Reading and Wellbeing - The Pretest

The School Library Association of NSW is hosting the first of its two biannual conferences at the State Library of NSW this week.

I have decided to attend a workshop that will focus on reading and wellbeing.

I have challenged myself to undertake a pretest where I will brainstorm what I think about reading and wellbeing.

Next week, I will look back and reflect on what I wrote.

Reading and wellbeing...

• Calms one down when they are anxious and down.
• Stimulates the brain.
• Great recreational activity.
• Motivates people
• Allows one to play with their imagination.
• Settles a class down, especially at the start of the period.
• Can improve concentration in classroom settings and in general.
• Relaxes people (even sends them to sleep)
• Empowers other people

On the Hatred of Literature

On a Teacher Librarian forum, I recently read an article entitled On the Hatred of Literature. I was more curious and found an article from The New Yorker, focusing on why people don't read.

While the article focuses on American reading habits, there is some information relevant to those here in Australia.

When I was at school during the 1990's, there was no social media, the internet took the entire decade to penetrate into Australian homes and then it was slow because a telephone line was required as part of a connection.

Not to mention, Pay-TV was in its infancy, computer gaming was nowhere as advanced as it is now and no streaming media.

If you wanted to read a newspaper or magazine, you had to go to the newsagency and purchase it in person. No electronic editions were available.

Technology has eaten away at time that could be used for reading and that even includes the rise of social media.

One argument I may question is read by socioeconomic status where it is claimed that those that are more financially well off are more likely to read than those in lower socioeconomic classes. It does interest me from experience how those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds tend to be sometimes the most committed readers in our schools or those who speak English as an additional dialect.

But what about the busy nature of lives? Does that have a part in it? I think so.  There is so much competing for ones time, work and leisure related

The article doesn't mention about reading and performance at school even though the two are linked to each other.

It does remind me that I have to promote reading as a fun activity which can be just as entertaining as what is screened through our television sets and screens.  I make sure that books that I recommend reflect student needs and interests. Forcing students to read a particular type of book will not help them.

People will read if we talk about reading. I feel more keen to read if I am talking to people about what they read. It's usually the best source of finding out what is worth reading or not.

I think time management comes into play as well. I always have told students that there are ample opportunities to read in their daily routine. Many students in Sydney commute on public transport. The door is open up to read a book instead of texting their friend/s on the phone or to pass the time while they wait for a late train or bus to turn up.

Teachers Talk about Literature

Cover 2 Cover had an unexpected benefit in terms of building up a culture of reading in a school and this is reinforced through articles that I have read.

One of my colleagues was assisting me with Library supervision several weeks ago. They actually leaked out their favourite book to a group of students. The teacher in question was one of those featured in the staff favourite books guessing competition.

I recall that they shared some details about the book and this got the students interested.

The students who took part in the guessing competition themselves and even after the answers were publicly revealed (once winners had collected their prizes) learnt a lot about teachers' reading preferences and I hope it might encourage them to read. If teachers can reveal their reading preferences and share it, it will motivate them to read, whether it is the books featured or other books.

Most importantly, the message conveyed to students was that teachers, even with their busy schedules put time aside to read.

Even I learnt a lot about what my colleagues like to read. I could tell that the books meant something to them.

But in the classroom, what could you do as a teacher to promote reading as a fun activity?

• Find books with storylines that relate to the work being studied in class e.g. The Lord of the Flies is fantastic in reflecting how important having laws are in society. 
• Sharing background information, especially classic novels can be used to relate them to history.
• Share quotes or extracts from books with your class.
• Talk to students about your reading and invite them to share what they read with you.
• Get students to try and identify books or stories that relate to the content studied.
• Share books relating to a specific subject, e.g. Adam Spencer's books on numbers are great for mathematics.

There might be some other ideas. What could you suggest?

Cover 2 Cover is over

Cover 2 Cover is now over. After the last logs were validated on Wednesday and scores tallied up, the winners were revealed today at a school assembly.

I was proud of our winners with juniors winning most of the prizes on offer. Our winners managed to read around 60 books in a seven week period. Time is limited, but reading is an activity that means something to them.

One of them is from a Non English speaking background and her love of reading stemmed from having to read at home develop her English language skills. She can read well above her age now.

Compared to where it began seven weeks ago, Cover 2 Cover came a long way. I noticed in the last fortnight, homeroom teachers were encouraging their kids to read to land the homeroom prize of a special lunch. The homeroom winner was well deserving with most students reading at least one book in that time.

Some students had also spread gossip about progress, especially after I stopped reporting points early in the week.

I had heard from one student that their friend normally doesn't read, but participating it made them rethink about the importance of reading.

We also had noticed more books being borrowed with some untouched books actually finding themselves in the hands of a student.

And the students today enjoyed and cheered on our winners. They were thrilled.

Reading Reduces Anxiety - Newsletter article

Below is a short feature that I put in the school newsletter this week focusing on reading and anxiety.

According to Beyond Blue, 7% of Australian adolescents have experienced an Anxiety Disorder while around 3% have experienced a depressive disorder. Research by the Black Dog Institute has shown that 25% of adolescents are at risk of developing mental illness at some point in their lives. 

In recent times, researchers have examined whether or not reading can reduce anxiety, known as bibliotherapy. Evidence has suggested that reading a good book can reduce anxiety.

How? Reading a book allows a person to escape from the problems that they are facing, and can enter into another world. Reading can also allow a person to develop a sense of compassion and empathy but also aid in healing.

Sometimes our day doesn’t turn out the way that we wish for. Reading for pleasure is a great way to unwind after a long day at school. 

And if you are someone who travels a long way to school on public transport, reading can make the journey much more relaxing and makes the time go faster. Disruptions with your bus or train won’t be so frustrating.

Digital Replicas of The Sydney Morning Herald (back issues)

Newspapers have made an effort in recent to provide subscribers access to articles featured in back editions, whether they go back 10 years, 25 years or since publication of the first issue.

The OZTL_NET forum had a request from one person about accessing an article from a specific edition in 2002.

I have noticed that The Sydney Morning Herald has appeared to spread itself far and wide in providing databases to provide specific timeframes.

Newspapers.Com (Paid database) has issues dating back to 1831, when publication began. Anything up to 1954 is freely available on Trove. What I like about it is the ability to download a full page in jpeg format or as a pdf for easy printing in a great size.

The disadvantage is that they end at January 31, 2002 and some editions are not listed.

They also have one archive that covers 1955-1995. This is available if you a member of the State Library of NSW.

Many libraries provide the library edition that covers 2006 - today.

I think its created some problems for what formerly was Fairfax. Wouldn't it make sense to consolidate it all into one database?

Not to mention, it creates more costs for libraries that want to provide access to one has been regarded as one of the world's great newspapers.

Databases like Factiva will list articles from the newspaper to cover the 2002-2006 period, but what if the individual wants to view a more authentic version of the article?

What about the library edition in schools?

I think generally they are great in providing a digital replica of the newspaper but is limited in its back library to January 1 2006. Would be great if they could add editions before 2006 to help students in their research, especially history students.