The Homerun Book

19 October

Think back.  Way back.  Is there one book or reading experience that hooked you for life? A favorite bedtime story, a book your teacher or librarian read to you, a book you were given as a gift or something you picked up “once upon a time.”

One very positive experience can create a reader.  In a study called, “The Home Run Book”, over 53% of students who said they enjoyed reading could identify a particular book that first interested them in reading (Von Sprecken, Kim, & Krashen, 2000).  What about those books you bought at the Book Fair, those books your children bring home from the IAA Library, the readers they bring home from class, the books they read from their libraries at home—has your child found his or her Homerun Book?  Have you?  

Please post on our Padlet Wall at http://padlet.com/kathleen_mckim/homerunbooks.  You might inspire someone else with your choice.

And, if your child isn’t a reader yet, don’t be disappointed, not every book is a homerun.  Some are absolute strikeouts. Some will get a man on third, others are triple-, double-plays, some are fouls for a walk.  Don’t give up.  Keep playing the game.  Sooner or later, there’s bound to be a homerun!