Reading Stories

Stephan Ellenwood

Learning to read is a vital， complex task which can be made easier if we expand the conventional conceptualizations of reading. Many have wisely advised educators about expanding beyond understanding reading primarily as an act of decoding visual， printed symbols into words， phrases， and sentences. At this symposium we can profitably explore well beyond that vision and version of reading so that reading is seen more as a dynamic， interactive process occurring in many situations. Identifying the fundamental qualities of a well-educated person is an excellent place to first locate some of these broader views of teaching about reading.

General descriptions of well-educated always include language fluency， making good judgments， precise thinking， humane caring， sensitive observing， constantly informing， and growing. But when we add other qualities such as the ability to successfully make a mistake or to get outside of our own ways of thinking then the value of broader definitions of reading become even clearer.

One way to expand these conventional conceptualizations and engage learners more actively in the dynamics of reading is for educators to experience stories in quite different ways； that is， by reading silently a print story （e.g. The Birthday Party by Katherine Bush）， listening to someone tell a story （e.g. Appointment with Love by S. I. Kishnor）， and seeing a story （using a childrens book of a story in pictures without words such as The Farmer and the Clown by Marla Fraser）. This is part of the theory of helping young readers experience stories in the same diverse ways they experience stories in real life. By making reading one of the ways we receive stories it becomes less mystical and less daunting. Most importantly it is more engaging.

In any of these modes reading can be a solitary act. But ones reading becomes greatly enriched if we begin to share with others what we think happened in a story， why it happened， how the author created the story and characters， as well as why we reacted to each story as delivered in different modes.

Anyones engagement with any of these kinds of “readings” is deepened when the activity is integrated with all the basic language skills—reading， writing， speaking， listening， and viewing. If we heed Chomskys advice by distinguishing between language competence （language rules for receiving and producing language） and language performance （actual language as used in a variety of contexts）， then we can productively create learning experiences where competence and performance truly mutually enhance each other.

Two additional elements strengthen a learners language base： natural language and visualizing. Respecting natural language helps students capture the dynamics of language as it evolves and as it appears in a variety of daily micro-dialects. Good writers usually set as their goal that they want their readers to “see” what they are writing about. If young readers are taught to slow down and imagine the scenes writers paint with words， then they will read， speak， listen， and write as well as eventually， think more effectively themselves. When that happens， the readers world expands because they have the skill of reading combined with the inspiration to think more deeply and more imaginatively.

The final piece to the puzzle of energizing readers is to focus heavily on stories. Stories bring to students interesting individuals from different places and different eras. These individuals face all sorts of human problems， large and small， and they make difficult choices. As students understand problems and choices facing believable people instead of trying to capture the meaning of broad， general abstractions， the stories become like practice games for athletes or like rehearsals for musicians and actors. Stories then help students prepare for real life complexities. Once students realize this power in stories they will be encouraged to strengthen their reading skills. Everyones life is richer if they understand how other people live. Alan Gurganus described the power of stories as， “imagining the lives of others is not just a luxurious feat achieved by rare artists， but it is a daily necessity for all of us.”

As students of any age learn to read in any language their reading will become much more active if they are taught to analyze stories and become truly involved in the stories. As one 7th grader put it， “I may not agree with the author， but I like reading.” This student clearly had a teacher who empowered her readers. Those kinds of readers are the ones who understand that they can actually write their own life story. And their life stories will be richer if teachers consistently ask them to reflect on what a character will likely do next in a story， as well as what else the character could possibly do， and finally， what the character should do next.

Stories are the best way for students to get outside their own ways of thinking， to develop the habit of imagining the lives of others， to visualize scenes and situations， and to learn a natural language with its own idioms， its own cultural values， and its own nuances. T. S. Eliot was talking about journeys when he spoke of the value of traveling far and wide so that when we come home we will truly know the place for the first time. The same can be said of power of stories and the same can be said of the power of learning a second language.