Reading corners in schools Increase access to reading materials
Priti Gandhi
To enhance reading skills of students, increase access to reading materials by giving students multiple opportunities to read books in schools as well as at home.
Divide books in the school according to levels; procure more books, if required; Organize students according to reading level; Identify a space in school that can be used a reading corner; Decorate the space by colouring the walls and putting up posters; involve the students in the decoratio; Organize books according to level and keep them in the reading corner for students to pick up freely; Engage volunteers from within the community or the SMC members to help the weaker students in reading; Track students progress through reading tests.
Little library at home
Create a list of books across different levels and genres. These can consist of picture stories, small novels, dictionary, magazines etc; Mobilise resources to procure these books. (These will be in addition to the books already procured for the reading corner.); Divide books into sets of 25, consisting of different levels and genres; Procure small aluminium boxes that can house upto 25 books; Keep a set of 25 books in each aluminium box; Number the aluminium boxes and stick a page with the list of books on the inside of the box; Develop a rotation system whereby each time, a different set of students get to take aluminium boxes home for a period of one month. (In the beginning, ensure that each student gets a box at least every two/three months. Once more books and boxes are mobilised, each student should be given a different box of books every month.); Encourage students to write about any 3 books they read in the month. Organize story-telling opportunities for students in the prayer assembly for them to talk about their favourite stories. Having access to books at home improves literacy skills through increased exposure to different forms of reading material. Interest of family members in reading also increases, leading to consistency between the school and home environment. The teacher should test the speed of reading and aim for about 80 to 90 words per minute with 90%+ accuracy.