Share Literature With Students: Show Your Love

For the love of literature, model natural behavior with sad and happy stories.

Share literature with students to increase involvement with books and to build classroom community.

Part of being an English teacher is allowing your students to witness you nerd out literature, to show your love of literature. We MUST share the love we have of literature with our students! Then, we can see the impact of literature on students.

Never have I read the ending of Night and not cried:

One day I was able to get up, after gathering all my strength. I wanted to see myself in the mirror hanging on the opposite wall. I had not seen myself since the ghetto.
From the depths of the mirror, a corpse gazed back at me.
The look in his eyes, as they stared into mine, has never left me.

Elie Wiesel uses these words to explain the everlasting effects of the Holocaust, to show the transformation caused. To me, they are some of the most haunting words in literature. And I cry.

And I always cry in front of my students.

Years ago, before reading the ending of Night, I would give myself a pep talk. You know what to expect. You’re prepared.  

I would still cry. Eventually I stopped the pep talk. Why wouldn’t I want to cry with my students, to authentically share literature with students? For the love of literature, we teachers must model a natural reaction to reading! As I taught literature throughout the years, I’ve realized that showing emotion is part of teaching literature. I laugh, giggle, share my goofy thoughts with my students—why wouldn’t I cry?

I share literature with students in authentic ways, and doing so has improved my teaching. Here’s why.

share literature with students to engage secondary ELA students. Language arts teachers can see the Impact of literature on students.

Show honesty in your reactions.

Honesty is part of building relationships, a classroom community.

I’m brutally honest with my emotions related to literature. I was Team Gale, never Team Peeta. Romeo whines too much, and I wish I could meet Brutus. Lady Macbeth? I want to observe her, to be her maid or some such.

Because I’m honest, students trust me. For some reason, students question if Gene and Finny are lovers in A Separate Peace. I truly believe they are not, and when students challenge me, I remind them of my stance to always be honest about literature.

I share my emotions and thoughts with my students. Sometimes they think I’m a bit cooky (fair!), but most often, they laugh along with me and share their ideas. This builds trust and community.

Model reading habits for students.

A suggestion for parents is to model reading. It’s a good goal, but what if parents don’t read in front of their children?

Perhaps these students don’t see adults laugh and cry over books. They should; they will see the power books have. When we share literature with students, we are modeling the joy reading can bring.

Think of a time you and your students have been excited together, maybe with movie. I typically share a moment with students when they realize our mutual love for the “Star Wars” trilogy. Of course I think Luke is a dreamboat. Yes, I talk like Yoda sometimes. I sure do want to sneak into Darth Vader’s meditation chamber and see that claw remove his helmet. Whatever the example, I’m sure you’ve shared a mutual love with your students.

Do it with literature too. Find something you passionately love or dislike, and nerd out to it. I get emotionally attached to characters, I ponder themes for years, and find an unrecognized nuance while rereading. I share these ideas with students. If I don’t feel strongly about material, I imagine with students. (Would I have felt emotion when this story was written? What if I had different life experiences? What if I were a different gender?)

Model the pleasure literature can create as you read.

Examine metacognition!

Expose students to your thought process. Sometimes, I verbalize my inner monologue concerning literature. In a small group or with a document camera, I take notes as I think aloud. I use certain colored markers to explain character traits or themes, and I draw pictures to explain conflicts.

Giving students note sheets or asking them to take notes might not be specific enough directions if they don’t know the potential. Taking notes while thinking or reading can move ideas into long-term memory, but while we teachers know that, our students might not. Modeling note-taking can empower students to connect with literature.

Bring out books.

A reason I madly love books is because of the connections I see with themes, genres, authors, and motifs, and I often grab books that relate to what we’re discussing.

As I’m thinking and connecting poetry, essays, or books with our current discussions, I grab other books off the shelves of my classroom library and explain the connections with students. Share literature with students in an impromptu manner.

Connect with writing.

I nerd out with notes and ideas for students. Sometimes during a literature discussion, I’ll grab a dry erase marker and make notes, or I’ll pick up sticky notes and show students what I’m writing. In some manner, I record my ideas, and not necessarily attach it to an assignment. I simply write about what I’m reading.

Finally, when I give students choice in what graphic organizer or activity they use to express understanding, I complete the activity as well. Not only do I model how to complete the activities, but I also ask students for advice and their input. In doing so, I am also modeling how to work with other and how to learn from them.

The beauty of teaching literature is that you can nerd out to it, and share those experiences with students. Not only does it make class more interesting, but it also shows students that yes, literature is powerful! By showing your love of literature to students, you are showing students your love of reading, which hopefully they emulate.

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Provide student choice with literature questions.