If there was one thing that could push you to read, what would that be? How would you get someone who doesn’t like reading to read?
When Arjun’s teacher announces a competition in school, Arjun is thrilled – until he learns that it is a reading competition. He is no reader; he likes logic, facts and all things mathematical. The problem is that the prize is so attractive that Arjun is tempted. The question, though, is how far he is willing to go to help his class to win.
The reasons I chose Hungry to Read for my reading programme are very different from the reasons I chose every other book. More than having enjoyed the book, I love the possibilities it has when it comes to activities and conversations. Here is some of what I will do with the book.
Scavenger hunt
I love book scavenger hunts! We’ll do a quick one with this book, simply to start a conversation on the different kinds of books we read.
Book discussion
Some conversations need to happen time and time again if ever we want to move away from ideas of ‘girlie’ and ‘bad English’. Why does Arjun find a book about a princess too girlie? Why does Sheen get angry with Rio’s lack of fluency?
Language shaming is something I’ve written about in the past, and it finds its worst form when it comes to a language like English. Language shaming leaves deep impressions on children, and this is something I want children to think about. Gender stereotyping is something I have trouble with in books too, and I want conversations to happen around what constitutes ‘girlie’ and what is ‘boyish’. How much will seven- and eight-year-olds contribute to a conversation like this? I can only begin the conversation and find out!
How to pick a book
A book about a Read Drive is a wonderful way to introduce children to how to choose books. During the reading challenges at the British Library, I often found children picking the thinnest possible books so that they could easily get done with their quota of six books in six weeks. Other children, seeking to impress their teachers, chose the thickest book, paying no attention to whether it seemed interesting to them.
How do we choose a book? How can we pick something suited to our age, understanding and interest? I will use Hungry to Read to talk about it!
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