Read To Someone

A slice of reading and listening for the Slice of Life Story Challenge: Day 10.

When given enough time to practise, students get the hang of the Daily 5: Read to Self, Read to Someone, Work on Writing, Listen to Reading and Word Work. They look forward doing it and have embraced it as part of their routine.

Today, I got a chance to have someone read to me. Without hesitation, I sat down next to her when she asked me if she can read to me. I felt lucky to be chosen to listen to a story. Most of the time, they want to do it with a friend. On the teacher’s end, we use that opportunity to do some assessment or work with a small group.

This is not the first time that a student read to me but the difference was there’s no assessment involved and I gave very minimal help in reading unfamiliar words. I was all ears on her not because I was trying to find out her reading level but enjoying the way she’s reading me the story. As a reader, she’s reading very comfortably, like a friend.

Students know when they are being assessed. Perhaps, they can also feel some pressure when the teacher has that pencil on hand and is making notes. But when they read without it, the thought flows freely. There is no worry about reading a word incorrectly. There is no worry about anything. Just enjoying the time to read to a teacher.

Necessary as it can be to meet deadlines, pausing for a few minutes to listen not just with our ears and mind, but with our heart and enjoying the moment. Maybe, she will remember it. Maybe not. But I will!