For the past several years, my annual learning goals have centered around deepening my understanding of Structured Literacy—an approach rooted in the Science of Reading and grounded in decades of research into how children’s brains acquire and process written language.
As educators, we know that teaching reading is not just an academic goal—it is a matter of equity. Ensuring that all students receive access to high-quality, evidence-based literacy instruction means we are actively dismantling barriers to learning. We are building a culture of belonging, wellbeing, and opportunity.
Structured Literacy prioritizes clear, intentional, and research-informed instruction. Here are the core principles that define this approach:
Sequential
Skills are introduced in a logical, developmentally appropriate order, with careful scaffolding to ensure mastery before moving forward.
Explicit
Instruction is direct, intentional, and interactive. The gradual release model—“I do, We do, You do”—supports learners through modelling and guided practice.
Systematic & Cumulative
A structured scope and sequence ensures instruction builds progressively, helping students connect new learning to prior knowledge.
Diagnostic
Assessment is ongoing and timely. It drives instruction and allows educators to respond to students’ evolving needs with precision.
If you are beginning your journey understanding the Science of Reading and Structured Literacy, it is encouraged you to explore the resources listed below. The Margaret Wilson Library is a great place to check out books !
I love when ETFO releases their heritage month posters. They are such a valuable resource that teachers can use all year long and not just during heritage months. Annually, ETFO releases heritage month posters for Black History Month, Asian Heritage Month, Women’s History Month, and Jewish Heritage month. You can find the past years’ posters on the ETFO website.
These posters are an important way to bring acknowledgement and celebration of different identities to the classroom. You can be rest assured that the poster designs were created by artists who self-identify with that heritage and they are engaging and beautiful. Accompanying each poster you will see background information for you, the educator, to feel confident in teaching and learning about the message of the poster. You will also find a lesson plan or discussion prompts with some of the posters that help to guide conversations with students around the visual. Because they are posted on the ETFO website, you can project past and current posters to a screen or on a device so that you can look at all the details together.
There are a few different strategies that I’ve used to engage with the heritage month posters. I do suggest that you read the background information for educators to prepare for questions and guide conversations as students usually have lots to look at and ask questions about when they first see one of these designs. While I sometimes will engage in a whole class discussion or follow one of the ETFO lesson plans more closely, other times I will have an opening activity for students to engage with a few different posters. Two activities that I’ve used this year are:
Carousel Walk
Select a few posters to display around the room. I’ve kept physical versions of past year’s posters, but you can display them on devices or project them onto a board.
Place a chart paper with each poster. Have students circulate in small groups and with a marker or pencil, they write down anything they see on the poster or one word about how the design makes them feel.
Discuss and debrief their ideas together as a large group. I always like to end with an exit card asking the students what they are inspired to learn more about from the posters.
Think & Mingle
When I use this strategy, I engage with one poster at a time and display it so everyone can see, whether projecting or a physical poster.
Each student receives a sticky note and writes down what they notice and wonder about the visual.
After a few minutes, ask students to stand up. I usually play some soft music and ask them to move around the room and when the music stops they find a partner
They share what they wrote with their partner and discuss. It’s great when the teacher also participates in sharing ideas with a partner and really listens to what the students are noticing and wondering
To wrap up, we create a class t-chart and to use their wonderings to guide a class inquiry
If you’re looking for resources that will spark conversation and inquiry in all grade levels, the ETFO Heritage Month posters are a perfect start. They provide a launching point for so much rich conversation and are well researched documents that are ready and easy to use in the classroom.
Much in the news. A lot of fluctuations that put the current weather patterns in the Greater Toronto Area to shame. I am not even looking elsewhere as I am busy with my own life. Therefore the question “why does anything matter?” became my title this time.
It is human nature perhaps to reassure ourselves that we are okay.
We’re not that other country.
We’re here, we’re okay, we are safe, we are well.
We say this to ourselves and to people in our lives especially children in our families or students in our classrooms.
But the events around the world – both near and far, send ripples into the calm waters that flow past us here in Ontario.
Publicly funded education does not operate in a vacuum and the decisions made in one country, one sector, one industry, one policy impact the guiding decisions made in another. This we know.
ETFO’s Response to Tariffs
As always, after my work day, before the evening takes over with meals and other chores, I read my non-Board emails. On April 9th, ETFO released this statement.
The section that stands out for me :
“Public education will not be immune to the ripple effects of this economic downturn. As government revenues come under pressure, there is an increased risk that funding for vital publicly funded services and institutions, including public education, will be scaled back. At the same time, Ontario families, many of whom are already struggling, will face even greater financial strain. For students, this can mean heightened barriers to learning and well-being, including hunger and stress, which compromise their ability to learn and thrive.”
How can I and we be mindful of this in our everyday work?
Mothering for Schooling
In the 1970s and 1980s, Canadian sociologist Dorothy Smith and her research partner, Alison Griffith began to notice the everyday ways in which their lives as mothers were interconnected with the regulation of the schooling practices that surrounded their children. They began referring to the gendered labour that gets done in homes as Mothering for Schooling (Griffith and Smith, 2005).
Mothering for Schooling (Griffith & Smith, 2005)
Over many decades, until their last collaboration published in 2022, Griffith and Smith spoke about how work that is done in one location impacts and influences the work that is done in another. They referred to this as translocal work processes. Educational work is filled with interconnected tasks and processes. This we know.
Amidst all this, our students and their families are as impacted as everyone else by these global and translocal changes that regulate their everyday lives.
Every fund raiser, every field trip, every bake sale will impact families in ways that are invisibilized in the everyday busyness in work spaces. Let’s pause and think about that.
The Impact of Courageous Colleagueship
Let’s say I’m co-teaching with you, my colleague in your classroom and I have chosen a book or a topic that reflects my lived reality. I am excited to be teaching with you. You introduce me to your students and I begin to speak.
As a middle-class, professionally trained and gainfully employed cis-het woman with a confident manner and excellent fluency in the language of instruction, I may not be aware that the lived realities of the families in the classrooms don’t necessarily mirror mine.
After all, when I drove down the street to the school many times, I may have seen homes that are well constructed with sleek facades on ample lots. This led me to believe that all is well here. You, on the other hand, may know it is not the case. Especially now, in many places.
As I am busy with many aspects of my work, I make it through the work day with no time to spare for anything more than the absolutely essential pieces, so I haven’t read up about the neighbourhood in which your school is located. I may live far away from this neighbourhood, so I do not know what I do not know.
Steady Me & Guide Me
If I don’t step out of my bubble, I may continue the conversation in your classroom, speaking of my summer plans to visit this place or that, or some aspect of my life because I’m trying to be have a conversation.
As you are the colleague who knows the community and students well, please feel free to step in. Please speak about alternative experiences. Guide me, please.
Stand With and Walk Beside Students and Their Families
When you stand with and walk beside your students by introducing a counter narrative, you show them that you able to make their learning space safe and pleasant.
When you hold up a mirror to my presence and actions in your classroom, you will have given me an opportunity to examine my ignorance and bias. I shall be ever grateful.
You will have invited me to revisit ETFO’s invitation to engage with my professional learning and improve my professional judgement, not just in subject knowledge but also in anti oppressive practices. I shall not say ” I have taught for 21 years” and I will never walk away. I shall learn and improve my practice. I promise.
If I begin to speak about a student in their presence, feel free to whisper “later” and I’ll follow your lead.
Don’t let me stumble when I get wobbly.
I thank you for your colleagueship because that’s the collective heartbeat of our work as ETFO members.
If I lose my way, even for a little while, please lead me back to the path of equity and disability justice.
The Program Planning document on the Ministry of Education’s digital curriculum site is applicable to all curriculum documents from kindergarten to grade twelve. It includes an important part called the Transferable Skills. This content is part of officially issued curriculum and, as educators, we are obligated to consider this information to guide the implementation of the curriculum and in creating the environment in which it is taught.
The seven categories of transferable skills, or competencies, are:
critical thinking and problem solving
innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship
self-directed learning
collaboration
communication
global citizenship and sustainability
digital literacy
These broad competencies are designed for students to transfer skills from one subject to another. For example, self-directed learning skills are applicable in every subject from language to math to physical education. It allows educators to think about developing skills that will be useful for students in any subject area and any grade level. When you read the document, you’ll see that each of the seven skills has a definition and student descriptors. For example, the document’s definition for digital literacy is:
Digital literacy involves the ability to solve problems using technology in a safe, legal, and ethically responsible manner. With the ever-expanding role of digitalization and big data in the modern world, digital literacy also means having strong data literacy skills and the ability to engage with emerging technologies. Digitally literate students recognize the rights and responsibilities, as well as the opportunities, that come with living, learning, and working in an interconnected digital world.
The first student descriptor is:
Students select and use appropriate digital tools to collaborate, communicate, create, innovate, and solve problems.
These skills are intended to be learned as part of all subject areas and not in isolation. They are developed through student engagement in practice and in explicit teaching and learning methods. In planning, this means that we should be considering how we can integrate digital literacy into our teaching, how students can engage in becoming digitally literate, and understand their responsibilities as digital citizens.
Students always seem to be ahead of me in areas of technology; they have more time to consume media, information, and to develop confidence in using tech. However, when I think about Digital Literacy in respect to the curriculum documents, I recognize that it isn’t just the confident ability to navigate websites and use new technology. The student descriptors actually lend themselves toward understanding and analysing HOW they use digital tools to enhance their learning. Being able to select the best digital tool to help them learn, critically looking at data, and even understanding how to manage their own digital footprint look differently at every grade level.
As you look through the curriculum documents, you will also notice that the overall expectations will specifically link to the transferable skill or skills that can be developed through those expectations. For example, in grade seven language, overall expectations D2 (Creating Texts) and D3 (Publishing, Presenting, Reflecting) both tag Digital Literacy as a competency students should be developing through these expectations.
How does this inform my educator lens and decisions in the classroom? I think it looks like decisions that I am making with students, for example including them in the decision to use different digital tools for communication. Every student I’ve taught loves to create a slide deck, but that isn’t always the easiest way for students to collaborate on a project or to communicate information. Maybe it’s having whole class conversations to categorize the purpose of different digital tools, e.g., a recorded news report vs a slide deck vs a canva poster.
As I spend time reading through all of the new curriculum documents, I am finding myself thinking more and more about how students learn and getting curious about how to shape and plan learning experiences that explicitly engage in developing these transferable skills. Even as the teacher in the room, there’s always so much to learn!
This year I have been a supply teacher in a particular class a few times so I have built a rapport with the students. On one visit, a student I’ll call Jenna opened up about how she was feeling. Recently her family’s apartment, along with several others, was destroyed by a fire. Jenna went to stay with extended family while her mother stayed in a local hotel and worked with relief agencies to find new housing and get reestablished. They lost absolutely everything they owned in the fire.
The family was relieved to move into a new apartment fairly quickly but Jenna was having difficulty adjusting.
On the day I was supply teaching in her class, 7 year old Jenna got overwhelmed several times and was not able to self-regulate. She was tired from the long walk from her new apartment. She was hungry. She missed her favourite stuffed animal. She had no paper at home to draw pictures because all of mommy’s paper got burned in the fire. Her classmates and I listened and consoled her in these moments but she summed it all up by tearfully saying:
“I’ve learned that sometimes life gives you changes and you have to get used to a new situation very fast. Like what the fire did to me and my family.”
Wise words from the heart of a seven year old. Jenna has had to deal with an enormous change in a short amount of time. She is grieving the loss of her home and belongings but also has feelings of relief that her family members survived and they were able to reunite in their new home. It’s quite an emotional roller coaster to ride. No wonder she was experiencing difficulty with self-regulation.
This experience got me thinking more deeply about trauma informed practices in classrooms. Every child has a story and some of those stories include trauma. We see different types of trauma such as losing a home, the unexpected death of a loved one, a car accident, bullying, and many more, including traumas we will never know about. It’s in everyone’s best interest to have safe learning environments where children know they are protected from physical and emotional harm. A classroom teacher will not know all the details about everyone in their class but they can work to ensure the classroom is a safe place for all.
The students aren’t the only ones who are impacted by life’s tragic moments. It’s very important that teachers recognize those times when they need to seek out their peers or professionals to help them through difficult times. We can’t serve from an empty cup, and neither can our students.
In the beginning of my teaching, I believed that my job was to impart knowledge, to fill my students with the facts and information they needed to succeed. But over the years, I’ve come to realize that my most powerful tool is not the answers I give—it’s the questions I ask.
I remember a particular lesson on ecosystems with my Grade 4 class. We had spent the week learning about different habitats and the various plants and animals that live in them. I had prepared a quiz to assess their understanding, filled with straightforward questions like, “What is the main predator in a forest ecosystem?” and “Name three plants found in a desert.” The quiz went as expected. Most students did well, but the energy and excitement in the room was flat. It was clear that my students were just going through the motions.
Feeling like I had let my class down a bit, I began to reflect on what I could change to better engage my students. This moment sparked a memory from my early days of teaching kindergarten—a time when I skillfully used questions to promote deeper, more meaningful conversations. Inspired by this recollection, I went on a journey of research and collegial discussions, focusing on how to ask good questions. The answer to my inquiry was; open-ended questions.
Here is what I learned. Regardless of which subject, there are a few requirements that make a good open-ended question.
A good open-ended question should encourage a detailed, thoughtful response, rather than a yes or no answer.
It should allow individuals to draw from personal experiences and knowledge, validating their diverse perspectives.
It often starts with words like how, why or what.
It should be neutral and avoid suggesting any specific answer.
I then decided to try something different the next day. Instead of giving my students more facts, I asked them an open-ended question: “What do you think would happen if we introduced a new species into this ecosystem?” The response was immediate. Hands went up, and the room buzzed with excitement. Students began to think critically, imagining the consequences of their hypothetical scenarios. Some suggested that a new predator might disrupt the food chain, while others argued that it could balance an overpopulated species. The discussion was much livelier, and I could see the gears turning in their minds. We then took our learning outdoors and played games to reenact possible scenarios. In the process, I asked more open ended-questions and the discussions became more interactive. Some questions I asked were:
How might the existing animals adapt to the presence of this new species?
What changes do you think we might see in the plant life of this ecosystem?
If you were in charge of protecting this ecosystem, what steps would you take?
How do you think human activities might influence the success or failure of this new species?
These questions sparked even more thoughtful discussions, encouraging students to apply their knowledge, make connections, and think critically about the complex interactions within ecosystems.
This experience taught me that there is something very satisfying about asking questions that have multiple answers. It does more than just assess knowledge; it sparks curiosity and creativity, it encourages students to think deeply and explore possibilities and feel valued in their diverse perspective. It’s not about getting to the right answer, but about the process of thinking, questioning, and discovering. And that, for me, was a beautiful thing to witness.
Over the years, I’ve made it a point to incorporate more open-ended questions into my teaching. Whether it’s in a science lesson, a language discussion, or even math. Asking good questions push students to move beyond surface-level understanding and engage with the material on a deeper level.
So, to my fellow educators, I ask: How often do you ask open-ended questions in your classroom? What happens when you give your students the freedom to explore without the pressure of finding the right answer? Consider the possibilities that can unfold when we shift from simply imparting knowledge to guiding our students in their own discovery process. What questions might you ask today to open up a world of possibilities for your students?
I must admit, I haven’t always enjoyed writing or considered myself to be a good writer. Part of the reason for this statement is that in previous years I had a questionable understanding of the writing process. Meaning, while I understood the steps in the process to include prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing, I lacked strategies to engage in each stage and I didn’t know what to do when I experienced challenges at any stage in the process.
To develop my understanding, I read writers manuals to gain essential insights, watched videos where skilled and published writers shared their writing processes, and recalled the lessons I learned from good teachers from all levels of my education. What I’ve learned from these collective experiences is that navigating the writing process is contingent on a host of other factors I had yet to consider. Some of them include the genre, the purpose of the writing composition, the intended audience, the length of the piece, the background knowledge and evidence required to support claims, a robust vocabulary, competent spelling skills, and proficient transcription skills. In essence, I grew to understand that writing is a much more complex contextual interconnected and iterative process than I anticipated and that even the most skilled and successful writers, those who write and publish their work often, experience challenges.
Reflecting on the challenges I experienced with writing and learning to improve my writing skills as an adult and in service teacher, coupled with witnessing the students I taught in prior years struggle through the writing process due to what I perceived to be a questionable understanding of how to navigate it, motivated me to now prioritize explicit writing instruction and practice in my language program and advocate that other teachers do the same.
When I work with students in junior/intermediate grades who are developing their writing skills or teachers who want to improve their writing instruction, I begin by sharing the insights above to provide what I believe to be a more comprehensive overview of the writing process. I then explain that that students require explicit instruction in all parts of the writing process and lots of regular practice to become confident competent writers. I conclude by debunking the myth that writing is easy or straightforward and remind audiences that challenges are a natural part of the process; yet a clear knowledge of what I believe to be the comprehensive writing process, useful strategies to navigate it, and regular practice will help to alleviate some of the stress and perhaps anxiety associated with teaching writing and learning to write.
In, What the Science of Reading Says about Writing, authors Jennifer Jump and Hillary Wolfe support this approach. They write, “Research confirms that students need strategies to successfully engage in each of these stages. They need modeling and explicit instruction, with a gradual release of responsibility to boost their confidence and foster perseverance. When students are taught how to engage in the process of writing, their compositions become longer, full, and qualitatively better”.
I now enjoy writing and consider myself to be a competent writer because I have a variety of strategies to engage in the writing process and I know what to do when I experience challenges. While my hope is that the students I teach learn to enjoy writing because in part, they develop the knowledge and skills to engage in the writing process. The real lesson that I hope to impart is the value of good writing; that is writing that is coherent and cogent, in addition to the importance of developing competent writing skills and how those skills increasingly become an asset as they progress through life within and beyond school.
What do science and art have in common? Plenty! The achievement chart for the Ontario grade 1-8 Science curriculum is very similar to the achievement chart for the Arts. Both of these areas of the curriculum allow for curiosity and experimentation. Planning summative assessments that use critical and creative thinking are a fantastic way to bring these subjects together in a way that makes learning feel like a celebration.
When integrating science and art there is also a great opportunity to explore the worldview of Indigenous peoples and learn about two-eyed seeing. We can invite a guest to share arts and crafts and explore the relationship between science and art. For example, I have a beautiful talking stick created with guidance from a Métis artist. During the process she taught us about the important role of water and the gifts of the earth. On another occasion, my students painted stones that were added to a memorial at a First Nation school with teachings about mother earth and the impact of residential schools on generations of Indigenous children.
Here are some suggestions for science lessons using different mediums in art.
Draw, Sketch, Paint
Whether it’s pencil, charcoal, watercolour, acrylic or pastels, there are opportunities in every science unit to create scenes and/or diagrams of the subjects we study. Painting trees in every season, making a pastel scene of a habitat with animal silhouettes cut out and glued on top, or doing a star filled sky with planets and comets. These materials are the most common in our schools and you just need some paper or sketchbooks to get started. One of my favourite things about sketching is you can easily do this outside!
A finger painting of lupins.
Sculpt
One memorable lesson I’ve done a few times is to create sculptures using cardboard in grade 3 science. We used plenty of masking tape and learned about creating a sturdy, solid base. Then students were able to paint their creations as well. Castles, towers, hockey arenas and more have been created this way. We have also used plasticine in a CD case, with inspiration for author/illustrator Barbara Reid to do studies of natural phenomena like clouds, flowers and planets. Sculpting with air-dry modelling clay is another wonderful medium to use. Creating a diorama can use a variety of materials together to demonstrate learning. Using natural materials to create designs and models gives us more reasons to get those kids outside to build a positive relationship with the environment.
Digital Art
Going back quite a few years we got permission to use Minecraft education and grade 7 students created a digital model of the school yard with the design of the new outdoor classroom included. The students did an amazing job and added in all kinds of details of wildlife, plants and playground equipment. We have used more basic software like Paint and Kidpix (that should be nostalgic for you teachers who were in elementary school in the early 2000’s!). Whatever drawing software is available, there will be students who absolutely love it.
Photography
This is another favourite medium for getting kids outdoors to make scientific observations. Whether you are comparing types of leaves, soil, rocks or habitats, a picture is worth a thousand words. Based on some past experiences, I do recommend putting some limits on the number of photos allowed! Putting the photos into a slide deck makes it easy to share the work with each other.
Yarrow in the school garden.
Multimedia and more
Combining mediums to create brings so much fun and higher order thinking into play. Could we create art that also incorporates electrical circuits? Could we paint paper mache planets in a solar system model? How about a mural or a collage that explores the impact humans are having on the natural environment?
Famous Artists who Study Science
We are not alone integrating science and art. Our students may be interested in learning about artists who also contributed to the world of science including: Leonardo Da Vinci, Beatrix Potter, James Audubon, and Frederick Banting.
Art display in the school gym.
Make a Day of It!
If our schedule allows, it’s always exciting to dedicate a day to a culminating task and have it completed in time for an art/science show for other students to view. We can integrate more learning by writing advertisements for the show and consider adding peer evaluation to the assessment.
As I composed this piece in the last weeks of December, I was aware that it has the potential of being more than a 2 part piece. I continue to notice questions in everyday professional spaces. Questions asked around me stand out because the language that goes from seemingly innocuous talk to formal texts that in turn guide trajectories of educational work and the outcomes for students.
If those outcomes unfold on paths of equity and social justice, I always look deeper for the driving gear: who is the person – parent, family friend, educational worker or combination of all three or more who have made it their mission to ensure that that student achieves their fullest potential.
Also, sometimes the topics I write about invite readers to take a deep and honest look around so that we can be authentically inclusive in our professional practice towards all with whom we interact. A twinge here and there is therefore okay, it helps us sharpen out growth mindset as ETFO members.
Some Spaces Are Special
A Special Park Bench (Karnad-Jani, 2024)
Notice this beautiful bench situated along the walking track around the cricket pitch beside the school with the gorgeous sunrise where I worked for 14 years. In 2018, after considering many factors, mostly around breathing room and well being, I had decided to move to another school. But I still walk here every season as long as the paths are ice-free. So it was that one late summer in the last week of August, shall we say, I met up with a former student now an educator who wanted to talk through some career decisions.
Such walks are mutually supportive as I can give back to the communities of practice that steady me and another educator can have an unconditional space to air their ideas and possibilities. We walked a few laps and sat down to take in the view. A warm breeze was blowing and I was thinking of 6 students in my last three years at this school with whom our team used to walk this track daily for our observation skills, social skills, and conversational and communication goals with our flip and talk books etc. One student had clearly described this very bench as “A park bench is like a chair that’s outside. It is longer than the chair inside our class and you can’t pick it up.” How delighted we were at this description! It is one of the special memories of that time
What are YOU doing here?
Just then, someone I knew from years ago stopped in front of me and demanded, “What are you doing here?” and without waiting for a response, walked on. My walking companion was as startled as I was at this interaction if one could call it that. “What was that, Ms. Karnad-Jani? They did not even wait for a response.”
My heart beat quickened from past memories of having faced this question in various spaces.
Deep breath in. Look around. Exhale. I was glad I was in a beautiful space outside that helped me compose myself. We walked some more and that was that.
I have thought about this question often as it appears in our lives in many ways.
When one is asked “What are YOU doing here?” we can claim space individually and collectively to support one another when this question comes up that may challenge our very presence in some, many, any spaces.
Also, always consult and implement the guidelines outlined in ETFO’s Terms of Use when using any published materials in professional learning and elsewhere because all of us who write academically and professionally work very diligently to think about the ideas we share with you.
I am a self-proclaimed avid reader. During summer holidays, I can’t wait to get to the local library and pick up a stack of books. Spring break? I’ve already got a hold of the Canada Reads list to make my way through. I do love a great story.
It’s funny how stories can take on different meanings for me throughout my life. As I’ve heard, then read, then re-told the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, I notice that it has taken on different meanings for me. As a child, I felt like this was a serious warning: respect others’ privacy and property, be careful when you’re out alone. As an adult, I thought about Goldilocks as a curious child getting into mischief. And as of late, I’ve learned of interpretations that compare the story to gentrification and colonization. In all the ways I have thought of this story over the years, I’ve found it interesting to revisit, to turn it over in my mind, and consider different messages.
As an educator, I think of Goldilocks’ story as a metaphor for the way children try different things to discover what they like and don’t like. Those famous phrases, “This porridge is too hot! This porridge is too cold! This porridge is just right!” are the ways I hear children moving through the world. I hear them trying on clothing, activities, identity, and yes, even the ways they figure out what they like about school.
Building a love of reading in students can look like this as well; trying out many different stories and authors. Reading a variety of genres helps students to know what they like best: mysteries, drama, science fiction, comedy, non-fiction, etc. There’s also different forms of writing: poetry, prose, verse, graphic novels, and more. There are so many more options for children to explore and love than I had when I was a student. Libraries have a beautiful, wide selection for students and learning how to navigate that space can expose them to many different worlds.
I used to be a real stickler for reading the entire story. For myself, I used to insist on reading a book right to the end – even when I didn’t fully enjoy it, I powered my way through every page. My perspectives have now changed; life is too short to spend reading books that don’t resonate with me. I might try a ‘bite’ of a chapter or two and then decide it’s too wordy, the setting isn’t quite right, the pacing feels uncomfortable. It’s just not for me. And, like Goldilocks, I am giving myself permission to put it down and try something else.
Extending this invitation to students also gives them the opportunity to think about themselves as readers. Of course, I want them to find a book they love and read it through to the end, but sometimes the book they’ve selected just isn’t the book for them. If students aren’t finishing books they’ve self selected, that also speaks to them as a reader. Perhaps they need to think about what they like or what style of writing works for them. If they want to ‘take a bite’ of a book then put it down for another, a conversation may help to guide some of this self-reflection. Using questions like:
What’s this book about? What made you pick it up?
Why isn’t this book for you? What made you change your mind about this book?
What type of book do you think you would like to try next?
How can we track the types of books, authors, styles you like so you will know what to look for in the school library?
These conversations may help to guide your discussions with students. Taking on a curious stance means that it’s less about students feeling like they are wrong for not finishing their book and more about how we care about helping them find the right fit book for them. When the educator takes on a guiding role, mentoring students from a position of care, we are developing relationships. Instead of telling them what kind of reader they should be, we are helping them to learn more about themselves and what kind of reader they are.
What makes Goldilocks and the Three Bears interesting is that there is no wrapped up happy ending, like in other fables. We don’t know what happens to Goldilocks as she is “never seen again” at the end of the story. I wonder where she went and if she told anyone what she saw or did. If I could rewrite this ending from my educator lens, I’d love it if the surprised bears taught Goldilocks how to make porridge and build furniture she thought was best. Goldilocks would learn these skills from the bears, perhaps even sharing some skills and knowledge of her own that the bears could use in their cottage. And both of them would learn that there are many different ways to be ‘just right’.
