Chapter 7

This chapter has been the most important to me thus far in our reading of this book. Constructing meaning is what all literature teachers hope students do before, during and after reading any literature. Also the constructing of meaning is probably the most important skill students need in the world outside of school. Things such as contracts, agreements and even e-mails need to be able to have meaning before they have any importance. What I mean is if there is a word or phrase in any of the above mentioned pieces of writing that a student doesn't understand and they do not know how to make it make sense and have meaning they may sign something or not sign something maybe even say something that could conflict with the piece of writing. To be a little less confusing without this skill someone could easily and unknowingly agree or disagree to something that may later get them into trouble. This may not seem to matter much in the school setting but in all honesty school is preparation for life outside of school. However concerns in the classroom setting are that a student may fail to complete or simply fail an assignment because they couldn't figure out the piece of literature.

I know a lot of this seems geared towards "Uh-oh no one can do this" but this chapter also helps point out that not everyone has major issues with making meaning. This is important to know and utilize in your classroom. On page 103 of "When Kids Can't Read What Teachers Can Do" there is a great example of a student who has great strategies for reading and understanding things she didn't understand when she read it the first time. These students can help show, through strategies also mentioned in this chapter, others how to make meaning. These strategies such as Say Something may even spur great discussion that may not otherwise take place.