Reading is Life

Chuck Jones pointed out in this letter to a class of students how silly it would be to not read when we have the chance:

Knowing how to read and not reading books is like owning skis and not skiing, owning a board and never riding a wave, or, well, having your favorite sandwich in your hand and not eating it. If you owned a telescope that would open up the entire universe for you would you try to find reason for not looking through it? Because that is exactly what reading is all about; it opens up the universe of humour, of adventure, of romance, of climbing the highest mountain, of diving in the deepest sea.

Special thanks to Belle Beth Cooper for this great quote and connection.

How many times have you been in front of a student who asks, "Why do we have to read?" and how many times have you been at a loss? How do you explain to that student that reading isn't a chore to be endured, but a door to be opened into a world you'd never experience otherwise? For anyone who loves books, this connection is too obvious for words. Unfortunately, school often corrupts the intrinsic pleasure of reading. If you want students to read for joy, stop testing them on it. If you want them to live different lives and explore different worlds, stop assessing them the same way. If you want to create a lifelong reader, hand them a great book.   

The same principle applies to how we read as teachers. If the only things we read are curriculum guides, memos, and news about the latest government hate-crimes against education, how are we supposed to be inspired? We need to read for our pleasure-whether its racing off into a fantasy world of witches, wizards, and dragons or settling into a heavy-hitting philosophy lesson. Teachers need to expand their horizons as much as kids do. We need to feel the excitement of the last chapter. We need to anticipate the sequel. We need to dream ourselves into the story as a new character. All of the humor, adventure, and romance that used to catch us, invest us in the characters and the stories- all of those attractors still apply... if only we make time for them. Dedicate some time to getting caught up in a story or tied up in a wealth of new information.

We owe it to ourselves to be inspired; we owe it to our students to be role models for the love of reading. The world can be an amazing place if we open our minds to experience it.