Self-Selected Reading involves much more than just allowing students to quietly flip through books. You can use this time to expose students to a variety of text types and genres that they might not otherwise encounter. This could be the first step toward a lifelong love of reading.
Research
Comprehensive literacy instruction in your classroom may be based on the Four Blocks framework, the Every Child, Every Day philosophy, or another system. Regardless of your approach, it is important that your students have regular opportunities to select texts that they would like to read. We know that students who read more, understand more, and are more likely to continue reading when they have the opportunity to choose what they read (Allington & Gabriel, 2012). According to Guthrie & Humenick (2004), the two most important factors for improving reading motivation and comprehension are access to many books and personal choice of what to read. These principles hold true for readers of all ages and abilities, including learners with intellectual disabilities. Let’s explore some ways to give your readers meaningful opportunities to select texts.
Application
Self-Selected Reading involves much more than just allowing students to quietly flip through books. You can use this time to expose students to a variety of text types and genres that they might not otherwise encounter. This could be the first step toward a lifelong love of reading.
Classroom Library
One of the greatest things that you can do for your students is to create a classroom library. Assemble a large collection of texts that include a variety of topics and genres.
Text Types
Storybooks are great, and there are many other types of texts to include in your self-selected reading library. Be sure to add non-fiction books, magazines, brochures, poems, song lyrics, menus, and online texts, too. Another great idea is to include some of your students’ writing samples in the classroom library. You might also choose to include books that feature characters with disabilities.
Selecting a Book
Self-selected reading time provides an opportunity to teach students how to select a book. Use a think aloud strategy to model for students. For example, you might hold up a book and say, “I can tell by the cover that this book is about monsters. I like monsters. Inside I see some silly pictures and I think that I can read some of the words in this book all by myself. I am going to choose this book because I think it will be fun to read.” You may also want to include a book basket with your favorite titles and authors from which children can select.
Resources
- Self-selected reading texts can be found online. Tar Heel Reader features thousands of free e-books.
References
Allington, R. L., & Gabriel, R. E. (2012). Every child, every day. Educational Leadership, 69, 10-15.
Guthrie, J. T., & Humenick, N. M. (2004). Motivating students to read: Evidence for practices that increase motivation and achievement. In P. McCardle & V. Chhabra (Eds.), The voice of evidence in reading research (pp. 329-354). Baltimore, MD: Paul Brookes.
