reluctant readers.

i have this kid in my homeroom class.

like any other 8th grade boys, he thinks he's just about the coolest thing since sliced bread.

last year, he was in one of my 7th grade classes, so this is our second year together. last year, he NEVER read. i tried so hard to find him a book that would engage him! in my school's district, we're putting Balanced Literacy into practice. Balanced Literacy basically means that the kids get to choose their own books--we've completely done away with the whole-class novel, which is pretty refreshing. the kids are all expected to have a book of their own choice that they read on a daily basis. Balanced Literacy ALSO means that we spend 50 percent of our time in English doing genuine reading and writing. this is pretty great as well, because i KNOW that my kids are reading and writing. heck! they're doing it right in front of my eyes!

anyway, back to this student. last year, i searched high and low for a book that would hold his interest. but daily, i found myself watching him simply pass his eyes over the words in whatever book he'd picked up that day, never actually enjoying any of it.

for an english teacher, this is the most frustrating thing in the world.

i LOVE books! i want all of my students to love them too! but sometimes, being excited about reading is just not enough to get a kid excited about it as well.

hence my struggle to find him the perfect book.

last year, i finally gave him Where the Red Fern Grows. i loved this book as a kid and read it frequently even as an adult. i hoped that the dogs/hunting/wilderness factor would draw him in. and it DID!

last year, he finished Where the Red Fern Grows. and then, during Teacher Appreciation Week, i found a card from him in my Teacher Appreciation mailbox (a large envelope stapled outside my classroom door). the card read:

Miss,

Thank you for helping me finish my first book ever.

i read that card, and immediately teared up.

so this year! i decided that i would help this student continue cultivating a love for reading. we were off to a good start! he'd finally finished a book! i knew that he could at least finish another one!

the year started off rocky. he chose a book at the beginning of the year--a survival story of some sort by Gary Paulsen--and managed to finish it! and then a month went by and i was seeing a repeat performance of last year. every morning he came in, picked up a random book and let his eyes glaze over the words within. but he wasn't engaged.

so i made some suggestions. how about this one? nope. this one looks good! nope. another Gary Paulsen, perhaps? nopers.

so i recommended the one book i knew he would never be able to resist.

and you know what? he loved it.

thus began a harrowing journey into the land of books for my little reluctant reader. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events had just become pretty popular among a handful of my homeroom kids, and he picked up the first one and powered through that next. then the second one. when he'd finished The Wide Window (#3!), i asked if he'd like to continue on with number four.

"nah, miss. i think i want to read something else."

well, okay then!

he searched for a couple of days, trying a few things out. and then one day...

i held my breath as he chose a copy of The Hunger Games from the shelf. i didn't want to spook him by voicing my enthusiasm outright. it was like watching a fawn creep into your yard for a bite of grass--i felt like if i even looked directly at it, he would get gun-shy and run away with his tail between his legs. so i waited. and i waited.

a couple of days into him reading the book, i stopped by his desk and pointed at it while his table was in the middle of some group work. "oh! The Hunger Games!" i said as casually as i could muster (don't mess it up! don't mess it up!) "that's a great book. kids killing kids, you know--lots of good stuff. you're going to really enjoy it."

what i really wanted to do was dance a jig.

two weeks later.

we're in the computer lab. the kids are working on a final draft of a piece of writing they've been creating for a couple of weeks, and i hear this same kid, trying to be the cool 8th grader he believes he has to be, say, "yeah, well, reading's not that great anyway."

i stop by his computer desk. "are you honestly saying you're not enjoying The Hunger Games?"

he looked up at me with the most sheepish eyes i'd ever seen.

i didn't push it, because i knew he was just trying to look cool.

fast forward to this Tuesday.

we're having some of our genuine reading time in class. the kids are spread around the classroom, some in desks, some sprawled out on the floor (they're allowed to get comfy when we're reading), and this particular student is sitting in a desk where i can clearly see both him and his book. he's about halfway through, and so far, no signs of stopping.

all of a sudden, he says, "WHAT!?" really loudly.

it's EXTREMELY quiet, like i said. so naturally, everyone looks up.

they soon realize that nothing of consequence is happening and go back to their own novels.

but i see this moment for what it truly is.

this student--this reluctant reader of mine--has just had such a visceral reaction to a BOOK that he literally yelled at it!

he makes eye contact with me, and i see that sheepish look come back. he knows he's enjoying this book. and he knows i know it too.

"what part are you at?" i ask quietly.

he tells me that he's just finished part one. "Peeta just said he's in love with Katniss."

ah, yes. i remember that part clear as day. i'm pretty sure that wherever i was when i read that same page, i too yelled out, "WHAT!?"

but that moment, when this student of mine, who read his first book EVER last year yelled at a book...

well, that is EXACTLY the kind of moment that i live for.

that kind of moment makes it all worth it.

PS: thank you Suzanne Collins. thank you for writing a trilogy that draws in even the most reluctant of readers. <3