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Holly
Blackford, assistant professor of English at Rutgers
University—Camden, shares with us how -and what books-
she reads to her children. Dr. Blackford teaches
and publishes literary criticism on American, children’s,
and adolescent literature, directs the writing program at
Rutgers, and is a CCCS
associate. She is the author of the book “Out of
this World: Why Literature Matters to Girls” and, most
recently, Blackford has published articles on Louisa May
Alcott's “Little Women,” Emily Bronte's “Wuthering
Heights,” J.M. Barrie's “Peter and Wendy,” Carlo
Collodi’s “Pinocchio,” Anita Diamont’s “The
Red Tent,” Julia Alvarez’s “In the Time
of the Butterflies,” Shirley Jackson’s “Haunting
at Hill House,” and Margaret Atwood’s “Alias
Grace.” Her edited collection on the centennial study
of “Anne of Green Gables” is forthcoming from
Scarecrow Press in 2008. |
Holly Blackford |
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| READING
IN MY FAMILY: |
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How my family reads
together: We
don’t prioritize homework over reading or
wait until bed to open books. I want my kids to
know that it’s OK to read, even if there
are chores to do. In our house, reading is just
as important as doing the dishes.
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We don't focus on "appropriate
reading levels:" I'm for the
Victorian approach of reading aloud texts that
all ages and levels can enjoy. The girls read independently
at their own levels, but I read aloud classics
for everyone to appreciate. The 2 year-old either
looks at her pop-ups while I read, or goes to bed!
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We strive for a literary
household: Reading
as a skill has less to do with experiencing literature
than you'd think. We work to expose our kids to
good literature, and that takes time. While many
teachers encourage young students to read 15 minutes
a day, I’d rather them not read every day,
if when they do read they allow enough time, say
an hour, to really engage with a meaningful work
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| MY
FIVE FAVORITE BOOKS TO READ TO MY FAMILY: |
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“Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland” by
Lewis Carroll. My kids love this book, especially for
its fun language and puns. And the Disney version is
an appropriate accompaniment to reading the novel.
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“Anne
of Green Gables” by Lucy Maud Montgomery.
Published in 1908, this book marks a transition into
a different understanding of childhood. My daughters
are curious to learn about how kids used to work. We
also enjoy collecting dolls and films related to the
book.
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“Old
Possum’s Book of Cats” by
T.S. Eliot. We always finish our family reading with
poetry. We have an understood house rule about reading
poetry: if you interrupt, you must leave the room.
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“The
Giving Tree” by Shel Silverstein.
My daughters and I like to debate whether the tree
is considered to be male or female, and how that could
affect the tone of the story.
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“Little
House in the Big Woods” by Laura
Ingalls Wilder. I like to read longer novels to my
kids, even though the older ones could probably read
it by themselves. It’s important, I think, for
parents to still read to their kids after they’ve
learned how to read on their own. If kids only read
on their own, their reading may never improve.
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Last
Updated
November 5, 2007
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