Types of Readers

[Deb]

Briefly describe the three types of readers that Miller sees in her classroom?

[Rachel]

The three types of readers are developing, dormant, and underground. Our developing readers are those who are not reading at grade level. They are not confident readers, and as a result, read less than their peers. Regardless of numerous interventions, their test scores do not necessarily improve. This can be attributed to the amount of time reading independently. Dormant readers make up the majority of the reading population. These are individuals who pass standardized tests, but are not avid readers. They tend to slip through school unnoticed by teachers, but do not typically read for enjoyment. Our underground readers are our high ability learners. They tend to be bored by class readings because they are such avid readers. They carry personal books everywhere they go, but see reading for school as a chore.

[Nicole]

The three types of readers Miller sees in her classroom are developing, dormant, and underground readers. Developing readers are the students who are not reading at grade level. They have low standardized test scores and they do not see themselves as strong readers. They fall behind their peers because they do much less reading than them. Dormant readers are the students who do well in class and pass the standardized tests but they don’t see reading as enjoyable. They often go unnoticed by teachers, but they are the ones that should be getting the most concern. Underground readers are avid readers and you usually see them carrying a book with them. They are bored by the books assigned for class and often just want to read for enjoyment.

[Maya]

Miller identified three types of readers in her classroom: Developing, Dormant, and Underground readers. Developing readers are students who are reading below their grade level, and don't score well on standardized tests. These students often don't believe that they can become good readers. The intervention programs are not helping them catch up due to the fact that these developing readers are reading 75% less than their peers. Dormant readers are readers who pass their standardized tests and reading classes with no issue, however they do not have very much interest in reading. Reading to them is work, and not something they enjoy to do. Underground readers on the other hand love to read, but do not enjoy the books and materials used in traditional classrooms. They often bring and read their own books instead of participating in their class.

[Aimi]

The three types of readers Miller sees in her classroom are developing, dormant, and underground readers. Developing readers are students who are not reading at grade level. This could be due to a number of reasons including inadequate reading experiences or learning disabilities. They have difficulty understanding the reading material and typically score below average on standardized tests. Dormant readers are students who read in order to pass their classes and do well on tests but are reluctant to read outside of school for their own enjoyment. They see reading as work instead of pleasure. Underground readers are avid readers whose needs often go unaddressed in the classroom. They have such advanced reading abilities and a sophisticated taste in books that they are often bored by the books assigned in class.

[Anna]

The three types of readers that Miller sees in her classroom are developing, dormant, and underground readers.

Developing readers are those who are not yet reading at grade level due to either inadequate experiences or learning disabilities. These students are often involved in intervention programs and/or before and after school tutoring. They also tend to score lower on standardized tests and have a low self-esteem due to lack of success. These readers CAN be successful. They simply need tremendous support, and plenty of time reading every day.

Dormant readers are those who do have the ability, but still lack the motivation to read outside class work and what is needed for exams. These readers are usually not engaged, and often have simply just not found the right book yet! It is important for these readers to be given time to read in and outside of the classroom, as well as a choice of which books they might be interested in. It is also important for these readers to be given a classroom environment that values and is enthusiastic about reading.

Finally, underground readers are those who usually have exceedingly high reading skills. They are avid readers who tend to get bored in class because they are not being challenged enough, or are forced to read at a slower pace than they prefer. They often cannot find books in the classroom that suit their need for high level reading. One way to assist these students is to simply let them read. If they want to read ahead, or read more than they are supposed to, let them. Do not make them conform and deteriorate their enthusiasm for reading. Find assignments that do interest them, and let them grow in their passion for books!

[Fabricio]

The three types of readers that Miller sees in her classroom are Developing, dormant, and underground readers.
Developing Readers as described in the reading are the readers that struggle. They are the ones that have a hard time understanding what they are reading, they spend time in tutoring, or programs that will help them. They are students that have a low score on standardized tests. They are the readers that do not take time out of their day to read a book, or to read a little bit.
Dormant Readers are the readers who just read to pass their classes and state tests. They never pick up a book for fun. These readers just basically read because it is assigned, but when vacations come around they do not pick up another book until school begins and they are assigned books again. They do not find reading enjoyable. Reading is work, not pleasure.
Underground Readers are the gifted readers. They prefer to do their own reading in compared to the reading their class is doing. These students have advanced reading abilities that their teachers do not have a curriculum that challenges them. Usually, these readers do not find books that challenge them in their classroom.

[Kelsey]

There are three types of readers that Miller saw in her classroom, the types of readers are developing, dormant, and underground.

Developing readers are those who are not at grade level for reading, have a hard time understanding the reading material, and they don't score well on standardized tests. These readers get placed in intervention programs and after school tutoring sessions, but they don't always work. Developing readers are not confident in their reading ability and they read approximately 75 percent less than their peers.

Dormant readers are those who pass their classes and their standardized tests, but outside of school they have no interest in reading. For these students, reading is more of a chore, it is not pleasure for them. Dormant readers are the most popular type of readers and they tend to go unnoticed by the teacher because they are doing so well on their tests and in their classes.

Underground readers are gifted, they have very high reading skills. These types of readers are often bored by the books that are assigned in their classrooms, so they will hide their own book and read that instead because that is more interesting to them. You will often see an underground reader reading in the library or carrying their book around with them.

[Emma]

The three types of readers that Miller sees are: developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers.
Developing readers are sometimes referred to as 'struggling readers'. They are normally not reading at their grade level. They have the ability to become strong readers at some point, they just are not currently. They may not be at the same level of curriculum at that point but they are on the same path, just taking a longer time to complete it.
Dormant readers are students who read in order to pass and do well on state testing. These students do not normally take up reading outside of the classroom. They usually read what they need to and then leave it be. They have the ability to read, but just not the drive to do so.
Underground readers are 'gifted readers'. They are readers who get annoyed with class readings because they'd rather use the time doing their own readings. Underground readers will many times be left out during class, because the curriculum is mainly geared towards students who are developing or need help to achieve the state standards.

[Elizabeth]

The three types of readers that Miller sees in her classroom include developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Developing readers are also referred to as "struggling readers." These students for some reason are not reading at their grade level. Their standardized test scores are low and they may have even failed a state assessment. They begin to believe that reading competence is out of their reach.
Dormant readers read enough in order to pass their classes and in order to pass a state test, but never enjoy reading out side of the classroom. Most dormant readers just need to find reading that engages them.
Underground readers are considered gifted readers. They see the reading that is done at school completely different from what they do at home. They want to read and for the teacher to get out of the way and let them.

[Sydney]

The three types of readers that Miller sees within her classroom include developing readers, dormant readers and underground readers. The developing readers were previously labeled as the "struggling readers." These readers are not reading at grade level. These students are taking all the help they need, but they still struggle because they spend more time learning about the fundamentals of reading than they actually spend on reading books. Dormant readers are readers who see reading as a chore rather than a passion. These students do everything their asked to do in their reading classrooms, but never open a book outside of school. Underground readers are the "gifted readers." These students just want to read what interests them and want the teachers to get out of their way. Few teachers know how to give the correct instruction to these students because they're focused on designing a curriculum to help students like the developing readers.

[Zechariah]

To help better understand the progression of a child's desire to read the author explains three different types of readers. These types of readers are developing, dormant, and underground. Developing readers are those that need assistance still or are behind their age level greatly. This may entail Title 1 schools, students with special needs, or even just readers who haven't practiced enough. What I found interesting about this is the term developing. The author is very intent on showing that their difficulty in reading is more of a poor attitude towards reading. This attitude needs to be changed and their skill in reading will develop. Dormant readers are those who specifically read to "get the job done". These readers view reading as a task to be accomplished not an enjoyable experience. Underground readers are those who are avid readers but keep it underwraps of some sort. The read strictly for enjoyment. This may place them in a scenario where it seems they lack skill but the truth of the matter is the read incredibly well just what they want to read.

[Caitlin]

There are three terms used to describe the different level of readers: developing, dormant, and underground. These words are used to move away from the negative labels for readers, and create a positive name for them. A developing reader is otherwise known as the "struggling reader". These types of readers typically are behind other students and the class and have a pre-conceived notion that they are not able to read. The teacher describes that an attitude change will help improve their reading. She believes they are all capable of reading, they just need to believe in themselves. The next type is the dormant reader. These types of readers don't have real passion or true love for reading. They simply read what is assigned for class and not for themselves. Dormant readers often times have not found the right book to turn on the switch inside of them to pursue reading outside of the classroom. The last type of reader is the underground readers. They enjoy reading on their own all the time, and are often too focused in their own readings to be able to read forced books for class. They have developed their own passion for reading.

[Morgan]

Miller describes three types of readers: developing, dormant, and underground. These three terms all share one common characteristic, hope. The labels Miller uses are intentionally meant to spread positive light on every type of reader.

First described is the developing reader. These people are often characterized as "the struggling reader". Developing readers struggle with understanding texts, fall behind their fellow classmates, and often perform poorly on reading assessments. Because of this, these individuals often don't see themselves as having the "reading talent" and can't see themselves developing into strong readers. The fear of failure pushes developing readers away from reading opportunities, which consequently leads to more troubles and lack of progress.

The second, and most largely represented type of reader is known as the dormant reader. These people simply read just to pass classes and tests. Reading is seen as a job or task to get done, but nothing more. Dormant readers just haven't awakened their potential passion for reading. This lack of inspiration leads people to go through life viewing reading as something that brings little to no enjoyment.

The final type of reader is the underground reader. Underground readers have motivation to read and are greatly inspired to read on their own. These individuals tend to be gifted readers and as a result are often bored with classroom texts and assignments. Instead they often prefer to engage in reading that is intriguing and stimulating enough for them as individuals. Unfortunately, the underground reader's needs are often not addressed in a general classroom setting due to the curriculum being focused on meeting proficiency standards.

[Hanna]

Miller talks of three types of readers she sees in her classroom which are developing, dormant, and underground readers. Developing readers are readers who are not rrading at thier grade level. These students tend to struggle or underperform on reading assignments and tend to fall behind other students in the class. They also view themselves as poor readers. The second is the dormant reader. These are the students who perform well in class and pass standardized exams. Although these students perform well in the classroom they don't find reading enjoyable, they tend to lack interest or have not yet read a book that has sparked thier interest in reading. The third type of reader is the underground reader. This type of reader is typically your high ability learners. They tend to be bored by the books assigned in class, because they do read at a higher level. These readers are avid readers and can often be discribed as the kid who always has a book with them.

[Shay]

Miller discusses the three types of readers in her class: developing, dormant, and underground readers. She first talks about developing readers. These kinds of readers are also known as struggling readers. Students who are developing readers are not reading at their grade level. Developing readers tend to get low scores on exams in reading. Students at this level can have various help, tutoring, and word practice to help them improve their reading abilities, however many students continue to lag behind with the extra help. Miller says that this is due to the fact that these students are not practicing reading on their own time.

Miller also describes students who are considered dormant readers. Dormant readers are the students who read books because they have to, whether it be to pass a class or to get a good grade. Typically, dormant readers don't just read for fun. Reasons for this could be because the required reading given in English classes could be uninteresting in content or the genre. This could make students uninterested in reading altogether.

Lastly, Miller describes underground readers. Underground readers love to read! They are considered avid readers who can't keep their noses out of books. Underground readers tend to be very proficient readers, and they are able to finish books quickly. They prefer reading their own books over books that they are told they need to read.

[Amanda]

The types of readers that Miller sees in her classroom are developing, dormant and underground.

The developing reader is what others might label the "struggling reader." This is a reader who has probably had years of reading intervention due to low reading test scores, but has not had much experience actually reading books on a regular basis.

The dormant reader is one who might be doing well on reading scores, but is disinterested in reading outside of the necessary classroom reading. Miller says this type of reader makes up a large portion of the classroom, but in other classrooms usually go unnoticed because of the good test scores.

The underground reader is a reader who loves reading, but has no interest in reading or completing assignments in the classroom. This is often because the material in class is below their reading level and therefore not interesting enough. Miller had a particular student who still seems to haunt her that she could not get to complete her assignments, but would show up every day with a giant book to read in class. He ended up failing the class although he was an excellent reader.

[Micaela]

The three different types of readers Ms. Miller sees in her classroom are developing, dormant, and underground. A developing reader is someone who might be struggling with reading skills and in need of more one-on-one help. These readers typically have problems with reading comprehension or inadequate experiences with reading in the past. Many children do not like to read because past experiences have led them to believe reading is hard, boring, or "not cool". Other reasons for being a developing reader could be that the child is an ESL student, the child has not had enough practice, or they haven't found the right book for them to become interested. Dormant readers are students who read in order to retain the knowledge for discussions or exams but do not see the enjoyment in required school literature. These students usually do not read for enjoyment outside of the classroom. Underground readers are considered “gifted readers”. Their reading at school is completely separate from their reading at home which can cause problems with finishing school assignments. These readers tend to keep to themselves and always have their nose in a book.

[Maritza]

Developing readers are the students that are usually referred to as “struggling readers.” These students do not see themselves as readers and they believe that they will always struggle with reading. This may be due to lacking of reading experiences or because of a learning disability. Dorman readers are those students who only read mostly just to pass their classes but never put any time or effort into reading out of school. These students have not had an encounter with the excitement that books can bring. Underground readers are passionate readers. They are usually ahead in class which causes a disconnect. Underground readers’ needs often times go unaddressed since most of the attention is put on how to improve the skills of developing and dormant readers.

[Lauren]

The three different types of readers according to Miller are the dormant reader, developing reader and the underground reader. The dormant reader is a student who is reading just for comprehension. They are not reading for passion but because they have to for assignments or tests. It is required of them to read and that is their sole reason for reading. The developing reader is a student who is usually struggling with reading skills. They typically have low reading exam scores and are usually not at their grade level for reading. They might also see themselves as not good readers. This tends to be a cycle and is hard for these readers to see themselves as good readers and do well. The underground reader is a student who is very passionate about reading and enjoys it very much. They tend to read at a higher level than the rest of the class. Typically they read a lot on their own time. They also usually like to read books according to their interest and may not enjoy their readings for class.

[Michael]

Within Miller's classroom she saw that there were three types of readers. Developing readers are students who are not yet reading at their current grade level. This student may suffer from any kind of learning disability or number of other reasons. Most of the developing students are put into programs that are meant to improve the students' reading skills. Another type of reader Miller experienced is a dormant reader. These students read in order pass their class but do not find it fun or interesting to read outside of class. The last type of reader is the underground reader. This type of reader reads all the time and don't need to be forced to read. They enjoy reading outside of the classroom. They are avid readers and might get bored because they are not allowed to pick their own book.

[Daniela]

Mrs Miller's first response is she wants positive names for the types of readers she sees in her classroom so she calls them developing instead of struggling, dormant instead of reluctant and underground readers.
Developing readers are most often in reading programs because they are not passing standardized test but all they do in those programs is teaching to pass the test instead of teaching how to properly read. They give them instructions on what to look for but not the time and encouragement to actually read. Those children need a lot of support and they need to read more books. The more they are exposed to actual book reading the better they get.
Dormant readers read only enough to pass the test without needing any additional help. Reading is seen as a chore and not a pleasurable thing. To help these children develop a love for reading they need to be poked in prodded in giving out some information about their interest and then someone who knows a lot about books like a great librarian to give them recommendation that spark their interest.
Underground readers love books and are gifted readers but are most often bored with what is read in class. They are great readers but have no interest in the classroom material that often times they don't even read what is asked of them because their interest is in a different genre. Teachers need to be able to connect to those students with a variety of different interests and questions in finding what exactly sparks that child's interest and see if it can be incorporated into the classroom.

[Phillip]

The three types of readers that Donalyn Miller sees in her classroom are developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Developing readers are those who do not read at grade level. Despite specialized attention and intervention programs developing readers continue to fail standardized tests and state assessments. Developing readers usually do not identify as strong readers and tend to lack confidence in themselves which usually leads to them reading less than their peers. Dormant readers are those who do the work required in class and do well on state tests but are not avid readers outside of school nor read for pleasure. These students usually go unnoticed by their teachers since they do the work they are supposed to do. Most dormant readers only see reading as a chore rather than an engaging experience. Underground readers are those who are avid readers but generally do most of their reading outside of the classroom. For underground readers their is a disconnect between the reading they do for school and the reading they for their own engagement. These students' needs usually go unnoticed since teachers' curriculum usually focus mainly on students comprehension according to their grade level and not for growth based on the student as an individual.

[Anna]

The three types of readers that Miller sees in her classroom are developing readers, dormant readers, and underground readers. Developing readers are readers who for some reason are not reading at grade level. They have difficulty reading and understanding the material that is given to them. This could be because of a learning disability or just not enough reading experience. They don’t see themselves as ever being a good reader and give up on the idea of reading. Dormant readers are readers who have yet to discover the magic of books. They read for school or when it is required for them to read certain books, but outside of school, they very rarely pick up a book. They think of reading as a chore, but really the just haven’t found the right type of book that interests them. Underground readers love to read but when it comes to reading a required book, they struggle. This is because the books that are assigned don’t interest them and they would rather just read the type of books that they enjoy.