A Reading Revolution: Students choose their books

Posting my original, uncut version of A Reading Revolution: Students choose their books, published on Rappler. 

I know education stories can be a hard sell, like this took awhile to publish, but it's finally out there and the response has been good. Geeks do abound in the Internet, yes? And it is good to give a damn about education and ideal learning environments in my book. 

More important than my frustration, here's a tiny sounding bell for better education for all kids. One story at a time. If you like what you read about in Teacher Joe's classroom please share, like on Facebook or tweet my latest Rappler story.  Thank you, blogger friend.

Seventh-grader Bella is reading John Green’s The Fault in our Stars. Beside her, Gabbie is reading Inkheart by Cornelia Funke. Isabelle’s book is The Absolutely True Story of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. In another side of the room, there are boys with various Rick Riordan books—from his action-packed Percy Jackson series. Two other kids are reading The Hunger Games.

This is not some random gathering of precocious bookworms. I am in Joe Sibayan’s classroom, where the Readers Workshop approach is used in teaching literacy.

I observe his class during independent reading time, when students bury them selves in their chosen books for 20 minutes. Later, they break up into groups to discuss what they have been reading, book club style. 

Literature circles were formed today according to themes. As it turns out, Bella, Gabbie and Isabelle’s theme is Man vs. Self. In another circle, Miguel is enjoying Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book. Nikos likes Gaiman too, but his choice is Odd and the Frost Giants. Circle mate Mikko is reading Michael Scott’s The Alchemist. Miguel tells me their theme is Man vs. Society.

If the 21 students in teacher Joe’s class choose 21 different books to read for a current theme, that would be fine with him. That would in fact be the point—giving students the choice.

A student consults with Teacher Joe.

He explains, "part of the education of any reader is developing the ability to browse through books, determine if a book matches your reading abilities and purpose for reading, and to decide on whether or not a book is worth pursuing."

For many of us who went to schools with a strict list of assigned books, this may seem revolutionary—and very new. But Readers Workshop was actually developed in the 1980s  at Columbia University's Teacher's College Reading and Writing Project (TCRWP). This reading revolution was started back then by Lucy Calkins, an educator who believed schools shouldn’t be dull and learning shouldn’t be rote.

Literacy Specialist Maggie Moon had worked with Calkins as a Senior Staff Developer at TCRWP. She explains, "many [education] scholars decided it was time to teach reading and writing the way people learn best, by becoming like apprentices to 'master' readers and writers. They wanted to help children develop a life-long love of reading, instead of seeing it only as an academic subject to master."

Their approach proved to be good for academics anyway. The State of New York eventually asked Calkins to roll her program for their school system, which was then suffering from dismal test scores. In time, the project turned things around for the city's low performing schools.

Since then, TCRWP has spread to other parts of the US and the world--including Keys Grade School in Mandaluyong, where Joe Sibayan teaches and acts as one of the Curriculum Coordinators. Maggie Moon flies in regularly to conduct seminars with him, as they both mentor the rest of the Keys teaching staff on how to implement Readers Workshop.

What if all a student wants to read is Twilight?

According Moon, nurturing passionate, analytical readers entails some letting go. Children should be exposed to many types of books, and some you may not consider quality reading. Picking up Gossip Girl or Jekyll and Heide is what teenagers tend to do, but that’s fine. They should find pleasure in reading. They should be allowed to grow into their own idiosyncrasies as readers.

Moon explains, “Strong readers have a specific sense of what they like and don't like. So I want to see kids acting like proficient readers as soon as they can. If that involves some Twilight reading, so be it.”

Bad books can even give good lessons on critical analysis. “Ideally, those kids reading Twilight can form a book club to discuss whether the writing is good, whether the characters are believable, whether the books or movies are better, whether there are other vampire series that deserve more attention, why or why not,” says Ms. Moon.

At their age, it is also more crucial to cultivate the stamina for reading and the habit of it, rather than imposing your choice of literature. This takes time and many books—all sorts and many levels of complexity—from R.L. Stine to Judy Blume and J.D. Salinger to Nick Joaquin.

What Readers Workshop does is expand students’ reading diet so they are drawn to other genres and notable authors. This is why in Keys Grade School, there are Classroom Libraries apart from the School Library.

A reminder from their reading mentor. Poster from a 4^th Grade classroom.

Get lost in your book. A reading nook inside a 4th Grade Classroom Library.

There are no textbooks here. 

Sibayan considers them as "artificial collections of text and questions." In classroom libraries, children are given access to authentic published material--carrying a mix of reference books as well as fiction books that can be read for pleasure.

"Steering children away from low quality reading material starts with making sure that the books children have access to in the classroom are all high-quality children's literature," he explains.

Readers Workshop can be implemented in various ways. Some teachers can be more liberal with choice than others. In Sibayan's classroom, students are still required to read certain books. He can pick a canon title for shared reading. Occasionally, he assigns titles or authors to be discussed for book clubs.

Letting children choose books they want to read is only one aspect of the approach. He adds, 'the emphasis is on putting books in children's hands and giving them a lot if time to actually read. Less time is spent on worksheets, written comprehension questions or art projects related to a text." 

Instead of constantly quizzing for dates and names, students are challenged to make connections and find relevance.

Sibayan, for instance, will ask them to examine a book's physical versus its psychological settings. He asks questions like, "What is the relationship of the theme to the book's setting?" 

Seventh-grader Gianinna answers in her reading journal:

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides (pages 1-2)

The setting is in the bathroom with blood on the bath mat and razor sinking in a toilet bowl. Cecilia’s mother is screaming and the paramedics are standing, shocked.

The rest of the book takes place in the neighborhood, a normal and ordinary neighborhood. This tells me that tragedy can happen to even a normal place or that beauty is ephemeral when tragedy strikes.

The normalcy of the neighborhood enhances the theme because nobody expects a normal and quiet neighborhood to be hit by tragedy or it shows that there is definitely more than meets the eye.

For today’s Read-Aloud, Sibayan is sharing passages from an assigned book—Paul Fleischman’s Seedfolks. All eyes and ears are on Teacher Joe as he reads with feeling:

“The older you are, the younger you get when you move to the United States. They don’t teach you that equation in school. Big Brain, Mr. Smoltz, my eighth grade math teacher, hasn’t even heard of it. It’s not in Gateway to Algebra. It’s Garcia’s Equation. I‘m the Garcia. 

Two years after my father and I moved here from Guatemala I could speak English. I learned it on the playground and watching lots of TV. Don’t believe what people say—cartoons make you smart.” 

This elicits laughs. A student chimes, “Yeah… TV isn’t always dumb.”

After Read-Aloud, Gabbie makes what they call in Readers Workshop a “text-to-self” connection: “When I was 10, a teacher asked me for a synonym for small. I said miniscule. And the teacher said, ‘Is that a word?’ I learned it from a cartoon.”

She’s no longer in that school. Gabbie likes it better in Keys where she can read Gaiman and Funke and Michael Scott for homework. They are her favorite authors.

“Schoolwork can be really hard, but I like the challenge… it’s the kind that makes me feel good about myself when I do well.” She likes her teachers too. “Teacher Joe is funny. And there’s no boring grammar stuff. You have to get deeper into the books. It’s not about memorizing. It’s about understanding.”

Like cartoons, books make you smart, right? I suspect Gabbie understands this more than the average seventh-grader. 

A Writer's Celebration

This morning, Bear woke me up to say, today is The Day, mama. He meant The Day for Writer's Celebration. A few hours later, I was in his school to have snacks and juice with him, his classmates and other parents. We gathered to toast the publishing of the kids' first non-fiction books for Writer's Workshop.

Two self-published 7-year-olds manning their writer's nooks...

One researched and wrote a book about wolves, the other researched and wrote about dinosaurs. They even made promotional posters.

Bear authored the book on wolves. He made a tree and wolf out of Legos for his writer's nook. Nook design and concept all his own. I was suggesting he add more elements in his booth when he was preparing for it. He was adamant: "I just want the lego figures and my poster and my book." Oh fine. Then, surprise... the nook included give-away bookmarks too. Nice touch.

Book topic, art and words also all their own. They may even misspell some words, but that's okay. The goal was for them to use their imagination, to share their own thoughts and interpretation of facts they researched. Here's how Bear blurbed his own book. He claims it's awesome. So confident. Haha!

Here's a preview of what's inside supposedly awesome book.

It even has a glossary. The mammal entry made me, and a few others chuckle. Teacher Tina claims it was a hit when she posted this in her facebook. Awesomely funny and cute...

Funny yes, but hey, scientifically accurate, nonetheless. All mammals do have mammary glands. Hehe! I just love these kids. Cheers to the Keys Araullo First Grade writers! Awesome effort Baby Bear.

Interest, Groups and Learning

Stumbled on another goose-bump inducing TED Talk. This one by education researcher Sugata Mitra. His experiments made me think of Keys Grade School. Children huddled about, questioning, talking in small groups, sometimes pairs collaborating on projects or solving problems. So different from the my experience of education-as-usual: classroom with 30-plus kids, where, ironically, it's actually just you and your notebook, or more specifically you taking dictation from the teacher.

I think Sugata Mitra is onto something with his Self Organized Learning Environment (SOLE). It shows how interest-driven, collaborative work is among the best ways to learn. Sometimes, we need to let kids go off with their own wandering minds to boost critical thinking and confidence. I believe this.

Ken Robinson's 2010 TED Talk

Sharing a gift fresh from this morning's email inbox. Headlining this week's TED newsletter is Ken Robinson's follow up to his legendary 2006 talk on education reform. Now that it's 2010, he appends: forget evolution, today's kids need an education revolution.

He touches on what he calls "the tyranny of common sense" which is basically how people are afraid to let go of industrial age education paradigms that value conformity and linearity. Such as... Standardized tests! Punishing homework! Dogmas kids must never question! Never mind that this is the kind of education that dislocates so many people from their natural talents while stifling creativity and free-thinking. Listen to the man himself and click that PLAY button.

In a place like Manila where appearances, conformity, tradition and dogma still reign... Ken Robinson is practically subversive. But thankfully the revolution is afoot in our little part of the world.

This leads me to the April 2010 issue of Working Mom Magazine. If you're curious about progressive education in our own setting, they have two articles you might want to read.

One is called Traditional vs. Progressive where writer Minnie Francia debunks a few myths about alternative schools in Manila that are veering away from the old industrial model Robinson talks about. Another is called Teaching Life Lessons, where Angela Abaya, Christian Pangilinan and Minnie Francia share insights gathered from parents who decided to send their kids to progressive schools.

Read if you're open to... well, opening your minds. Warning: I was one of the parents interviewed for the Teaching Life Lessons article. Advanced apologies, in case our two-centavos-worth make you feel like putting your head in the oven!

Progressive Schools 2.0

Oh... the end of March. Tomorrow I will have my last PTC (Parent Teacher Conference) for the 2009-2010 school year. Chicha is done with nursery. Bear's prep days are over. If you ask them, they'll tell you they had a lot of fun. Yes, school was fun.

The year she grew her first monggo plant.

Cloud, sun, house. Having fun with tangrams.

Their school directress Teacher Didi highlighted the word fun in her end of the school year address to parents. Definitely the kids had fun, she says, but she reminded us that in the process they learned... and learned a lot... and learned skills that are relevant to their lives and their futures. Literacy, check. Math, check. Science, check. Most importantly, she reminded us how the kids tucked in another year's experience in collaboration and another year of finding joy in learning -- and finding fulfillment in their work. In essence those were Teacher Didi's words, but unfortunately I have no verbatim transcript of her year-end speeches.

Cashiers of Bili Ka Bigas Ko. Name of bigasan their own idea.

The cutest tinderas in town.

Fortunately, I found this op-ed piece from the New York Times written by Susan Engel, Senior Psychology Lecturer and Director of the Program in Teaching at William's College. She wonderfully echoes the words of Teacher Didi. Any parent and teacher should read it as it highlights what developmental experts have known for so long about effective, authentic learning for children. Here's a snippet from Playing to Learn by Susan Engel....

In order to design a curriculum that teaches what truly matters, educators should remember a basic precept of modern developmental science: developmental precursors don’t always resemble the skill to which they are leading. For example, saying the alphabet does not particularly help children learn to read. But having extended and complex conversations during toddlerhood does. Simply put, what children need to do in elementary school is not to cram for high school or college, but to develop ways of thinking and behaving that will lead to valuable knowledge and skills later on.

Engel succinctly and eloquently explains why we had decided to put our kids in progressive schools like Explorations and Keys. So much gratitude goes to Chicha's Teachers Thrina, Aiza and Grace as well as Bear's Teachers Joy, Mandy and Timmy.

Teacher Aiza tries on her feathery hair clips.

Teacher Thrina borrows her pearls.

Thank you teachers for the rich conversations, for letting them use their imaginations, for allowing them to find the patterns and connections themselves, for obliging them their million-and-one questions. Thank you for those experiences you set up so that they constructed knowledge as opposed to just swallowing it -- just as Engel prescribes.

Keys Prep Days. Happy Days.

I mock-complained to Teacher Mandy when I had to skip eating rice for two entire days as part of Bear's "human experiment"... crazy teachers and your wild homework ideas! But really, this is what we love about you. You can bet he learned a lot during their theme investigation on rice. And he had fun.

As Bear read me his teachers' goodbye notes for him, longingly he said, very cuddly-bear-like... "I'm going to miss my teachers"... with lips curling downward and a tinge of sadness.

Chicha had asked me for the nth time "Do I have school tomorrow?" I explained -- again -- that she's on summer vacation. Her response: "this vacation is taking too long." That was just days into the summer break! That we were having a leisurely day at the mall involving a carousel ride and Golden Spoon yogurt when we had this conversation didn't matter... she was still thinking about how she missed school.

Yes my dearies, school was wonderfully fun. We're grateful because that's how it should be.

Street Art For Kids

Keys Grade School is going to help make this city cooler, one kid at a time. Here's a new addition to their Summer Programs....

Click on poster to enlarge.

Kids just love painting on walls... so let them. Only this time you can't call it vandalism. It's responsible street art under the guidance of Pilipinas Street Plan. As Teacher Joe explains it, "for this program, we decided to teach street art to kids with a view towards responsibility and focusing mainly on expression within bounds of art. Definitely, no encouraging of vandalism!" Coolness. Details on the poster.

When Kids Ask Tough Questions....

How do we answer? I asked the child experts and shared their wisdom in this month's issue of Working Mom Magazine.

Tell Me Why

experts answer tough questions kids ask

Inquiring young minds want to know: "How did I get inside your tummy?" A child who had just experienced the death of his Lola may ask: "Mama, are you going to die too? Questions like these may fluster even the most intelligent and enlightened parents.

When my son was two, he asked: "Why is the sky so big?" Hmmm... do I reply with science or do I get into my first existential conversation with him? I settled for a bit of both, but it really got me thinking. When my child gives me a tough question, how deep should I go? How specific? I want to be honest but, what if I confuse him more? Suddenly I had more questions than my son.

So, I turned to the pros. Child experts give us advice on what--and what not--to say in answer to 8 tricky questions kids can ask:

1 Why did Lola have to die?

Bennie Ancheta-Veloso, curriculum director of Explorations Preschool and mom to 5-year-old Mauro advises against saying "Lola is just asleep" or "resting." First of all, it's just not true. Young children don't grasp euphemisms well. If Lola was taken by an illness, a good approach is to emphasize that she does not feel any pain or "owee" anymore. Don't forget to clarify that death happens when people are extremely sick, so your child is not terrified by his own sniffles.

Bringing God into the discussion at too-young an age is also tricky territory. My 4-year-old niece was devastated when her favorite Lolo passed away. In an effort to appease her, she was told Lolo was taken by God to live with him in Heaven. Now she's upset with God because "he takes people away and never gives them back!" When talking to young children about death, explain the facts first without the spiritual aspect. You can discuss your religious beliefs another time.

Teacher Bennie offers advice that's good for any question thrown your way-- always look for context. Asking where the question comes from (a book, a TV show, or an experience?) will guide you in what direction to take your answer. Be honest about death being inevitable, but keep your answer brief. Add details only if your child has follow-up questions.

2 How did I get inside your tummy?

Deborah Rothman wrote the book Sex and Sensibility: The Thinking Parent's Guide to Talking About Sex. She says a question like this does not necessarily call for a talk about the birds and the bees. A small child just wants to know: "How did I get here?"

If your 3-year-old son asks you this question, he's not asking for details about your sex life. You just have to give him a little biology lesson. If your child is curious about how the sperm enters mommy's body, you can say: "When adults make a baby, the vagina and penis fit together like puzzle pieces so the sperm can go in to meet the egg."

Teacher Bennie gave her inquisitive preschool son this answer, as she drew him a "scientific" illustration: "Daddy has a kind of seed inside his body called a sperm, and I have an egg inside mine. This sperm from daddy joined up with the egg inside me. The sperm swam to my egg using its strong tail. It swam very, very fast."

3 Why do they say Tito John is gay?

Rothman suggests you first clarify what a couple is. Give examples like you and your husband, an aunt and uncle your child knows are married. Explain that couples love each other in a special way. They love each other's company so much that they spend a lot of time together or get married like mom and dad. Then explain how there are cases when couples are made up of two men or two women. Since Tito John has a boyfriend, not a girlfriend, then he is gay. In case Tito John is single, say he prefers that his special someone would be a man like himself, not a woman.

Kids will often take this simple, factual answer. Tell your child that they may hear the word "gay" used negatively and that it is nasty to use the word that way. Use this as a teaching moment to explain tolerance and acceptance of different people.

4 If God is real, why can't I see him?

Didi Manahan, directress of Keys Grade School, says she is conscious about being theologically accurate when answering questions about God. A practicing Catholic, she would respond this way:

"There are many things that are real that we can't see. We can't see the air, but we believe it is there because we can see it rustling leaves or feel it cool our faces. We can't see radio waves, but we know they are there because they make our cell phones and internet work. In the same way, we can't see God, but we can see the things He does. When you are extra patient with your brother that is God working through you. When people helped the victims of Ondoy without being asked, that's God working through them.

5 If God is good, why are there bad people and poor people?

Teacher Didi says that if you do not have a ready-response, it's fine to admit this to your child. Explain that you need time to think about your answer or even do some research. She herself took time to think this one out and came up with this reply:

"There are poor people and there are bad people not because God made them that way, but because of bad choices that people make. God did not promise he would get rid of poverty or bad people. What he promised us is that even if we sometimes do bad things, he will love us. He also promised that if we are sorry for the bad things we do, when it is time for us to join Him in Heaven He will welcome us. He made this promise to everyone."

6 Mom and dad are fighting, are they going to get a divorce?

Leah See, assistant directress of Keys Grade School says, "This particular question is very telling of a child's anxiety. It's important to affirm your child's feelings first, then give your answer." Here's how she would reply:

"I can see you're upset because your mom and dad are fighting. Moms and dads try their best to love each other, but sometimes they disagree and that can lead to an argument. When they argue or fight it doesn't mean they are getting a divorce or that they don't love each other anymore. They just have to figure out how to resolve their disagreement."

7 Why is Sandro's house bigger and nicer than ours?

This question reflects an unintended form of peer pressure and a child's wish to be more like his friend or for you to be more like his parents. Joe Sibayan, curriculum coordinator of Keys Grade School advises against using statements like "they are richer" or "we are poorer" or "because we can't afford it." This can make a child feel deprived, maybe even skew his sense of values towards materialism -- or stir up envy.

Assure your child you have enough resources to care for the family, but emphasize that being rich in love and happiness is more important than material wealth. Here's how teacher Joe would put it:

"Grown-ups decide to do different things with their money. Sandro's parents decided to spend a lot of money on making their house nice and big. We decided to spend it on other things, like that nice trip we took last year and saving money for your school. How did you feel when you saw Sandro's house was so big and nice? I hope you felt happy for him, because that's how we should feel when we see other people have nice things."

8 Why is f@_k! a bad word?

Emphasize to your child that words in themselves are not bad, but the intention behind saying them can be the problem, says teacher Joe. Remember previous question No. 3? If your child is reprimanded for blurting an expletive and asks why that word is bad, here's how he would explain it:

"You know that you can touch in different ways, right? There's a touch that's loving, like when you hug or shake hands. There's a touch that hurts, like when hands are used to hit someone. It's the same when you talk. You can talk in a loving way by using gentle words. But there are words that can hurt. Those words you just said are words that hurt others, so we choose not to say them."