After Testing Blues

So now what? Testing is over and I keep hearing over and over again that learning seems to be coming to a halt. Well, I beg to differ on that note. It appears to me that there are still TEKS that need to be taught. We as teachers are still required to teach. It's not over until its over. And even when they think its over, it's really not. At the end of the school year when students are planning on watching tons of television and playing unmonitored amounts of video games, I hope they remember or are reminded to pick up a great book. Wishful thinking. But, I am reminding them everyday of the importance of summer reading. The most important single thing I instilled in children this year, was the significance of reading a just right, appealing, high interest, and satisfying book. I hope they practice what they have learned in fourth grade and continue with the reading habits they have exercised this year. Their reading goals over the summer should include to read- A LOT. I'm planning on having some type of summer book club over the summer where students can, if they choose to, join the book club and participate in literary discussions on Edmodo to increase summer reading activity. I will allow students to check out books to take with them over the summer and also provide information to parents about the nearest public library. It makes me nervous to think that children may not read over the summer as much as I want them to. However, I strongly believe that if I make books available to them, they will have the tools to help reduce the summer reading achievement gap. I have the after testing blues because I cannot shove the notion out of my mind that when people think of the end of the school year or beginning of summer, that books become secondary for many or completely obsolete. Hopefully, my ideas will put books in the hands of children that do not have access to books over the summer and help in closing the existing reading achievement gap.

Check out these articles about the significance of summer reading:

http://www.reading.org/general/publications/blog/engage/engage-single-post/engage/2013/03/21/one-equally-effective-but-lower-cost-option-to-summer-school

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=dGVhY2hlcnNyZWFkLm5ldHx0ZWFjaGVyc3JlYWQtbmV0fGd4OmIwNDlhZTkxZDUzNzI1ZA

Facts about summer reading:

http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/files/sc2012_facts.pdf

Edmodo website:

http://www.edmodo.com/