Professor Margaret Bush had a huge influence on this work and on me, as she has on so many of today's child specialists in the field. I can't believe you're still here at the beginning of the book reading this.
INTRODUCTION
We cannot overcome these challenges simply by booking a speaker to talk about a topic that is close to most boys' hearts. A 1992 study found that twice as many black girls graduate from college as compared to black boys.11.
It would be amazing to see a large study prove that boys read more than girls. Meanwhile, girls seek engagement to understand human relationships, believing that the world is shaped by personal interaction.
At a conference of children's librarians, it first struck me how rare men are in this field. In any case, the predominance of women in the field of children's librarianship was clearly emphasized.
You don't want to put yourself in the position that one library was in when they hired me. This idea that men are underrepresented in children's lives is not a secret, nor do I think it is a minority view.
Besides that big demographic shift, the presence of men from the community in the library will be a real help. Whether it's fathers, other male relatives, men from the community or the occasional celebrity, boys need to see that the library holds a place for them, now and in the future.
When reading fiction, boys are likely to gravitate towards books about sports or action situations, and they are much more likely than girls to gravitate towards tense types of comedy. As they age through the elementary years, all children are more likely to read non-fiction texts, but the trend is greater for boys.
Maybe it's because there are so many female librarians, especially children's librarians, or maybe we're just snobs, but we just don't respect the books that boys like to read. From this point of view, any attempt to force reading on the boy is likely to arouse suspicion.
Now turn these aspects of The Knights of the Ring into the classic fantasy of The Lord of the Rings or the modern Harry Potter series. Book Quest and Fellowship of the Book are based on a fantasy theme, while Team Read resembles the camaraderie of sports. You can broaden the focus of the book by using a changing background to bring the physical world into the discussion.
You will need to discuss what aspects of the book to include on the website, including author information and graphics, which you will need to find on the web. Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Super Villainous Cafe Ladies from Outer Space (and the subsequent attack by the equally evil lunchroom zombie morons) (Little Apple, 1999). Paul Kaplan, “Boys and Girls of Summer: Tips for Baseball-Themed Programming to Capture Young Readers,” Illinois Libraries81 (Fall.
Around Thanksgiving, schools everywhere study Native Americans, so bring a public library program to school. Invite the school librarian to be the "voice" this time by reading one of the more complicated titles. It meant that every student performed in front of the school every year in some way, even if it was playing with an inanimate object in From Stor y Hour to Independent Reading 53 .
Children who play chess are more likely to score higher on standardized tests such as the SAT.2 The Christian Science Monitor reported studies showing that “exposure to chess strengthens memory, enhances spatial and numerical skills, increases problem-solving abilities, and it strengthens logical thinking.”3 If we add to these purely intellectual advantages a large socialization factor, chess becomes a method of achievement that every library should consider. Match players with the same or similar scores at the start of the next round and every subsequent round. Within a year, she beat most of the players at the club, including some teenagers.
School libraries across the country have started small book competitions, many of them under the title Battle of the Books. Boys may enter the competitive part of the program more willingly, but girls will be more comfortable working. Don't worry that the end of one book is the beginning of another book; boys don't think so.
It is a fantastic teaching tool as students often ask the exact questions that are answered in the book. Even if you are a beginner yourself, you can set up a board based on the pictures in the book and understand Pandolfini's clear writing. Saskatchewan Library Association Summer Reading Program, available at http://www.lib.sk.ca/sla/srp.htm/.
The first step in getting kids to tell stories is to get them to open their mouths, an amazing thought given how many boys seem so loud and rambunctious. Explain to them that in most of the world, storytelling has traditionally happened in a circle. If the size of the group allows, each participant should speak for the group each time the group meets.
SPEAKING EXERCISES
Once the group realizes that they each have a story of their own, it helps them to see that there are stories all around them. Again, encourage everyone to think about the exercise and come in ready to "tell" a song the next time the group meets. I don't want to break the circle and turn a storyteller into an artist, but I want the participants to demand more attention once they feel comfortable in the group.
LISTENING EXERCISES
Some participants may try to memorize words or phrases, but just like the game of gossip, the words are garbled and appear as different words with different meanings. The next exercise connects listening, visualizing and speaking and is perhaps the most fun of all the activities in the program. To do this, they will have to visualize the action or they will lose track of the story in the flood of new details.
STORYTELLERS AT LAST
Now choose five more witnesses and play the game again to see if they relate the story more accurately. Point out that each person should listen closely as the story builds and add a detail that wasn't there before. Then have the group stand together in a circle and play the same game: ten words and pass them to the next person.
For other versions, see "The Tramp and the Old Woman" in The Atlantic Treasury of Childhood Stories, selected and edited by Mary D. The most famous are part of the language we speak, from "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" to "The Tortoise and the Hare." However, there are many lesser known ones that will appeal to guys, even those in early adolescence. Well," said the farmer, "I don't think he'll be worth much after carrying you all day.
Start an after-school reading of the book a few weeks before the movie is to be released. The presence of an animal is also known to be a calming influence.3 The presence of properly trained animals is important—. As we have seen, librarians often consider the best books to be books that appeal most to girls.
FIND THE HUMOR
We also tend to have very long and convoluted book talks, as if we can find out everything that's great about an entire book in a single discussion. Besides, if we want to get through to guys, it's best to keep book talk short.
GET TING A RESPONSE
If he wants to be fast, he carries the card of a fast player, like Barry Bonds.
APPEAL TO REASON
You can even use the logical approach to confuse by setting up an illogical twist, creating suspense and interest. Market this book that boys will find comforting and familiar if you can only get past its childish reputation by appealing to, and then turning it on its head, a little logical progression. But once you're changed to a bug, you see things a little differently. p.
GUILT Y PLEASURES
No one disturbs our lord's peace with their amusements, unless they ask me, the leader of the Red Devil's bodyguards, Owattabutt. The samurai posed proudly. Crepsley was really scared, or if he was part of the act, but he looked scared. When presenting fantasy, be aware of the aspects that appeal to boys, as opposed to those that appeal to librarians.
CONCLUSION
Without an active reading life, boys are almost destined to fall behind and lag behind in acquiring and using language effectively. Boys' reading skills suffer as they struggle with other transitional issues, issues of identity, separation and social development, in the early primary years. In the end, our libraries may look very different than they did in the past, and if one of the differences is a more equal presence for men and boys, then we'll know we did it right, and a new generation may question why boys were always hard to find in the library.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Access to library resources and services regardless of gender or sexual orientation, 2000, available at http://. Out of the Mouths of Boys: A Profile of Boys Committed to Reading." Australian Journal of Language and Literacy24 (February 2001): 31+. Summer Reading Program Packets available at Wyoming State Library, available at http://www-wsl .state.wy.us/slpub/summer_reading.html#S/.
INDEX
