In her Ask the Mentor columns Creating Readers, 6th grade language arts and social studies teacher Donalyn Miller discusses how to get students interested in reading. An important part of generating interest, she says, is allowing students to choose their own books. “I do not believe that students should be required to read certain texts,” Miller says.
Which do you think is a more effective method of teaching—requiring certain texts for all students or letting students choose their own books? Do you think allowing students to choose their own texts has the potential to create lazy readers or lower standards? Is it feasible to allow students to choose their texts, given testing and curriculum requirements? What method do you employ in your classroom?
