After on Amazon

8. Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto

Yes, we're going there. No middle school book catalog is complete without a few good Manga titles. It's time to shrug off any reluctance and dive into what the kids are already reading. These are teacher-approved, rich with storytelling and character exposition, and ripe for literary analysis. If these titles don't seem fit for your students, check with them-they know best! First up is the classic Naruto, a story about a young chaotic kid who is determined to become the world's greatest ninja.

Buy it: Naruto on Amazon

9. Bakuman by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

This spin on traditional manga (with the usual high-flying warriors and action sequences) tells the story of two kids who want to become manga artists themselves. The characters are high school kids trying to live their dreams-very relatable to young readers.

Buy it: Bakuman on Amazon

10. A Silent Voice by Yoshitoki Oima

When Shoya meets Shoko six years after he knew her in school, he learns about the consequences of bullying. This is a great story for middle schoolers and is an accessible way into the manga genre.

Buy it: A Silent Voice on Amazon

11. The March Series by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell

The three-part graphic novel series details how John Lewis made his way from his family farm to the Edmund Pettus Bridge alongside Martin Luther King Jr. for the historic Selma-to-Montgomery March. Beautifully rendered and powerfully told, this trilogy lends itself to all kinds of classroom readings and activities.

Buy it: The March Series on Amazon

12. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

Acevedo brings her slam poet sensibility to this emotionally vivid story about Xiomara Batista, a first-generation Dominican American teen in a religious family who "feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood."

Buy it: The Poet X on Amazon

13. The Best at It by Maulik Pancholy

The first of two books by Maulik Pancholy, this story follows Rahul Kapoor, a middle schooler who loves his grandpa and is crushing on a boy at school.

Buy it: The Best at It on Amazon

14. The Benefits of Being an Octopus by Ann Braden

Explore the cultural divides around class and the gun debate through the eyes of seventh grader Zoey, who lives on the edges of society and tries to find her way forward.

Buy it: The Benefits of Being an Octopus on Amazon

15. Monster by Walter Dean Myers

The recipient of multiple awards, this novel follows Steve, an amateur filmmaker. As a way of coping with the horrific events that entangle him, he decides to transcribe his trial into a script, just like in the movies.

Buy it: Monster on Amazon

16. The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart

With connections to Common Core standards, this book follows Coyote, a young woman who travels the country with her dad in an old school bus. Over the course of thousands of miles, she will learn that going home can sometimes be the hardest journey of all.

Buy it: The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise on Amazon

17. Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Twelve-year-old Jerome is shot by a police officer who mistakes his toy gun for a real one. Now a ghost, Jerome watches the devastation unleashed on his family and community in the wake of what they see as an unjust and brutal killing. Soon, Jerome meets another ghost: Emmett Till, a boy from a very different time but similar circumstances.

Buy it: Ghost Boys on Amazon

18. Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson

The recipient of multiple awards and one of our favorite middle school books, this novel is a powerful story about a girl striving for success in a world that too often seems like it's trying to break her.

Buy it: Piecing Me Together on Amazon

19. Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper

Another one of our fave middle school books! Follow 11-year-old Melody, who is not like most people. She can't walk, she can't talk, she can't write, all because she has cerebral palsy. But she also has a photographic memory-she can remember every detail of everything she has ever experienced. She's the smartest kid in her whole school, but NO ONE knows it.

Buy it: Out of My Mind on Amazon

20. Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez

A timely story for middle schoolers. After Tyler's father is injured in a tractor accident, his family is forced to hire migrant Mexican workers to help save their Vermont farm from foreclosure. Tyler isn't sure what to make of them.

Buy it: Return to Sender on Amazon

21. Zenobia July by Lisa Bunker

Zenobia July is a trans girl in Arizona who is trying to adjust to a new school.

Buy it: Zenobia July on Amazon

22. In the Key of Us by Mariama J. Lockington

Another new addition to our list, this is a coming-of-age story about young love between Andi and Zora, two Black girls at a mostly white summer camp.

Buy it: In the Key of Us on Amazon

23. The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater

Taken from the national news headlines, this book follows two teenagers and a heinous hate crime that crosses gender and racial lines.

Buy it: The 57 Bus on Amazon

24. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

A tale of two stories, told in alternating sections, about two 11-year-olds in Sudan-a girl in 2008 and a boy in 1985.

Buy it: A Long Walk to Water on Amazon

25. Wanting Mor by Rukhsana Khan

Jameela lives with her mother and father in Afghanistan. Despite the fact that there is no school in their poor, war-torn village, and Jameela lives with a birth defect that has left her with a cleft lip, she feels relatively secure, sustained by her faith and the strength of her beloved mother, Mor. And then Mor passes away. ...

Buy it: Wanting Mor on Amazon

26. When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed

A graphic novel about growing up in a refugee camp, as told by a former Somali refugee.

Buy it: When Stars Are Scattered on Amazon

27. Clean Getaway by Nic Stone

Set against the backdrop of the segregation history of the American South, take a trip with an 11-year-old boy who is about to discover that the world hasn't always been a welcoming place for kids like him, and things aren't always what they seem-his G'ma included.

Buy it: Clean Getaway on Amazon

28. Gracefully Grayson by Ami Polonsky

Grayson is caught between knowing she's a girl and everyone believing she's a boy. This is a beautifully written story about self-esteem and empowerment.

Buy it: Gracefully Grayson on Amazon

29. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier and will become busier still. Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can't resist: books.

Buy it: The Book Thief on Amazon

30. George by Alex Gino

George knows she's a girl, but everyone else sees her as a boy. Gino does a masterful job of taking us into what social ignorance about gender assignment feels like.

Buy it: George on Amazon

31. Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

Genius Willow Chance loses both parents in a car crash, but she is nonetheless able to both change her life and impact those around her.

Buy it: Counting by 7s on Amazon

32. Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Born with extraordinary physical deformities, Auggie finally braves going to an actual school. He is stared at and tormented, but he also finds friendship. Middle schoolers will cheer for him and also cry for him.

Buy it: Wonder on Amazon

33. Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Castle Crenshaw, known as Ghost, has been running ever since his father threatened him and his mother with a gun. It's not until he starts running for the middle school track team that he begins to see what running can do for him.

Buy it: Ghost on Amazon

34. Ellen Outside the Lines by A.J. Sass

Ellen is a neurodiverse kid with a best friend who helps her navigate through school and sometimes confusing social situations. But when new friends and opportunities come along, Ellen has a chance to learn even more about how she actually fits into the world.

Buy it: Ellen Outside the Lines on Amazon

35. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

Ponyboy and his brothers, Darry and Sodapop, have a tough life. They know they can count on their friends-true friends who will do anything for them. Unfortunately, the Socs, a vicious gang of rich kids, make them prove their loyalties after a night of fighting goes too far.

Buy it: The Outsiders on Amazon

36. Nikhil Out Loud by Maulik Pancholy

Nikhil is a 13-year-old gay Indian American boy who depends on his voice for his joy-he's a voice actor for a popular cartoon. Then he ends up in a small Ohio town trying to put on a school musical. This is a relevant and touching story kids will love.

Buy it: Nikhil Out Loud on Amazon

37. The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

Basketball-loving twins Josh and Jordan find their way through isolation and conflict in this novel in verse by master poet Kwame Alexander.

Buy it: The Crossover on Amazon

38. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Melinda Sordino can't tell anybody why she called the police to break up a party the summer before ninth grade. In fact, after the trauma she suffered, she can't speak at all.

Buy it: Speak on Amazon

39. The Breadwinner series by Deborah Ellis

Parvana is 11 when the Taliban comes to power in Afghanistan. Her father is arrested, and women are not allowed to leave the house without a male escort. Parvana must disguise herself and find work to save her family.

Buy it: The Breadwinner series on Amazon

40. Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party by Ying Chang Compestine

Ling Chang must find a way to survive after her father is taken away during China's Cultural Revolution.

Buy it: Revolution Is Not a Dinner Party on Amazon

41. Stella by Starlight by Sharon Draper

Stella and her brother aren't supposed to leave the house at night, but they run into much bigger problems when they stumble on a Ku Klux Klan rally. Stella fights racism within her community and learns about compassion in the process.

Buy it: Stella by Starlight on Amazon

42. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Woodson's verse memoir tells the story of coming of age during the Civil Rights Movement.

Buy it: Brown Girl Dreaming on Amazon

43. Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn

Molly has concerns when her family moves into a church with a graveyard next door, but when her already-odd stepsister makes a sinister new friend, things get downright dangerous.

Buy it: Wait Till Helen Comes on Amazon

44. Refugee by Alan Gratz

Gratz weaves together stories of child refugees in three different eras: Nazi Germany, 1990s Cuba, and present-day Syria.

Buy it: Refugee on Amazon

45. Orbiting Jupiter by Gary Schmidt

Jack Hurd gets a foster brother, Joseph, an eighth grader whose only dream is to be with his daughter.

Buy it: Orbiting Jupiter on Amazon

46. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor

Nine-year-old Cassie Logan faces racial discrimination and financial hardship during the Great Depression.

Buy it: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry on Amazon

47. Uglies by Scott Westerfield

Tally Youngblood lives in a dystopia in which all 16-year-olds have cosmetic surgery to make them pretty.

Buy it: Uglies on Amazon

48. We Should Hang Out Sometime by Josh Sundquist

YouTuber Josh Sundquist tells the true story-with graphs!-of his failures in dating.

Buy it: We Should Hang Out Sometime on Amazon

49. Feed by M. T. Anderson

The Feed scrolls constantly through Titus' brain, providing him with entertainment, advertising, and social networking. On a spring break trip to the Moon, he meets a girl who sees life differently.

Buy it: Feed on Amazon

50. Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Spoiled princess Esperanza moves from her family's ranch in Mexico to a migrant camp during the Great Depression. She learns to rely on her inner strength and the support of her family.

Buy it: Esperanza Rising on Amazon

What are your favorite middle school books? Come share them in the WeAreTeachers Helpline group on Facebook.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
50 Great Books To Teach in Middle School

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Want to know the best middle school books to use in your class? We love these life-changing selections that will help your students grow.

# data[].attributes.body
Why should you read everyday? Alington discusses the importance of reading in both of the articles. Reading improves mental stimulation and can slow the progress of alzheimers or even prevent it. It’s important to keep your brain active and engaged. Stress reduction occurs because reading allows you to go away when you are reading a great story. One of the greatest impacts because of reading is all the knowledge that you gather.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Benefits of Reading: Why You Should Read Every Day

# data[].attributes.body
This article talks about how research has proven that students who are entering middle school struggle with comprehension strategies. Something that needs to be improved is how much teachers are going to a professional development about literacy and incorporating it into the classroom. According to the reading in class Alington states that “Struggling readers engage in little actual reading activity” (Alington, 2011, p.13). The research has shown that reading isn’t being done enough in classrooms.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The current crisis in adolescent literacy is well documented. There is a significant disparity between the education our students receive and the demands of life in the 21st century. Traditionally, education aims to raise standards by any means, but we are coming to see that preparing students f ...