Chapter One Reflection

After reading Chapter 1 in "When Kids Cant Read," I have come to a better understanding on the idea that not all teachers start off with the notion of how to teach students to read. The chapter really interested me, due to the idea of a well educated UT graduate struggling in the classroom. I appreciated the authors honest approach to her struggles throughout her first few years of teaching middle level students. I, too, have thought about how exactly one is supposed to teach students to read. It is interesting to note that one of the most powerful thing a struggling reader can do is to just "show up." As many struggling readers are not interested in reading, they become less interested in school as a whole because so much of it revolves around reading. The author went on to point out that there are varied reasons for why many readers struggle. Thus, it is important to remember that not all students are alike, and therefore, will all learn differently and have different paces of learning.