Catching Readers Before They Fall: Ch, 1, 2, and 3

        As discussed in the book, every child needs to learn how to read; however, every child learns at a different pace while also using different strategies. Struggling readers do not do the kinds of thinking that proficient readers do in their heads as they read, so as it said in the book, classroom teachers really need to serve as a strong safety net for their students. I strongly agree with this statement especially at an elementary level because the students look up to their teachers so much at this age and view them as a role model. Yes, it can be difficult dealing with a struggling reader, but I think it is so important for teachers to never give up and keep pushing their students as hard as they can. The book listed out a set of beliefs about teaching reading to primary students and one that really stood out to me was "observation and assessment should drive our instruction as we build on students' known skills and strategies in order to help them integrate new learning (pg. 3)." This really stood out to me because I always find myself helping students right away whenever they are struggling and not giving them a chance to fix their mistakes on their own. Observing and not helping students right away is so important because it helps you understand the child's way of thinking and their learning style, which will help you even more as the teacher when you do step in to help them. Assessing what the students have learned is also important because you want to make sure they are taking in all the information they are reading.
       In chapter 2 it mentioned how some teachers believe it is the reader's own fault if they are struggling due to a deficit or disability. Some teachers are so cruel to think that their learning strategies must be effective if most kids in the classroom are learning just fine, and if students aren't successfully learning then it is their own fault and they need to get tested. I cannot believe some teachers actually think like that; that is horrible. If some students are struggling, I think it is the teachers job to take a step back and look at his or her teaching strategies and how they could improve them to suit everyone. I believe that all children are capable of reading; everyone just learns at different paces. Every student is not going to get it right off of the bat, so it is the teachers responsibility to be patient and work with each student at his or her own pace. But then the question is, how much class time should teachers take to teach struggling readers to read without taking time out of other lessons? However, at the end of the day I think it is most important that students are learning how to read effectively and efficiently. That should be one of the top priorities of the teacher.