Customer Reviews

Igniting a Passion for Reading: Successful Strategies for Building Lifetime Readers

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First of all, there is a quirky, funny and vastly different forward by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser (The Sisters), whom I adore. Secondly, Steve Layne is a genius! Not only is he a genius, he is my literacy soul mate....but his wife has nothing to worry about, as I am happily married. If you are passionate about books and kids, then this is a book you must buy and read! It is filled with honesty, heart, humor, and strategies you can truly put into place in your own classroom to help ignite a passion for reading. The best part is, they are easy, inexpensive and not time consuming! An added bonus for educators is a final chapter outlining how to organize and plan for successful author visits. I also enjoyed the reminiscences of some of my favorite authors which precede each chapter. I can't praise it enough....it is worth every penny!

This is a great book. It is easy to read and has an index of "reading inventories" a teacher can use to find out what his/her students are interested in reading. I highly recommend this book! I have not finished it yet due to my hectic schedule. I really enjoyed how it started out discussing how many people are "alliterate". This was a new word for me. It means you have the ability to read but you don't read. This can be caused by many things such as no motivation. Teachers will not regret purchasing this book.

Solid strategies for teaching students to read...and great suggestions for igniting passion for reading! I chose this book as part of my professional development this year...and so glad I did!

My passion for encouraging/teaching reading has been fired up after reading Dr. Layne's book. I've recommended it to our principal, librarian and teaching staff at our elementary school. I was able to read through the book with ease and found I had a smile on my face as I was doing so. I can "feel" Dr. Layne's passion for reading and I want to pass it on. I only wish I could hear him speak in person one day. It would be nice to be part of his ideal school, too.

A "must read" for teachers as a reminder of why it is a joy to find pleasure in reading. Lanye urgently defines how we are to spark the same desires and love for reading in our students and children. A guide to rebuild and instill the passion of reading that has been lost due to the demand of instruction practices.

As a veteran teacher for 13 years with a masters in C & I/reading, I found this book to be inspirational and practical and I even ordered another copy for my fellow teacher with whom I exchange ideas. I have read just about every researcher and book on the subject and can, without question, highly recommend this one. I chose to order it because of the 5 star ratings of previous reviews. I WAS NOT going to buy another READING book!! LOL. Steven Layne inspires, but gives very practical, applicable ideas. What I think I loved the most was when he said the four most important words a student can hear are "I thought of you." Isn't it obvious that Dr. Layne LOVES kids!! He then went on to show how you can put those words into action. As with any book, a teacher has to take from it what will work for them, where they are at with teaching, style, personality. I learned, long ago, you cannot copy exactly what someone else has done. I found many ideas which are simple and easy to apply in almost any reading program you teach. I love how he encourages teachers as readers and read aloud time (my favorite time of any school day). As Kelly Gallagher said in his book, Readicide, our problem is not illiteracy but alliteracy...students who can read but chose not to. Dr. Layne is all about his students becoming literate, thoughtful, motivated readers. Reading is the most important skill a child will ever learn in their lifetime and is the responsibility of ALL teachers. I want to teach it with excellence. Dr. Layne has inspired and motivated me to let my students know "I thought of them!!"

Every summer I have good intentions to read at least 2-3 professional books however, ofttimes I get bogged down after chapter 4 or so and start another book-- Not so with Dr. Layne's book! I could not put it down (hence the chocolate comparison :) Veteran teachers to first year teachers will be enriched by Igniting a Passion for Reading as well as each grade levels across the board! His direct style is clear and concise. His love for children and books comes together in this easy-to-read text! The last line "Teach the children--and treat them well" sums it all up. If we, as educators, aren't lighting fires in our students to become lifelong readers we are not only not treating them well but we are indeed cheating them. Thanks for a funny, pithy, positive, and powerful read!

Over my years of teaching, I have invested in many books on teaching reading skills. This book is one of the best. Steven Layne writes in an easy to read style and his suggestions and ideas are actually useful and extremely practical. He suggests small things that don't take a lot of time and money to implement but yet make a difference in everyday reading instruction. My passion for reading and for igniting a passion for reading in my students was reignited! I am using many of his ideas this year in my classroom.

I found the book an easy read--very conversational--and more beneficial to new teachers: remember there is a 50 percent turnover every 5 years. So, as a veteran, the early portion of the book, though pleasant, was not that informative.

Then, I hit Chapter 5, which Layne lauds as his quintessential chapter in the book. I consider it onerous to the point of being silly.

Chapter 6 does NOT describe--as purported--reading FOR PLEASURE! It's testing. Layne hates book reports, but loves well-presented "book chats". Well..., dear author (and reader-teacher), not all students can handle a chat and prefer the prose which can be made creative--to include charts, a skit....you name it.

Another emphasis of the author is using a rubric. Many consider such an instrument way too rigid.

Chapter 7 is much to do about nothing. If the book is interesting, a park bench or window sill is fine. Who needs a lounge. My students experienced this reading time, known as SSR (Sustained Silent Reading), every day after lunch. I wouldn't even try to expend the energy to create a reading lounge. And even though Layne says a big NO to using the school library for casual, comfortable reading (SSR), I would claim a big YES if the facility is suitable.

But all is not lost. Chapter 8's First Read Club seems a neat idea because children like identifying with certain others among their peers. Nevertheless, a rating chart on a small bulletin board will have much the same effect.

In addition, Chapter 8 is Layne's best chapter. I highly recommend his Poetry Breaks, Newspaper [for/by students] Day, the Club Read Program, and, especially, Picture Book of the Month. (My junior high students loved them!)

Chapter 9 is about how to handle a visiting author. I've never read this elsewhere. Very informative.

A "testimonial" at the end of each chapter is a great idea, making his philosophy more realistic. We don't know where Layne obtained these folks, but they do write about the wonderment of books in their life.

Chapter 10 is Layne's neat attempt at scheduling his program/s, but if you're the type of person who doesn't like being told what and when to do whatever, then forget this chapter.

The Creative Teacher: Activities for Language Arts (Grades 4 through 8 and Up)

This is a fabulous book. Filled with useful ideas that every teacher can use. There are lots of practical ideas that you can pick and choose from to add excitement, drama, and heightened awareness of reading and literacy. The bonus is that the ideas are incredibly easy to implement. I had many forehead slapping "why didn't I think of that" moments while reading. When I implemented the ideas they worked beautifully and yes ignited a passion for reading in my students. Well done. RECOMMEND.