Success Story II

Liberation

Being asked to read a book aloud in front of one’s peers is a daunting task for a fourth grader. The pure fear and anxiety created by this request during reading group brings about behaviors that often make getting through a page of the book difficult. First, there is the moment of shock on their face, followed by a big gulp, then finally a quick look around at the faces of their peers waiting for them to start. For most students I have worked with this is a rather quick and painless process, resulting in a new confidence in their reading ability. For Khari though, this challenge was more for him to handle than the average student. Khari’s first several attempts all ended about the same- with him shutting down and quitting. Khari often got through about five sentences before one of his classmates would kindly ask him to read a little bit louder because they couldn’t follow along with him because he was too quiet. This act of shutting down was a pattern that Khari exhibited at other times during class, and therefore I had a bit more patience with him. After about the third time of this happening it occurred to me that we were reading the most perfect book because the main character had intense fears that his best friend was helping him overcome. In The Liberation of Gabriel King, Gabe’s friend Frita helps him overcome his fears one-by-one by making him face his fears slowly and steadily. Frita declares it her mission to help “liberate” Gabe from his fears. I decided during reading group that I was going to do my best to liberate Khari from his fear of reading aloud during reading group. At first, Khari was not excited about this plan. After a bit of consideration and reassurance on my end, he accepted my proposal to face his fear. During reading group, while the rest of the group worked on a worksheet, he would read aloud only to me. At first he was very apprehensive, but I could see his confidence growing the more he read to me. After about the third time he and I read together, he told me that he was ready to read aloud to the group. On the last week of reading group, Khari raised his hand to read and began in a new and self-assured voice. I could see the surprise of his group mates immediately. After he had finished reading, one of his group members raised their hand and told him how good of a reader he was. Khari thanked them with a bashful smile, and his cheeks got a bit red with embarrassment. After reading group that day he thanked me for helping him to overcome his fear, and I in turn thanked him for being so brave. Just like Gabriel King, Khari had a great fear that made it difficult for him to function. With a friend to guide him and provide support, Khari was able to face his fear and find success.