Spark a schoolwide culture shift
Children’s Book Editor Interviews Lorraine Radice, Author of Leading a Culture of Reading
Outstanding leaders know that the most effective way to get a following is to lead by example—to walk the walk, so to say. Not only does it suggest a sense of camaraderie, it also offers the most basic form of instruction: watch and learn. Youngsters, especially, quickly take to this style of learning. They follow in the footsteps of those who teach them.
In Leading a Culture of Reading, Lorraine Radice offers dozens of such practical and authentic ways for teachers and administrators to nurture a love of reading in classrooms and schools including simply sharing their own personal reading habits, celebrating new texts with “First Chapter Friday” readings, setting up book tastings whereby students spend five minutes or so sampling a handful of different books, and hosting literacy events for the whole family to facilitate home-school partnerships. Lorraine addresses how all members of a school community can participate in reading culture and supporting students as readers as well as how to sustain a reading culture when other initiatives call attention.
Intrigued by Lorraine’s innovative approach to perhaps the most important skill any child must master, we assigned our children’s book editor, Danielle Ballantyne, to connect with her for the following conversation.
Many resources on literacy focus solely on ways to encourage children to read at home or in the classroom, but your book takes a more holistic approach, focusing on changes or efforts that can be made in schools and communities at large. What inspired you to take this approach?
I appreciate this observation about Leading A Culture of Reading because it is something I thought a lot about when I first worked with teams to launch the reading initiative in my school community. I reflected on the importance of community and shared vision when supporting the reading lives of students. I thought about the authentic reading work I did in my own classroom with students prior to becoming a school leader. I realized I was no longer thinking for one classroom community; I was thinking for an entire district community. I learned how to collaborate with all stakeholder groups in the school district to develop a commitment to a culture that prioritizes and celebrates reading.
I use theoretical frameworks of literacy studies in my approaches to building reading culture with an emphasis on literacy as a socio-cultural practice. Perspectives in socio-cultural literacy indicate that literacies develop as a result of social and cultural experiences in various spaces—social spaces, academic spaces, culture spaces. Literacy is also participatory. Communities contribute to how one acquires language, discourse, and engages in meaning-making. These ideas guided me to create social literacy experiences within the schools and larger community with the goal that as stakeholders engage in reading practices and reading celebrations, a shared literacy and common language around the importance of reading would develop. This ultimately supports students in developing their reading lives because the adults in the school community work together with a shared understanding that reading is important as well as a vision to foster the reading lives of students.
All adults in a school community are literacy leaders for kids. You never know which adult will make a positive impact on the reading life of a student. It could be a math teacher, an assistant principal, a physical education teacher, an English teacher, an art teacher, or a security guard that welcomes students to the building each day. Valuing all members of a school community is part of the foundation to being a literacy leader.
It’s no secret that teachers in this country are low on resources, often paying for basic classroom supplies out of their own pockets; starting a literacy initiative may feel out of reach for many of them. Your book has lots of advice on the topic, of course, but what are just a few examples of low-cost, low-time things teachers and other school leaders can implement to start building toward a culture of literacy?
When it comes to reading culture-building, free is for me! I think I am able to share many resources and ideas for building reading culture because part of my job is to be fiscally responsible. I also strive to be respectful of teachers’ time. Teachers have a lot to do at all levels; reading culture should enhance and energize their work, not burden or impose.
One gesture that all school community members can participate in at low-cost is to post currently reading signs in classrooms, hallways, and offices. Faculty and staff can share what they are currently reading on a piece of paper. For example: *Dr. Radice is currently reading *A Rover’s Story by Jasmine Warga. An image of the book cover or text can also be included on the sign. What we make visible to kids in school is representative of what the school community values. A staff member’s currently reading sign can be a vehicle for conversation with students. If students see that adults in the school read and share their reading lives, they may be inclined to share about their reading lives and will know that reading is valued.
Similarly to a currently reading sign, administrators and faculty can dedicate the first five minutes to meetings to a book or text talk. The person facilitating the meeting can share about something he/she/they have currently read. Meeting members can turn and talk to a partner to share about something they have currently read. To parallel this structure in the classroom, teachers can dedicate the first five minutes to a class period to give a book talk or to engage students in partner talk about what they are currently reading. Culture events that are brief, but consistent, have an impact because they are part of the students’ routine.
Another low-cost culture event that can be used for personal or academic reading work is a book tasting. A book tasting is an interactive way to reveal new texts to students. Students typically sit at tables. There is a text at each seat. Students spend about five minutes “tasting,” or previewing, each text. Students have a “menu,” or a recording sheet, where they jot down initial thoughts, opinions, or questions about the texts they preview. After sampling four to six texts, students choose one to read. A book tasting can be done with books that are in a classroom library or school library. A tasting can also be done with printed articles or short texts as well as with digital texts. Book tastings offer students opportunities to make choices about what they read, expose students to a variety of text topics and types, and can be connected to a lesson about how to form initial opinions about a book or text and ways to dive deeper into making an informed choice. I have seen book tastings happen at all levels—PreK, elementary, middle school, and high school—and it’s quite amazing. It is an engaging way to launch independent reading, a new unit of study, or a new project. Content-area teachers can also utilize book or text tastings to introduce a new unit topic or to launch a research or exploratory project.
Author visits add excitement and instructional value to literacy work. While they can be costly, there are ways to celebrate authors in a class or school community at a low cost or no cost. Mark your calendar for days like World Read Aloud Day (typically in February) and Read Across America Day (typically in March). Authors often host virtual visits or read alouds at no cost on these days and make them open to the public. Teachers and administrators may also consider inquiring if friends and/or family of school community members are authors and are willing to provide a visit at a low cost or no cost. Always preview the author’s work to determine if it is appropriate for students and staff. After verifying their work, I have had personal friends of staff members who are authors, some who are award-winning, visit with students at no cost. You never know what talent is in your own community and how you can integrate the talent if folks are willing to share.
In Leading A Culture of Reading, I share about the importance of home and school partnerships. Hosting literacy events for families is crucial to building and perpetuating reading culture. Caregivers should be part of how the culture develops. Accessibility is important for school leaders to consider when planning literacy events for caregivers. One strategy is to offer childcare at events. This can be at no cost. Tap into the resources you have within your school community. Are there high school students who need community service hours that can provide supervision to young children during an event for caregivers? Set up a table with coloring pages and crayons where the event is taking place. School leaders can also consider balancing in-person and virtual literacy events for caregivers. While there are benefits to gathering with caregivers in-person, hosting virtual events may come at a lower cost and/or may increase participation in caregivers and staff because of convenient access.
One thing that stood out to me in your book was its call for adults to consider their “reading identity” and examine their position as “reading role models” in their schools, communities, and households. Talk to us a little bit about what that means and why it’s an important part of the process.
Adults in schools act as role models for kids. We model academic habits, social skills, and kind behavior to demonstrate expectations for how people can contribute to the school community at large. Reading is no different. The adults have an opportunity to foster an appreciation for reading in students by sharing their own reading interests and about their own reading lives. One of the first steps to building reading culture is to engage adults in reading culture events so they can reflect on their own reading identities and how they can share them with kids. Events like book swaps, book clubs, a book recommendation newsletter, and adult book tastings are all ways to get adults talking about books and to build excitement around reading. When adults participate in reading culture events, they can reflect on how to integrate the work into classrooms.
You may be thinking: What if some of the adults aren’t avid readers? What if some of the adults don’t actually enjoy reading? This is reality and I acknowledge it right away. I assure adults that not everyone has to be a lover of fiction looking to read the next great American novel. Having a reading life means reading short articles, blogs, menus, emails, sports summaries, movie reviews, etc. It’s important that adults in a school community know that reading takes many forms and that reading lives change and evolve over time. Many people share with me that they didn’t like reading when they were young, but grew to love it later in life. Those are important messages to share with students. Approaching reading conversations with honesty makes student learning authentic. While adults think about the appreciation and challenge of fostering their own reading lives, they can support students to design personal reading plans that are unique to what they need to grow.
On that topic, how would you define your reading identity? Would you say it’s changed over time or remained relatively consistent?
My reading identity has changed over time and is very much indicative of how my responsibilities in life capture my time. There are different aspects of my reading identity: I like to read fiction as an escape and for enjoyment. This includes adult fiction as well as middle-grade and young-adult fiction. My colleagues and I read YA together to get to know what students are interested in reading. I also engage in a lot of professional reading. I read about topics I am curious about to continuously learn, discover, and expand my understandings to help in my approaches to leadership and professional development. I read digital texts, often shorter, to keep up on news, pop culture, and sports. I must admit that if I find myself binge-watching a show that I can’t get enough of or if I am worried about something or focused on a project I am working on, my book will sit on my nightstand for a few extra days. I think reading lives fluctuate for many people. There are different reasons and motivations for reading a lot or not reading at all for a period of time. This is ok. Authentic reading practices and challenges are important to share with students. It’s what makes learning less abstract and more concrete for kids.
I was struck by the insights you included from Nancie Atwell and her book In the Middle, where she addresses the one-size-fits-all approach of traditional reading instruction and explains how she changed her process to be more authentic to herself. Do you think students can pick up on a “do as I say, not as I do” approach from their instructors? If so, how do you think that impacts their view of or commitment to reading and literacy?
I think kids are really smart. And really initiative. They need educators that are inspiring, honest, and authentic. And as I mentioned, being inspiring, honest, and authentic doesn’t always mean being “perfect,” whatever version of perfect one may presume. Kids appreciate when teachers share their successes and challenges. Kids appreciate when teachers share how they have overcome obstacles or how they have found their niche. There is also opportunity for students and teachers to connect with each other when teachers share authentic examples from their own reading lives that they are comfortable with. I remember being hooked on a series once and I shared my excitement with my students at the start of class. Spending a few minutes talking to my students about why I was loving what I was reading and how a series can really hook you in as a reader led to three of my students staying after class to tell me about the series they were reading. There are also times when my reading life consists of catching up on football news throughout the week; I shared this with students and we would get into long conversations about football, athletes, and having a digital reading life. All reading lives are different. Celebrate it!
Similarly, you acknowledge in the book that not all adults will have a strong connection to or interest in reading. What advice do you have for teachers or other mentors who want to encourage reading in their community without being inauthentic?
My advice is to lead with honesty. Honesty translates to authenticity. Reading, and learning, manifests differently for adults and will for students as well. I think it’s refreshing to students when adults are honest with them. By acknowledging challenges or low interest in reading with students, adults can have authentic conversations with students and work with them to develop personal reading plans that are unique to what they need as readers.
Adults can value reading, but not absolutely love it, much like one may have a morning workout routine because of the value it adds to overall health, but doesn’t love getting up early to actually do it. For those who identify with this, try shorter “bursts” of reading culture in the classroom or school. For example, host First Chapter Friday where the teacher reads the first chapter or part of the first chapter of a book to students to entice them with a possible choice for independent reading. Or, host Two-Minute Text Tuesday where the teacher shares a short digital or print article connected to current events or pop culture. Or, engage students in a Media-Minute at the start of class where the teacher plays a one-minute video clip about something related to current events, pop culture, or a unit of study. Students engage in conversation to respond and make a connection between the media clip and something they have read recently. Engagement and meaning-making are at the core of these reading culture events.
The conclusion in Leading A Culture of Reading is titled “Embrace Some.” The conclusion is an acknowledgement that reading culture events will resonate differently with students and adults. While all students will experience the culture within the classroom or school, I explain that not all students will participate in or perpetuate the culture in the same ways. Some will appear disengaged, some will orbit, and some will thrive. Educators know that students change throughout the course of a school year and throughout the course of their school career. Reading culture benefits are a result of a compilation of small and big literacy moments in the classroom and school that shape the trajectory for students.
We can’t have a conversation about books in classrooms without acknowledging the efforts in some communities to control or restrict them. What advice would you offer to teachers or community leaders who want to increase literacy in their communities but fear running afoul of book bans or vague, subjective legislation?
Every context is different. Reading culture isn’t about a specific title or topic. Reading culture is a commitment to prioritizing and celebrating reading within a classroom or school. It is about community. It is about volume, engagement, and choice in reading. Educators can incorporate these values into classrooms and schools by working with teams to have conversations about the evidence-based importance of reading volume, engagement, and choice in reading.
Finally, what’s at the top of your to-be-read pile, and can we expect any more books from you to add to ours?
I am looking forward to reading Jennifer Donnelly’s new book Beastly Beauty. Jennifer also wrote Stepsister and Poisoned. These are fractured fairy tales with a modern twist.
I am excited to share that I have a new book coming out in March 2025. The new book has an instructional focus and introduces a literacy framework for curriculum and instruction design. It is called the revolving literacy framework. It emphasizes the importance of relevance and future-readiness in literacy instruction in the secondary English classroom. It is filled with practical resources for curriculum development, lesson planning, and fostering engagement, independence, and reflection in literacy learning for students.
Danielle Ballantyne
