Kendall Children's Lit. Spring discussion

1. Describe the three kinds of readers Miller sees in her classroom.

Mrs. Miller categories all students under three options for types of readers. First she discusses developing readers, who she considers to often be labeled as struggling. Since the term struggling readers has a negative connotation she prefers developing to portray a positive outlook. These students have low test scores and often receive services including tutoring. Along with this they feel negatively about reading and often do not feel they will ever be able to read at the appropriate level. The second type of reader that she discusses is Dormant readers. These students are probably the most common and are the students who do exactly what they need to in order to pass the classes and state tests. The read what they need to and complete all of the assignments that are necessary in relation to the book. However, they never find it enjoyable and think of it only as school work. Lastly, she discusses the category of Underground readers. These students are often gifted readers but seldom find books in classes that are entertaining. They want to read and enjoy reading, but do not like the teacher setting restrictions and limitations on it. Many times teachers do little with the students to encourage and focus more the other two categories.

Readers in standard classrooms are separated into three distinct groups as described by Miller. The first group of readers is classified as developing readers. These are the students who do not meet the minimum standards based off of standardized tests. These readers are called struggling readers. There are also readers in this group who do not want or like to read and need a lot of pressure to read. These readers are called reluctant readers. The next group of readers is called dormant readers. These are the average students. These are the ones who do not get as much help because they are at reading level, but they have potential. These are the students who read what is required to move on and pass the classes. They can also be considered as reluctant readers. The final group of students is known as underground readers. These are the students who do exceptionally well with reading. These students see the reading that is required in school as boring and just want to get through it and move on. Teachers use all their time and resources trying to help the developing readers and assist the dormant readers that the underground readers go unaided.

There are three categories of readers that Mrs. Miller identifies in her classrooms. The first is the developing reader also known as the struggling reader. She tells us that often these students do not enjoy reading and tend to fall behind on their test scores. Mrs. Miller perfers the term developing rather than struggling because developing has a more positive connotation for the student and helps them believe that they can achieve a more positive view of reading for enjoyment. Then she classifies the dormant or reluctant reader which she feels is the majority of most students. To this large group reading is not fun but considered to be work. They mostly read what they are told and follow directions to complete the assignments. Lastly Mrs. Miller identies the undergound or gifted reading group. This group of students enjoys reading and tend to look ahead for more materials to read. This group too has it's issues and can easily bored if not challenged or allowed to work ahead for their enjoyment.

The first type of reader that Mrs.Miller identifies is called a developing reader or the struggling reader. They have difficulty understanding the reading material in every aspect of their lives. These students do not see themselves as capable of becoming strong readers and by the time they reach intermediate grades the majority of them have been in reading intervention programs and tutoring. The next type of reader she encounters is dormant readers and these are the kids that just read the books that have to in class in order to get through the course. For these students reading is work not pleasure so once school is over they dont ever read in the summer. The last type of reader she comes across is called underground reader. They are gifted readers and just want to read what they want and have the teacher leave them alone and not make them read certain books.

Mrs. Miller feels that all students in a standard classroom can fit into three different categories. Those categories are developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Developing readers are the first type of readers she discusses. Students who are developing readers may not have had much experience reading and have a negative view on reading. These students are often called struggling readers. They are the ones in the class who receive low scores and some have even failed reading standardized tests multiple times. There are also reluctant readers in this group who are students who just do not like to read. The second category of readers Mrs. Miller discusses is dormant readers. Dormant readers are students who only read in the classroom setting. These are students who may be great readers but have never had an opportunity to find the joy in reading because the only books they read are books assigned to them. The last type of reader is and underground reader. Underground readers love to read; however, they may not love to read books they are assigned in class. It is possible that these students will enjoy assigned books, but moving at a slow pace with activities and quizzes is not enjoyable. Often times underground readers are given less personalized attention than other students because they excel with little help.

The categories that Mrs. Miller uses
to describe different readers are developing reading, dormant readers, and underground readers. Developing reading usually have a negative mindset for reading and they do not normally read or have a passion to read. They normally have lower scores on testing or having to take the test multiple times. Because of these results, it is hard for students to get motivated to grow when they are receiving such negative feedback. These types of students can be known as struggling readers. The second kind of reader is the dormant reader. These students can read at an efficient level but they do not desire to read outside of the class or to read books on their own. They normally can complete the required reading for class but anything other than that does not normally happen. They do not see or experience the joy in casual reading. Underground readers are the last type of read that Mrs. Miller talked about. These are the readers who truly love to read. They score well on their testing and read without trouble the required texts for the class. Because of their level of reading, things normally done in the classroom bore them. They do not normally enjoy the day to day worksheets and discussions because their understanding is above that of the average student

Mrs. Miller uses three terms to describe the types of readers that she sees on a daily basis. Developing, Dormant and Underground readers are three titles that she places on the different types of readers. Developing readers are those who are struggling readers. Often times they are below their grade level in reading and do not enjoy reading to the extent that it harms their abilities. Although they could read to improve, they find no interest. Dormant readers on the other hand are readers that are at the correct level but do not enjoy reading and only read when necessary. They will read just enough to get by in their classes and schoolwork but make no effort outside of school to read. A lot of them she deems as dormant readers because she honestly believes that there is a reader deep down inside of each of them, even if they cannot see it. Although most of the time, they are not given the opportunity to read outside of what is required; or what they would like to read. Underground readers are the people who Mrs. Miller defines as the bookworms. They enjoy reading and read all the required materials in school and also read on their own. These readers are often not challenged enough on their own because they are often times held up by the dormant readers. If underground readers were able to read what they wanted, and at their own pace, they would soar in their abilities.

Miller describes 3 different readers. First is the developing reader. Many people classify a developing reader as a “struggling” reader. These students are usually the students who are below average or read below their grade level. Sometimes, they do not pass their standardized reading tests and are required to take intervention classes and reading comprehension tutoring. Many of the students have not found reading enjoyable, because they have always struggled and never read at their grade level. Second is the dormant reader. These are the students who read at their grade level, do well on standardized tests, but lack one reading quality. They do not find reading enjoyable, and they see it as work or a chore. Unfortunately, they don’t read on their free time and in the future, they might struggle in the classroom. Sadly, dormant readers are the most common in students. Third and finally is the underground reader. Underground readers are avid readers and gifted. They feel that the teacher just stands in the way, because all they want to do is read the books they enjoy. Teachers dream to have all of their students to be underground readers, but unfortunately they are difficult to work with because usually they are way above the other students.

The "developing" reader is one that is commonly called struggling. This is the kid that, for whatever reason, isn't reading at grade level. They still have the ability to become strong readers; they just need the right tools and perhaps some better encouragement.

"Dormant" readers are those that barely make it past state standard achievement scores. They are generally uninterested in reading, and don't do much of it outside of what is necessary. Because their test scores are good enough, however, they are in the most danger of being neglected.

Lastly, "underground" readers are talented stars of the classroom. They may or may not do the assigned reasons, with or without much verve, but they've almost always got the right answer in class. Underground readers want to read whatever they want to read, and are probably very gifted in it; but they don't see much application for what the teacher is prescribing in class.

The three types of readers Miller sees in her classrooms are developing, dormant, and underground. The developing readers are those who read bellow their grade level. These readers struggle to read at their grade level due to a variety of different reasons, mostly due to lack of experience. The next type of reader is dormant readers. These are the students who just don’t read. It is not due to lack of ability but more due to lack of interest. These students often get overlooked because they do well enough in school so teachers don’t question them. These students generally lack interest in reading. The last type of reader is the underground reader. These are the readers who like reading so much, they detach reading from the rest of the world. These students love the unnatural world they enter in reading, and don’t want the real world to interfere.

Rather than use derogatory terms such as “struggling readers” or “reluctant readers” which might demoralize students, Miller emphasizes the use of non-judgmental and encouraging terminology to describe these students. The three types of readers she categorizes are “developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers” (pg 24). Developing readers are the equivalent of what we traditionally call “struggling” readers, those students who read below their grade level. Many of these students are put into special education programs to receive additional instruction on how to become stronger readers. The irony is that these students usually receive more instruction, but get less actual reading time. In what is called the “Matthew effect” based on the proverb by Matthew “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer”, these students actually fall farther behind in reading because they are not reading as much as their counterparts in regular education classrooms.
The next type of reader is the “dormant” reader, those students that just do the bare minimum of what is required for their reading assignments. They are unmotivated to read outside of school or during the summers because they don't see reading as a valuable endeavor. Reading is a chore for them and they get no enjoyment out of it. Dormant readers can be made into enthusiastic readers if they are engaged in a book that peaks their interests. Finally the last type of readers are “Underground Readers”, those students who excel at reading, but often become bored with the restraints of having to read in an academic way. These are advanced thinkers and will have “sophisticated tastes” (pg 31) which must be met with challenging books. It is best to develop a reading program around their needs rather than force them to conform to the reading practices of other students.

The first type of reader that Miller describes is the developing reader. These students are better known as the "struggling" readers, as that is what most people refer to them as, but Miller prefers to put a more positive term with what these students exemplify. These students are the ones who may be below grade level in their reading, barely passing the tests to move on to the next grade level, and possibly not passing these tests at all and still moving up a grade level anyway. The next reader Miller describes is the dormant reader. The most common type of reader, the dormant student has no trouble reading, are either at grade level or maybe even above grade level, do well in their English/reading courses, but have no interest in reading whatsoever. They do what is asked of them, get by in school, and rarely (if ever) pick up a book for pleasure. The last type of reader Miller describes is the underground reader. This type of reader excels at reading and enjoys reading outside of school, but sees no point in being forced to read and regurgitate when school is in session. Like the dormant reader, they do what they are asked in school regarding reading, and do well in their reading/language arts courses, but prefer to read what they want on their own time.

1. Miller prefers to use positive language to identify readers, and recognizes three trends: developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Miller now calls what was once referred to as struggling readers, developing readers. This type of reader has difficulty understanding reading material. This is generally due to the lack of actual reading that the developing reader does. With support and heavy reading, these students have the ability to become strong readers. The next type of reader Mille sees in her class is the dormant reader. The dormant reader, previously the reluctant reader, reads only because they have to. They are fully capable of reading, but they have not had the opportunity to read what hold their interest. This is generally because they are told what to read, and are usually unable to find something they enjoy. The last reader Miller identifies in her class is the underground reader. Underground readers are gifted readers. They usually read what they have to for school, but also read what they want to on their own. I think Miller makes very interesting points. It really got me thinking more about how to teach different readers in the most powerful way possible.

Mrs. Miller sees all of her students as readers. Each student is on his/her own level of reading and have the ability to read at their own pace, which may be faster or slower than others around them. The main idea though, is that every student is or will be a reader. Mrs. Miller separates her readers into 3 different categories: Developing Readers, Dormant Readers, and Underground Readers.

Students who are considered to be struggling readers are referred to as Developing Readers according to Mrs. Miller. The students in this category are usually not reading at grade level. There are several different reasons for this such as learning disabilities or inadequate learning experiences. Mrs. Miller's experience has shown that most students have had a minimum amount of actual reading. The less a person reads, the harder it is for them to become a good reader.

Students who are Dormant Readers are ones who are reluctant to read. They usually only read because they have to, not because they want to. They are capable of reading and understand the material, but lack the desire to find enjoyment in reading. They would rather do something else such as watch television than read and are usually told what to read, which may hinder their ability to enjoy it.

The last category is the Underground Readers. These readers are gifted readers, who love to read, and are always reading. They will usually do the reading that is required for school, but will also read other books that they have chosen for their own enjoyment. They do so because they might be bored with the required academic reading material and would rather read something of their choice.

Mrs. Miller pinpoints readers with precise examples. It helped me evaluate myself as a reader when I was in grade school and the type of reader I am now. It also allowed me to see how my children and students might end up in one of these categories.

Miller sees three different kinds of readers in her classroom: developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Developing readers are those who need encouragement and assistance when it comes to choosing a book and learning how to really READ it. These kinds of readers have a hard time with reading and struggle with the reading portion of state assessments. Dormant readers are those who can read well, but only choose to read if it is for a school assignment. They are uninterested in reading as a whole, mostly because they have not found a book that intrigues them. Underground readers are advanced and sophisticated readers who choose to read over other things, and in extreme cases, put pleasure reading before work and school. These students also need support from teachers to encourage their advanced reading skill and love for books.

The three kinds of readers Miller sees in her classroom are developing, dormant, and underground readers. Developing readers have difficulty understanding any reading materials. They don’t see themselves as capable of becoming strong readers. These guys are also known as struggling readers but Miller wants to look at the positives. Dormant readers are students who read in order to pass their classes or do well on state tests. They never read for leisure. They can read but choose not to. According to Mark Twain the man who does not read great books is no better than the man who can’t. Underground readers are gifted readers but they see the reading they are asked to do in school in the way of the reading they like to do on their own. Their grades are low yet they score well on the state test. These are the students who you see reading constantly.

Miller describes three different types of readers in the classroom- developing, dormant, and underground readers. The developing, or "struggling" readers are those who aren't reading at their level, and require a lot of tutoring and encouragement. These students also tend to have lower test scores, especially with the reading parts of state assessments. Next, the dormant reader is one who can read well, and do homework readings and assignments well, too, but only read for school assignments, not for pleasure. Most of the time, these students haven't been able to find a book that shows their interest, and until they find one, books won't be something they choose. Lastly, underground readers are noted as more advanced, or gifted, readers. These students will more likely read the assigned books for class well before the due date, while still reading other things during that time. It's important to encourage their continued love of reading, and let them read at their own desire, while keeping them interested in what's being taught in the classroom. Miller's chapter was very interesting. It really made me look at my own reading style, and is something I can hold onto, and use as a tool for my own class to examine what types of readers I may have.

I thought it was very interesting reading the first part of this story. I never really thought much of it when a teacher said a student was struggling in reading. I just assumed they meant that they were failing, but it looks like that might not be the case. Miller has three types of readers that she sees in her classroom. They are developing readers, dormant readers and underground readers. A developing reader is someone who isn't reading at their grade level. They have difficulty understanding the reading material and their tests scores are usually low. Sadly enough these readers don’t see themselves as people who could become a successful reader. Another huge factor is that developing readers read about 75% less than the average student. Reading needs to be more of a focus for them to understand and learn from the written word. A dormant reader is someone who can read and understand the information just fine, but the teacher doesn't give them any attention as long as they pass their state test. These types of readers read to pass tests or to do well in school, but outside of the classroom they don’t pick up a book. Within this reading category the reader doesn't learn to enjoy a book. The underground reader is someone who loves to read, but wants to read what they choose. They don’t want to be told what to read. These students have to deal with the curriculum of the entire class and are often left needing more from their reading.

The three types of readers that Miller talked about were developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers.
I really like how she renames struggling readers "developing readers". It takes away the negativity of the word struggling. When a child knows they are struggling they convince themselves that they don't have to ability or potential to read. As they fail more and more tests they start to believe that they will always struggle. As a result of that students who are labeled as struggling readers tend to read less. To call a child a developing reader gives them the hope that they will be good readers with time and practice.
Dormant readers are readers that are normally labeled as reluctant readers. They are the students who have average or above average test scores but they don't see themselves as readers. They won't go out of their way to read a book. They would rather watch TV or a movie than sit down and read a book. They read less so they are in danger of falling behind other students who find pleasure in reading and read more. Dormant readers are readers who just don't know that they are readers.
Underground readers are the readers that love to read and have labeled themselves as readers. They are the readers who will get their books taken away in class when they are supposed to be paying attention to a lesson. Underground readers may love to read but English could still be their least favorite subject. This is because in their English classes they are told what they must read and given worksheets and tests over the required reading. They may be forced to read books that don't interest them for years so they don't like English class.
I found these very interesting and helpful for my future classroom. I have always hated reading labels because they always seemed so negative. The way that Miller lays it out makes labeling less mean and it doesn't put down the students and make them want to read less.

Mrs. Miller classifies her students into three categories. There are different terms that are used in different classrooms but Mrs. Miller wanted things to be positive and to not scare children away. All children have experience with some kind of reading, but not everyone has had a positive experience and wants to continue reading. The first type of reader would be developing reader. The negative terminology that would go with developing would be struggling reader. This type of reader would have trouble reading in most aspect and do not enjoy reading in school or at home. The next type of reader is a dormant reader. This would be also known as a reluctant reader. This student would read when it was required in school homework and assignments but when there were other times to read, they wouldn’t read. The last type of reader discussed would be an underground reader. This type of reader is a gifted student. They read when it comes to completing homework and also want to read outside of that. They want to read at their own pace and not be held back by someone saying they can only read so many chapters this week. This type sometimes does the reading assignments but doesn’t do the other part of assignments because all they want to do is read. Most students are considered to be dormant readers and will do the work assigned in school, and then they won’t do any more reading unless it is assigned.

Miller identified three types of readers in her classroom. The three types are developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Miller acknowledged these trends of readers so that they were not labeled in a negative manner within and hopefully outside of her classroom. Miller found a derogatory message when readers are labeled as “struggling” or “reluctant readers”, which essentially is labeling students according to their success in school. Miller goes on to describe these three types of readers she had the privilege of teaching in her classroom.
A developing reader is a child who has been labeled as a struggling reader in the past. Miller informs us that the child hasn’t had the experiences of reading as some other readers and she/he finds it challenging to read at grade level or above. Lack of comprehension of reading material plays a significant role here. Miller also describes the dormant readers she encountered. She states that this is a “whole group of readers who are taken for granted,” (pg 27). Yes, these kiddos can read at or above grade level and perform well on standardized tests. However, Miller describes dormant readers as being as troubled as her previously described developing readers due to their lack of motivation and interest surrounding reading. These readers are also labeled, more negatively, as reluctant readers. Lastly, Miller shares her take on underground readers. Underground readers find it difficult to make the connection between their required reading material and their leisurely reading experiences. These readers are talented, avid readers. You can often find an underground secretly reading his or her preferred book, which is placed inside of another required text.

Miller sees developing, dormant, and underground readers in her classroom. Developing readers are usually referred to as struggling. They need more positive reinforcement to read and not just focus on testing and comprehension skills. Dormant readers are often referred to as reluctant readers. They are typically average or good readers, but don't choose to read outside of school because they haven't learned to find books they enjoy. They also haven't learned to put an importance on reading in their everyday lives. Underground readers get the least help. They're typically great readers, but don't get to read what interests them in school. they read a lot outside of class, but are bored with the pace or material they are told to read. Some students don't do well because of their boredom.

The first group of readers is called the struggling readers, although she likes to call them the developing readers. I really like how she changed the name because the word struggling is negative and can discourage many students, whereas developing gives the students confidence and hope. In addition, there are the dormant readers. The dormant readers are the majority of students she sees in her classes. These types of readers can read at the level that is required and will do the work. Work is the key word in this statement. For many dormant readers they do not enjoy reading the assigned text, it is a hassle that they do just because it is assigned. Lastly are the underground readers. These types of readers love to read in their free time, and sometimes feel as if they are held back when it comes to reading that is required by the teacher. Like the dormant readers, underground readers will read what they are supposed to only because they have to.

Mrs. Miller lists three types of readers; developing, dormant and underground. I personally think these are great names for the three types, as struggling, reluctant and above average are demeaning towards children, and they will quickly catch onto their level of reading. Each group each needs assistance and guidance along the way and as a teacher, I need to remember to help all groups and not let any slide through the crack.

The three types of reader identified by Mrs. Miller are developing, dormant, and underground. Developing reader are readers that find reading difficult. They don't enjoy reading because it is so difficult for them. Dormant readers are readers that are capable of reading but do not want to read anymore than is required of them. Underground readers are the readers that read above their grade level, and enjoy reading but often feel limited by the rules of classroom reading.