Reluctantly Letting Go of Reluctant

I am a reluctant reader.  I mean I was a reluctant reader.  I am a reformed reluctant reader? 

Call it whatever you want, I am finally starting to identify myself as a reader and while I may be having a difficult time shedding my reluctant title, I know I am not alone.  

A few weeks ago I received an email from a parent of a student I taught stating how excited she was her child was embracing a reading lifestyle and described all the wonderful books her child had read over the summer.  She ended the email by saying "I have a few other book recommendations for reluctant readers like [my child]." 

Hmm.  There it was again. 

We joked that if she kept it up, she wouldn't be able to call herself reluctant anymore, but it got me thinking-

If a reader is someone who reads, and we are reading, why do so many of us still identify as reluctant? 

Part of the problem may be that while many of us believe in a growth mindset, that our reading abilities depend on our efforts and hard work, we don't have a plan for actually putting in the work.  Believing and doing are two different things.  

Personally, I wanted to be a reader, but believed that reading should be saved for the "perfect" moments: reading on the beach, reading before bed, and reading when I had the urge to read.  The problem with this was I rarely go to the beach, I would fall asleep before finishing the first page, and I never had the urge to read.  

If your plan to do something involves the words "when I feel like it", there is a good chance it is not getting done.       

So rather than go another summer waiting to be inspired to read, I decided to make reading a priority, and in turn, a habit, and I challenged my students to do the same. 

  

Since starting in June, I have finished 11 books (That's more than the total number of books I read in all of 2016).  I purposefully made room for reading in my daily life and once I started looking for places to fit it in, the floodgates simply burst open.  

I read when I was on the train, when I was getting my hair cut, and when I needed a break from cleaning up my classroom.  I read when I was early for appointments, when I was bored, and when I was waiting for dinner.  I read when books were recommended, when I needed a break from sightseeing, and when there was nothing good on TV.  

And yes, I read at the beach. 

The other problem is that we view readers as people who love to read.  And if you don't naturally love reading, then you are a different type of reader- You are reluctant.  

But it doesn't have to be that way. 

I am a reader because I've work hard to make reading a part of my daily life.  And while I hope all of my students love to read, I hope that they value the importance of working hard to make reading a priority more.  

How do you make reading a priority?  

HAPPY READING!