Flow, Reading and Otherwise

Nothing really prepares you for being a children's librarian. There are the euphoric moments when a child tells me I have found her the perfect book, or when we discover the exact title needed for a research assignment. But there are many more moments where, as I read aloud, I look deeply into the eyes of a child picking his nose, hoping my gaze will have an effect. When I give up, pause and hand him a tissue, he asks, "What is this for?"

Last week I spoke with my classes about the experience of achieving "flow" when reading. I talked about how it happens for me, that I am so engrossed in a book that I am surprised when I look up to find myself, say, on an airplane. They shared their own stories: reading a book about survival in an Alaskan winter and needing to get a blanket, even though it was summer; a parent calls you to dinner and you say "Just one more page" and suddenly 20 minutes have flown by; or realizing that you have read from daylight into darkness without noticing.

I shared the surprising research that students who read lots of material BELOW their reading level become stronger readers, because they experience "flow" more often. The experience of flow seems to build, and the more practice a child gets with it, the easier it is to achieve. It simply can't happen if the child is struggling with a book that is too challenging.

Then one little girl, about age 7, shared her own reading flow moment. "My parents had told me to go to sleep, but I kept on reading. Then they came in my room, said good night and turned out my light. Then they went into their room and began making out and getting into each other the way parents do. So I just turned my light back on and read until I finished my book!"

Here is this week's animation, about choosing books that will help a student achieve flow.

Click here if the embed doesn't work.

GoAnimate.com: Five Finger Rule%3A Easy%2C Just Right %26 Challenging by PithyPython