R is for reading experiences

Anyone who has/worked with a young child has probably seen this very presentation of a small child "reading" a beloved book. We all know that this pretending is an example of repetition and eventual memorization. However, I find the fact that this little girl wants to read so bad that she has memorized a book is so inspiring! Chapter 3 of Classrooms that Work shows many different tools on how to keep the desire to read alive and to offer ideas for different literary practices.  I work in a preschool, so the ideas in this chapter have really got my creative juices flowing. Everybody knows this form of alphabetical learning:

But how can we make it more interesting??

The answer is names!!!! Every teacher is going to have the perfect repertoire of student names to use. Whether is be learning that Carlos and Candace both start with "C" or that Maya is shorter than Layanne, namesakes offer powerful tools for learning jargon. Chapter 3's version of this really helped me with this idea. I don't know about you guys, but I totally want to try this! 

The other reading from Johnson's The Jones Family's Culture of Literacy my eyes were opened to the familial influences on reading. We all know that the article showed one female-centered family helped a student in her experiences with reading and writing. This multi-generational African-American family emphasized reading and did so with whatever was handy. From newspapers to mental representations of recipes, these women constantly used reading and writing in their lives. Teachers need to remember that all families are different, and in a perfect world everyone would help their kids learn the basics before school.

But our world isn't perfect, and kids will come into school with all different abilities, strengths, and weaknesses in regards to literacy. It is important to understand and use these tools to the best of our abilities. I want to become well-versed in all cultures my students are involved with and learn different teaching angles because of this. What do ya'll think? Is this a good idea, or just a head-ache inducing plan? Let me know! From the textbook reading, I also learned how important it is to allow students to experiment with reading and writing, and enable creativity. Many teachers want to correct this: 

but in reality, this practice will help students perfect their reading skills, and encourage them to explore this new world of knowledge. It may also foster a desire to "pretend read" with friends, teachers, and parents like the video we started out with. So a good teacher, plus a student with desire to read, ends up turning into:

As a future educator, I want to learn how to incorporate these

elements into the daily grind as to better inspire my students about learning and literacy. What do you guys think? Are these useful tools for the classroom? Would you do them? What else might help within the classroom? Let's share some ideas below in the comments section.