When I think about myself as a reader my mind goes in so many different directions because I am always surrounded by books. They are in stacks on my nightstand, on my desk, in my car, and overflowing from my children's bookshelves, they are everywhere! I love books and I love to read. I, like many of my colleagues tend to be a "seasonal" reader. In the summer there is nothing I enjoy more than reading a book. I mostly read fiction for pleasure. I love "get-away" books. You know the kind of books that take you somewhere, the kind you can't put down. I love reading easy books like the ones written by Sophie Kinsella but I also enjoy the much deeper novels of Jodi Picoult and everything in between. I can read two books like this over a vacation weekend if you let me.
During the school year I devour books that will help me better myself as a teacher. Currently I am reading Igniting Creativity in Gifted Learners, K-6 by Joan Franklin Smutny and S.E. von Fremd. Books like this I will read and re-read, mark pages, highlight, and take notes until I think I've "got-it" and can put it into practice.
I also always have some sort of inspirational book lying around that I can pick up and "read on the run." One of my favorites is Laugh Yourself to Sleep by Rachel St. John-Gilbert. She describes her book as nighttime devotions for the "Unconventional Woman." It is a perfect "pick me up" book.
I am a lover of children's literature. I am always searching for books to share with my children and my students. In fact, a package just arrived on my doorstep yesterday. The book fair just so happened to be at our school this week and while browsing the racks I came across the most fantastic book simply titled Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. This book is perfect for my gifted class because it is based around the old duck/rabbit optical illusion that has been around forever. It is about seeing things from two completely different perspectives, which is what my students tend to do. After purchasing this book I just had to have more by this author so I bought two more books that are perfectly suited for my class as well, Spoon and Little Oink. I can't wait to share all three with my students!
So I really am a lifelong reader. I simply love to read. Developing students who are lifelong readers has always been my goal as a teacher. I was talking to my students the other day about one of my childhood favorites, Be Nice to Spiders, I can't remember who it was written by but I can see the cover and remember the book by heart. I plan to find it this week and use it in a lesson.
So, now it is your turn to tell me who you are as a reader! I can't wait to read the replies!
