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I used to think that I should keep all my books in my library, whether students read them or now, now I know it's okay to weed through and discard/donate unused books to make room for more!

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I used to think that I should keep all my books in my library, whether students read them or now, now I know it's okay to weed through and discard/donate unused books to make room for more!

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I used to think that giving the students time to read, just for practice/pleasure, was a productive use of class time. Now I know that giving time for choice and reading for the sake of reading is essential to my students' growth as readers.

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I used to think I should encourage/push students to finish a book, but now I think allowing free abandonment empowers students and helps them find who they are as readers.

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I used to think I should encourage/push students to finish a book, but now I think allowing free abandonment empowers students and helps them find who they are as readers.

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I used to think I could sacrifice a little scheduled reading time to get other "important" things done. Now it is clear that this time should be designated and protected as much, or more, than any other.

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I used to think that I should feel guilty if someone walked into my room and my students were 'just' reading independently for pleasure, but now I know that is a valuable way to build passionate readers with a love of literacy. Readers become good readers with practice and reading for pleasure is PRACTICING reading. :)

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I used to think that I should feel guilty if someone walked into my room and my students were 'just' reading independently for pleasure, but now I know that is a valuable way to build passionate readers with a love of literacy. Readers become good readers with practice and reading for pleasure is PRACTICING reading. :)

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I used to think I didn't have time for book talks but now I know I can easily model & incorporate them into our routine to engage students to read books their friends love & enjoy.

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I too thought independent reading was a way to fill a few minutes between support classes, but know that it is imperative for students to practice reading a novel of their choice.

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I too thought independent reading was a way to fill a few minutes between support classes, but know that it is imperative for students to practice reading a novel of their choice.

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I used to think organizing my library by lexile was an awesome idea, but now I'm considering reorganizing it into bins...by theme, topic, picture books, etc.

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I used to think organizing my library by lexile was an awesome idea, but now I'm considering reorganizing it into bins...by theme, topic, picture books, etc.

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I used to think I had to justify independent reading time in class, but now I don't.  

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I used to think I had to justify independent reading time in class, but now I don't.  

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I used to think that giving students independent reading time was self indulgent on my part-but now I know that research supports it.

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I used to think a reader would learn to love a book if they just got to the "good" part but now I know it is ok to abandon a book and empower a student to have more control and choice in their reading.

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I used to think a reader would learn to love a book if they just got to the "good" part but now I know it is ok to abandon a book and empower a student to have more control and choice in their reading.

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I use to think the more books I have in my library the better,
but now I think quality over quantity. When books are displayed that are appealing, it will capture more readers and create more invested readers.

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I used to think independent reading was a way to fill those awkward 10-15 minute time slots in the day, but now I know, it should be a protected time for students to read for fun!

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I used to think independent reading was a way to fill those awkward 10-15 minute time slots in the day, but now I know, it should be a protected time for students to read for fun!

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I used to think my library was best organized by lexile. Now I am grateful that each book is lexiled, however I plan to reorganize my library by genre. I now see the benefit of labeling them by genre, as my 3rd graders are just now being introduced to genre within literature.

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I used to think I should keep every single book I have collected over the years, but now I think it is okay to throw/give away old books that need to be replaced.

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I used to feel a bit bad having early finishers read but now I don't

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I used to feel a bit bad having early finishers read but now I don't

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I used to do all of these practices and yet never would adhere to them myself. I now think we need to show how avid readers read, not just how student readers read.

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I used to think that I was the only one responsible for book recommendations, but now I know that kids can recommend books (and it doesn't have to be strictly in the form of a book report!).

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I used to think how can I possibly know where each of my students are in regard to meeting the standards without giving them a weekly reading assessment. Now I know that I can confer with readers during independent reading time and that will provide me with valuable information about their reading strengths and needs.

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I used to think how can I possibly know where each of my students are in regard to meeting the standards without giving them a weekly reading assessment. Now I know that I can confer with readers during independent reading time and that will provide me with valuable information about their reading strengths and needs.

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I used to think I didn't have enough time for students to independently read every day. Now I know I need to practice what I preach: Reading is valuable to every subject in school so READ!

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I used to think that I should hold onto every book that was given to me to build my library, but now I know to continually evaluate my library and keep it updated. It's okay to throw books away. If you don't want your own child reading it, then why would you want any child reading it!!

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I used to think grouping students by reading level was the most efficient way to teach readers, but now I know that grouping readers by their needs is much more effective and encouraging for all students.

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I used to think I had to assign a reading task or response every time the students read, but now I know that can be damaging to building engaged readers and there are so many other ways to check in on my readers.

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I used to think that I had to justify time for students to "just read", but now I think that I do not need to defend independent reading-- I should protect it because research proves it empowers readers!