“A teen that reads will be an adult that thinks.”
Author unknown
From the Resources Centre: Creating a culture of reading at Joeys
Boys’ literacy continues to be a major issue in education nationwide and has never been more critical for future success and well-being. St Joseph’s College has reaffirmed its commitment to improving reading and literacy by supporting a number of new reading initiatives in 2020. Reading regularly has a broad range of benefits including improved vocabulary, spelling, grammar, writing, knowledge and empathy. It also helps decrease stress and improve sleep.
Highly successful learners read a lot and many of the most successful people worldwide share a love of reading. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffett all say reading has been instrumental in assisting them achieving success.
In a world where information is the new currency, reading is the best source of continuous learning and knowledge.
Research informs us that a powerful strategy in supporting teenagers engaging in reading is to create a positive culture around reading.
How can we help create a culture of reading?
- Set the scene – Create an environment that encourages reading. Have books and other material visible. Give books as gifts and dedicate regular screen free time for the family.
- Be a role model – Teenagers need to see that men read and value reading. Let boys see both parents reading and chat to them about it.
- Make a habit – Help develop a lifelong habit of reading by encouraging a regular reading time each day. Try the 20 Minute Reading Challenge: 20 minutes each day = 1,800,000 words = 26 books per year. Everyone can find 20 minutes a day and bedtime is a great time to read.
- Just Read – Encourage boys to read what interests them, no matter what form or genre: novels, non-fiction, biographies, blogs, newspapers, magazines, eBooks. All reading helps improve his skills as a reader.
- Talk about it – Make time to discuss what boys are reading. Praise boys efforts in reading
A few initiatives we are running include:
- Wide Reading – All students in Year 7 to Year 10 participate in one session a fortnight of wide reading in the Resources Centre
- DART (Daily Autonomous reading time) – All students at the College engage in sustained free choice wide reading each Thursday morning during their pastoral lesson
- 20 Books in 2020 Reading Challenge – Read 20 books in 2020 by committing to read for 20 minutes each day. By committing to read at least 20 minutes each day, boys should be able to read 4,400 word per day, 30,800 words per week and 1,600,000 words per year. This equates to over 20 books by the end of the year.
- Books & Blokes Breakfast
- About the Books & Blokes Series: The
SJC Books & Blokes series began in 2012 as part of an
initiative to encourage all men at Joeys to read. This breakfast series aims to
encourage men both at home and in the college community to share their love of
reading with the boys, to talk about and recommend books they have enjoyed and
to help spread the message that “It’s OK for Blokes to Read”.
We aim to bring in a broad range of inspirational and interesting speakers to share their stories with the “men” at Joeys over a casual and laid back breakfast.
- About the Books & Blokes Series: The
SJC Books & Blokes series began in 2012 as part of an
initiative to encourage all men at Joeys to read. This breakfast series aims to
encourage men both at home and in the college community to share their love of
reading with the boys, to talk about and recommend books they have enjoyed and
to help spread the message that “It’s OK for Blokes to Read”.
20 Books in 2020 Reading Challenge
Congratulations to
Avery Brown
Congratulations to Avery Brown in Year 8, who is the first student at Joeys to complete the 20 Books in 2020 Reading Challenge, a phenomenal achievement. Avery has been busy reading the “Wings of Fire” and series and the “Rangers Apprentice” series.
Simply Books Book Club – For parents who love reading
In 2008, the library started a book club, Simply Books, for parents and carers at the College. Over the years, many enthusiastic readers from the Joeys community have come together to discuss the nominated books and express their opinions and likes or dislikes while enjoying a lovely morning tea. We enjoy the company of parents and carers from across all year groups and also past parents. The meetings are held at 10.30am on a Wednesday at the beginning and at the end of term. If you are interested in coming to book club or joining the mailing list, please email Linda Roden at lroden@joeys.org.
