I could relate to Hicks’ description in her third chapter of the southern feminine “good girl” role. I remember going to summer “church” camp although not in the mountains, it was in the south and I too was introduced at an early age to a similar discourse. While there are many differences, I can find some parallels between Laurie’s story and that of not only several of my students but also my own.
I remember being really “into” boys and the social aspects of school even in kindergarten. Although I was never formally diagnosed with an attention problem as Laurie in chapter four, I am convinced inattentiveness and immaturity were contributing factors to my early struggles as a reader. Unlike Laurie, I grew up as an only child with a calm and stable home life. My mom and dad also read to me and played board games nightly. Despite this background and support, much like Laurie I found myself to always be behind and unable to keep up with the fast-paced reading program. I don’t remember any pull out or small groups that seemed to help and I was not retained.
Many of my former students and their families remind me of Laurie’s story- functional in a dysfunctional way. One student like Laurie, frequently spoke and wrote of the “fairy tale romance” she wished could be real life, often mimicked and role-played scenes from home, and struggled with reading and attention had a mom just like Laurie. She was supportive but overwhelmed often herself with balancing the demands of providing for her children financially, emotionally, and educationally. I can also recall other students who were diagnosed with ADHD, began medication, and had similar stories to that of Laurie.
I can only hope that in these cases I was able to provide a strong foundation of support for both my students and their parents. I tried my best to focus my small group instruction on their needs and deviated from the regular reading program when appropriate. I feel this is our duty as teachers to meet our students’ needs and help communicate with parents the vital role they can play at home as participants in their child’s educational success.
Ruth Ann Timmons
Comments (5)
Ruth Ann, I too work with many students who are much like Laurie. I think you quoted it correctly when you said functional in a dysfunctional way. Our families function the best way they know how. Most often for our students it is a survival function the families are functioning in. It is our job to understand their struggles and see how we can relate or connect to the students. This is the only way we can provide students with support and experiences they might not otherwise have.
Posted by Kara S | June 25, 2011 4:42 PM
Posted on June 25, 2011 16:42
Ruth Ann,
I think it's great that you have a connection to our struggling readers and can identify with the difficulties they possess trying to keep up in a fast paced curriculum. As you mentioned, I think it is important to keep parents involved so the home discourse can compliment the school discourse when it comes to literacy. Unfortunately, at our school, there is a large Hispanic population whose home language is Spanish and cannot support the additional needs of our students. As a teacher, this is where I feel most of my frustration because they ask, via a translator, how their child can improve and I don't know what to tell them.
Posted by Michelle Carlson | June 26, 2011 4:22 PM
Posted on June 26, 2011 16:22
Ruth Ann, I think you are so right in saying that it is our duty to communicate with parents about how important their role is in their student's academic life. Many parents feel that they are inadequately prepared to assist their student because they also struggled while in school. They may feel that since they didn't go to college, they should leave the teaching up to the teachers. Sometimes all it takes is a few suggestions from the teacher to help a parent see how vital they are to their student's academic success. Of course, as in Laurie's case, sometimes there just isn't enough time in the day for parents to assist their child, but we teachers need to make sure we're doing all that we can to help if time is available.
Posted by Andrea Schlobohm | June 27, 2011 8:02 AM
Posted on June 27, 2011 08:02
Ruth Ann,
Parents of struggling readers could help out just by reading with their children daily. It could be part of the night-time routine. Keeping those lines of communication open is important. I wonder how we can help parents help their children more. Do you have any suggestions? Maybe having a literacy night where teachers can demonstrate how to make predictions and ask questions about a book. In the past, though, I have noticed that when the school has an event like a math or literacy night, the students who really need to be there often are not. It would be very beneficial for a struggling reader if parents would discuss a story with their child during and after reading it. How can we communicate the importance of this to the parents whose parents never did place importance on education. How can we break the cycle?
Posted by Carol Holt | June 27, 2011 11:07 AM
Posted on June 27, 2011 11:07
I’m glad that you mentioned the importance of keeping family members informed of the extremely important role that they play in their child’s literacy as well as all around academic success. Many of the articles we’ve been reading have been stressing the idea that the children we teach are made up of more than just what we see at school. Everything that happens to them, influences them and affects them before they even get to school determines, to some degree, how things will play out. So with this knowledge, if we are to be responsible teachers, we should make sure parents and guardians are aware of how big of an impact even the smallest of things can have on their child’s learning. We also need to make sure we let them know exactly what they can be doing at home to help their child be successful, because every moment and every helping hand counts.
Posted by Kim Strzelecki | June 27, 2011 8:10 PM
Posted on June 27, 2011 20:10