by Derek Viger

Created on: May 25, 2009   Last Updated: June 15, 2009

Sometimes we're so focused on the tree we miss the forest. Educators can fall prey to this type of thinking just as easily to anyone else. We spend millions pushing math skills through dozens of different methods, but neglect linking them to real life application. Teachers struggle over what items from history are relevant to students. They miss the opportunity to let students develop the ability to hone their analysis skills by not focusing on letting students discover the hows and whys of history on their own.

Then we have reading. Reading is possibly the most integral skill one can have. Without the ability to read, or even read well, daily life in this modern world is a struggle. Think of it, you can't balance a checkbook, read the instructions for medication, or read the loan agreement you're about to sign. Not being able to read is dangerous.

The fact that even one child will graduate high school without being able to read their own diploma, let alone one fifth, should turn your stomach. As a nation we spend about $2 billion in schools trying to correct this problem. In this struggle the lure of scientifically "proven" reading methods is great. Americans love the quick fix. Common sense still prevails in some. One those educators is Doug Noon. Doug has presented an idea so obvious many will label it revolutionary. This is no slight on Doug. Check out what he did in his classroom.

from Borderlands

I'm trying something different this year. I'm not assigning novels and telling everyone which pages to read, having class discussions about the themes, providing background knowledge, making vocabulary lists, or asking comprehension questions that I mark for a grade.

This year, everyone in the class reads what they want to read, and they read without interruption for 30-40 minutes each day. They tell me about their books when I go around the room asking how it's going. I write down what we talk about. They read short passages quietly to me. They write in journals about their books. They meet with partners or in small groups, and they give oral book reports written on sticky notes. They make book recommendations to each other. They read at home and before school without being told to, and they tell me they love to read. I even saw one of my students reading a book walking down the hall the other day. It's going viral.

In the beginning of the year I only had a few real readers in the class. One girl told me she couldn't read. It wasn't true; she just hadn't

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