One of my personal goals this year is to read to every classroom at least 4 times. The first book I chose to read was Enemy Pie. I was exposed to this book through Joe Sanfelippo, a connected Superintendent from Wisconsin, who visited my school last year.
Joe delivered the book unlike anyone I have seen. That’s right, he didn’t read it, he delivered it. After seeing him, I made a promise to myself that I would one day do the same. I asked Joe how he was able to deliver the book so passionately and he said, “I had a lot of practice. I read it to kids all the time, and then started to memorize it.” Honestly, when he told me that I was a little taken back….. Guess what, as an elementary principal, I rarely read to kids, and I fancied myself as the “lead learner.”
So I am reading Enemy Pie and working on my delivery, and once I have it down, I will move onto the next book and the next. If I want the teachers and students to be steeped in reading, I know I need to be in the classroom….. reading principally!
Check out Joe delivering Enemy Pie