The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child [Paperback]

Donalyn Miller says she has yet to meet a child she couldn't turn into a reader. No matter how far behind Miller's students might be when they reach her 6th grade classroom, they end up reading an average of 40 to 50 books a year. Miller's unconventional approach dispenses with drills and worksheets that make reading a chore. Instead, she helps students navigate the world of literature and gives them time to read books they pick out themselves. Her love of books and teaching is both infectious and inspiring. The book includes a dynamite list of recommended kid lit that helps parents and teachers find the books that students really like to read.

Foreword, by Jeff Anderson, author and literacy staff developer ix

Introduction 1

CHAPTER 1 There and Back Again 7

CHAPTER 2 Everybody Is a Reader 19

Whisper STUDENT SURVEYS 39

CHAPTER 3 There’s a Time and a Place 47

CHAPTER 4 Reading Freedom 69

Whisper READER’S NOTEBOOKS 99

CHAPTER 5 Walking the Walk 103

CHAPTER 6 Cutting the Teacher Strings 119

Whisper END-OF-YEAR EVALUATIONS 153

CHAPTER 7 Letting Go 159

Afterword, by Ron D. Myers, principal 179

Appendix A: The Care and Feeding of a Classroom Library 183

Appendix B: Ultimate Library List 193

Appendix C: Student Forms 201

References 213

Index 217

Acknowledgments 225

About the Author 228

About the Sponsor 228