EP#8: Adrienne Gear - Motivating Kids To Love Reading | Brain Pockets | Teaching In The 21st Century
People & Blogs
Introduction
Welcome back to "Impact in the 21st Century," a podcast by Simbi Foundation, where inspiring stories of positive impact are shared. Each episode features notable guests making a difference in the world, their journey to discovering their passion, and actionable insights for leading impactful lives.
Your host, Aaron Friedland, is the founder of Simbi Foundation, a non-profit organization that works in collaboration with the UN to build digital, solar-powered classrooms called Bright Boxes. These initiatives aim to support over 3.5 million learners in refugee settlements.
This Episode's Guest: Adrienne Gear
Adrienne Gear is an author and educator with over 25 years of classroom experience. Known for her innovative reading strategies that reach millions of students annually, she has authored seven books focused on reading, social-emotional learning, and thinking. Adrienne’s curated book lists, known as "Gear Picks," are eagerly awaited by teachers for their classroom reading.
Early Passion and Development of Reading Power
In this episode, Adrienne recalls her early love for books, cultivated in a household rich with literature. This love naturally extended into her teaching career, where she found books to be her teaching partners. Her work in developing the Reading Power framework came around 15 years into her teaching career. Starting from her school initiatives, these strategies grew into workshops and eventually, books.
Making Lessons Engaging
Adrienne emphasizes the need for breaking down complex ideas into simple, digestible lessons for students. Realizing that a significant number of students did not grasp lesson content, she aimed at simplifying teaching methods, ensuring clarity and practical understanding.
Lasting Love for Teaching
Despite her growing influence, Adrienne remains a classroom teacher to stay grounded and connected to student realities. Her stories and animated teaching style make her a teacher's teacher, blending theory with classroom practicality.
Advocacy for Reading Aloud
Adrienne is a strong advocate for reading aloud to students of all ages. Citing her personal experience and the broader appeal of audiobooks, she explains how this practice encourages comprehension and engagement. Audiobooks, in particular, help struggling decoders make connections and comprehend text without the burden of decoding.
Challenges and Excitement in Modern Education
Adrienne acknowledges the challenges modern education faces, especially with rising illiteracy rates in developed countries. She argues for a shift from content-based to inquiry-based learning, fostering a love for reading by making it an active, reflective process.
Partnership with Simbi
Adrienne’s partnership with Simbi stems from her shared passion for reading and global impact. Simbi's unique combination of improving reading skills while supporting global literacy resonated deeply with her. She appreciates the platform's ability to offer children meaningful ways to engage as global citizens.
Methodologies: Brain Pockets
Adrienne introduces the concept of brain pockets to make thinking visible for students. These pockets—memory, fact, and imagination—help students understand where their connections come from while reading and writing. This method aims to make abstract thinking more concrete and relatable for students.
Utopian Vision for Teaching
In her utopian vision, Adrienne imagines a world where students are invited to “the party” of engaging with texts, not just decoding them. She advocates for a reflective and interactive approach to teaching, aiming to inspire a lifelong love for reading in students.
Looking Forward
Adrienne remains committed to inspiring a deep-rooted love for reading in students. She believes in the power of combining reading skills with global impact, aiming to continue her work in this field.
Keywords
- Adrienne Gear
- Reading Power
- Interactive Classrooms
- Brain Pockets
- Teaching Strategies
- Reading Aloud
- Inquiry-Based Learning
- Simbi Foundation
- Global Literacy
- Comprehensive Learning
FAQ
Q: Who is Adrienne Gear? A: Adrienne Gear is an experienced author and educator known for her innovative reading strategies and books that reach millions of students annually.
Q: What is the Reading Power framework? A: Reading Power is a set of strategies developed by Adrienne Gear to teach comprehension alongside decoding, transforming how children interact with texts.
Q: Why is reading aloud important, according to Adrienne Gear? A: Adrienne advocates for reading aloud as it engages students, helps with comprehension, and makes reading a shared, enjoyable experience.
Q: What are Brain Pockets? A: Brain Pockets are a visual and conceptual tool created by Adrienne Gear to help students understand their connections to texts through memory, fact, and imagination.
Q: What drew Adrienne Gear to work with Simbi Foundation? A: Adrienne was drawn to Simbi for its unique merger of improving reading skills and making a global impact, aligning with her educational values.
Q: What is Adrienne Gear’s utopian vision for teaching? A: Adrienne envisions a classroom where students are part of an interactive, reflective learning experience, engaging deeply with texts and enjoying reading.