Book Buddies

I have a Book Buddies program with my middle schoolers. My seventh graders read every other week with Pre-K and Kindergarten students. My eighth graders read one week with first graders and the next with second graders.

In the way of students their age, some of my kids sometimes complain about this. They have to walk across the campus. They have to read with kids who squirm a lot or goof around or don't listen. (Uh, guys? Welcome to my world!)

Last year I had heard quite a bit of complaining from my eighth graders, and I asked them if they enjoyed Book Buddies time. Mmm, sort of, it's OK, we don't care. So I suggested taking a break from it. No, that's OK, it's all right, we like it OK. They aren't going to be enthusiastic, oh, no - but they like it.

Of course there are lots of reasons to spend my precious class time this way. The younger children get one-on-one time with a more proficient reader, a role-model. We all get a break from our regular routine. Sometimes we do writing activities together or play games that would be hard for one teacher to do with a room full of young children. The kids go through piles and piles of books (selected by the younger Book Buddy) that the teacher wouldn't have time to read aloud. Once the younger ones can read, sometimes they read to the older ones.

But probably the greatest benefit to me as a teacher is that I get to see my kids with new eyes. Sometimes, you may be astonished to learn, middle schoolers can be a bit trying. They are great kids, but do you remember being thirteen? Then you know what I mean. They're a bit self-absorbed sometimes, and they don't listen, and they lose their stuff and leave papers all over my floor. They constantly say things aren't fair and they make rude comments to each other and they come to class without their books and they don't turn their work in. They don't think about consequences, but just do whatever fool thing comes into their heads.

So it's really refreshing watching my kids be the responsible, caring mentors. I love the way they ask their younger Buddies questions, talk about the pictures with them, and rap the stories to them. (OK, that last one gets kind of old, but I try to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear, because the kids enjoy it so much.)

I enjoy seeing them deal with behavior problems. Like the time when J grabbed a book from another child. I watched to see if I should intervene, but my eighth grader, M, took care of it just fine. He sternly but kindly told J to give back the book. J did. Later I mentioned to M how well he handled it, and he walked a little taller.

On our way back to our classroom, my kids morph back into their regular selves, but for a few minutes, I have had a glimpse of the wonderful adults they are going to be, the responsible citizens, and the fine parents.

That'll sustain me until next week.