Reading Changes the Game - E212

WEBVTT
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I'm Julie Saunders. I'm Jan Wilson. Julie and I both have experience as school
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librarians, and we've worked together as district library leaders.
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In each episode, we'll dive into our profession with interviews and meaningful content to inspire you.
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The ideas and opinions shared by any host, guest, or listener are their own
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and do not represent those of any respective school district.
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Welcome to Library Exchange.
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Welcome to a new episode, everyone. We're glad you're spending time with us
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today because we have a guest who understands the life-changing power of reading.
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He is a Super Bowl champion, an author, the founder of the Share the Magic Foundation,
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which is a youth literacy foundation.
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He is one of the most passionate literacy advocates you will ever meet.
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And there's more exciting news. It was announced recently that he will headline
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the Georgia Educational Technology Conference this November as a featured keynote speaker.
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So you still have plenty of time to register to see him in person.
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Welcome to Library Exchange, Malcolm.
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I'm happy to be here. Thank you for having me.
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And I'm going to tell all your audience that intro was very polished. Oh, thank you.
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Conversation we were having before you hit record.
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That was where all that's where all magic was happening. Yay.
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I love that. I don't want anyone to be fooled and say, you know,
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this all scripted. No, these are two amazing people that like to have fun.
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So this conversation is fun to be fun.
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I love that. So, Malcolm, we have listeners in the U.S. and internationally,
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and some may not know your background and story regarding literacy.
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Will you take a few minutes to share your relationship with reading growing
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up and how you overcame those challenges?
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Well, I'll start with what could be a shock statement.
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I had no relationship with reading growing up.
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I grew up in Valdosta, Georgia. Valdosta, Georgia is home to the Winnegas High
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School football program in the country, the Valdosta Wildcats.
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My high school team has won more football games than any other high school that has ever existed.
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I went from being in that environment to playing for the University of Georgia Bulldogs, Go Dogs.
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And after that, I was drafted to play for the New England Patriots,
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where I was fortunate enough to be a part of a Super Bowl winning team.
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When you ask about my relationship with reading, I have to go back to Valdosta,
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because the most natural thing for a child like me in that community to do was
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to play sports. And that's what I decided to do.
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There was no clear or tangible example of anyone taking education or reading
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anywhere that was culturally desirable.
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No one was walking up and down our street saying, if you read, you can succeed.
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Or counting their educational prowess with a book in their hand.
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That wasn't the reality for me, and that's not the reality for many communities.
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And if we dive a bit deeper, I will confess that even when I look back on those
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moments, it should not come as a surprise because the student with the highest
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GPA was not featured on the front page of the newspaper.
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It was the child who had scored the most touchdowns. When you completed a book,
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no one clapped or cheered. But when you made a first down catch,
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well, the stadium erupted. Right.
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Right. It was just obvious. So I thought that football was more important than reading.
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I had all of these examples around me proving that to be the case.
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And oh, by the way, you take that and you generalize it at a massive scale,
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like in American society, it's still the same.
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The most educated person is not the most celebrated. It is an athlete who performs
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best in whatever sport. Right.
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That gets the most attention. So should we be surprised that our students strive
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to be exactly what they see every adult celebrating?
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Good point. So true. So true. But with all that being said, to answer the question
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with a tight response, growing up, I did not understand the importance of reading.
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Once I got to the University of Georgia, when I was placed in a different atmosphere,
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and exposed to more that the world had to offer, I realized that my perspective
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was flawed and I had to make a choice.
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I would either accept everything as it was or take a new course of action and decide to be a reader.
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I really think football had to have been something where you learned goal setting
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too. So I imagine that when you decided you were going to set that goal for
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reading and you were going to be a good reader, I imagine you put everything you had into it.
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Well, I've learned that progress or getting better at something is a quite simple formula.
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In football, as a child, the coaches always said, start with the fundamentals,
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which means you start from the easiest place and then you build your skills upon that.
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Well, when I decided to become a reader, I thought about that same concept and
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I just asked myself, what's the equivalent of starting from the easiest point with books?
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And that's how I gravitated towards picture books and that's why I ended up
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writing them because as a 19-year-old,
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playing football at the University of Georgia, I was reading The Very Hungry
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Caterpillar to gain confidence and learn sentence structure and build vocabulary, those sorts of things.
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So Malcolm, did you not have a school library in elementary school or it just
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wasn't a place you gravitated towards?
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It was not a place I gravitated towards. I remember in elementary school when
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the Scholastic Book Fair would come.
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Ironically enough, I write books with Scholastic.
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But then, you know, I would spend 20 minutes holding Captain Underpants.
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And I'd try to walk out with it and they'd say, well, wait a minute,
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that's $7.99. And, you know, then I had to put it back.
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In middle school, I remember there being a media center and there being,
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I think I now know it to be Lexile level reading material.
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I love looking at pictures with animals. I was a huge crocodile hunter fan.
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And in high school, I remember the library, but he,
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Each book that I've written thus far features a library for a reason.
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Because by the time I became a young adult, I was able to actively alter my
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perspective of the library through my desire to do so.
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But in elementary, middle, and high school, I'm just simply accepting things for what they are.
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And I don't want to say this, knowing your relationship to libraries,
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but I want to be authentic and I want to be honest.
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They were never positioned as places for community,
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for enthusiasm, for excitement, for celebration, for all the dopamine hits you
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need as a child to want to engage.
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But you start looking at other stuff. You wonder why the kid wants to play the video game all day.
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Well, every 20 seconds, it's giving him some accolade.
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Yeah. Or her, you know.
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So for me as a kid, yes, I remember those places.
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But they were never positioned to be something that I would gravitate towards.
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Because when you went in there, well, the rules were pretty straightforward. be quiet.
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So Malcolm, you're already kind
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of answering my question, so I'm going to ask it while we continue is,
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you know, as librarians and educators, we see students every day,
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you know, where you were feeling frustrated with reading or not able to purchase a book at the book fair.
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So what message would you share with school librarians who work every day to
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help students to discover a love of reading?
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You mentioned community already. I'm ready.
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Well, it has to be culturally relevant. It has to somehow intertwine with the
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long-term desire of not just that student, but the entire community in the school
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and outside of the school.
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If you want people to engage at a deeper level where they can actually extract
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the value out of an amazing place like a library. To me, the library represents
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the past, present, and future.
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And that's a big deal, you know, especially if you're trying to figure out how
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to go from being in an environment where resources are slim to a resource-rich environment.
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Well, the library hosts all or majority of the information you need access to,
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to gain the intellectual capabilities to move yourself into different social groups.
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I believe that wholeheartedly. That's why I keep writing about libraries and
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the books that I'm able to write.
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But to answer your question, it has to evolve.
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The concept has to evolve into something that's much more present today.
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Because unless that atmosphere is elevated to the same degree as Friday Night Lights.
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You're going to keep competing with these, and it's just going to be very difficult.
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For me, one thing that helped was when I realized that reading or having the
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ability to read proficiently would impact my socioeconomic status,
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well, my perspective of the activity changed because, oh, this is something
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that can ensure my mom doesn't have to struggle her whole life,
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that I could help her by gaining intellect through reading.
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Well, that's a lot different than just saying read to pass class.
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I know people like to say, well, you want to enjoy reading? You want to have
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fun? And sure, I love it. I want students to enjoy it.
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But at the end of the day, whether you enjoy it or not, You have to do it.
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And I will compare it to playing sports.
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I despise lifting weights.
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Didn't like anything about it. Cardio, I'm all in. Playing the game,
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I'm all in. Hey, let's put 245 pounds on the...
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Bar, see if Malcolm can get it off of his chest. Sounds terrible,
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doesn't it? It does sound terrible.
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Every single day from the time I was in middle school until I stopped playing,
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when it was time to lift weights, I lift those weights because I clearly understood
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how that was going to contribute to my long-term desire.
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Well, we have to position reading like that too.
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Absolutely. Yeah, the practice is important, but also the motivation.
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And I wonder when you're going to some of the schools that you have visits at,
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do you feel that there are some school libraries that have more of a reading
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culture and more of a sense of belonging?
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Like, can you tell when you go and visit the schools? I've been doing this for
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10 years. Now I know as soon as I walk through the front door.
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You can feel it. You can. I mean, that's kind of an arbitrary response,
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right? You can feel it. What does that mean? I don't really know what that means.
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But it's no different than when you're at a sporting event and you feel momentum.
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Right. Explain that. Well, good luck. You know, that's me trying to explain
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what it feels like when I walk into a school.
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I can feel the energy of the school. Yeah, you can feel the climate.
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Will you share information about your in-school programs? They're called Read with Malcolm, correct?
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Yeah. So back in 2016, I created Share the Magic Foundation,
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which hosts Read with Malcolm programs.
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We have in-school programs and we have a virtual platform for educators to use.
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Our in-school programs require for me to be present. And that's when you hear
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me say I'm going to all these different communities.
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I go in and I host a reading rally and community-based events in the school.
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It's really designed for increasing book ownership and also sending that culturally
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relevant message, trying to connect the dots so students can,
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begin shifting the cultural narrative around reading and its importance.
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And then we have a platform for educators to engage students in literacy-based
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activities. We call them our reading challenges.
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Our biggest one is called Read Bowl, where classrooms across the country and
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the globe get to compete within a four-week period of time to see who can read the most on average.
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We have about a million students participate in that one annually. Wow. A million?
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Is that global? Is that global also? Do people in other countries?
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Great. Yeah. So we had about 19 other countries participating in that.
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Don't ask me to list them all.
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You list 18 of them?
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I could get a couple of them, but I'm not going to.
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And that one is obviously more scalable because I don't have to be present. Teachers run them.
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And we have four total positioned around the calendar to create year-round programming opportunities.
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And the virtual reading platform is free.
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Now, if you want me to come to your school, the cost of that is the cost of
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the books. Because of my experience as a child,
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not always having the financial means to purchase books.
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If I show up, then every kid's going to get one at no expense. Oh, I love that. No way.
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And we find a way to accomplish that. Either it's fundraising,
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the school has community support, or the school has Title I funding. We figure it out.
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But the children and their families will not bear the cost of that book. That's not. Yeah.
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It's so great that the ways in which you've figured out a way to get books in
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the hands of kids and to inspire kids to read.
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And I think about that read bowl, even even though you're not there and present,
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it's your domino effect that is spreading for all these other kids to have these
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opportunities. It's really amazing.
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Do you feel that? I knew you were going to ask that.
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Does it feel I mean, do you feel like you're making a difference with this?
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Because it feels to me like you are.
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I'm not in it for that. I know. I'm in it.
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Yeah, I'm not in it to make myself feel good about anything.
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I'm just in it because I think it matters.
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So that leads me to my next question. Yeah.
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So think about learning to read later in life and really digging in.
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How has becoming a reader changed the way you see yourself?
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Whoa, now that is a good question that I have never asked.
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Well, reading made me more self-reflective.
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So accountability skyrocketed. And I realized that a lot of the things,
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happening around me or to me had something to do with the way I was perceiving the world around me.
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Reading taught me how to do that because I was able to step outside of my own
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shoes and jump into someone else's.
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And that is powerful. And that is freedom.
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That is how communities and a country moves forward.
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Now, you will hear phrases like you gain empathy for, you know,
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other situations. And that's great. But you gain more accountability as a person.
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And you're forced to look in the mirror and deal with what you see if you are an avid reader.
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So the acceptance of a mediocre performance, the acceptance of inadequate responses,
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all of that begins to be challenged, not by some external factor that you can argue with,
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but with yourself if you're good at it.
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And that matters. And to me, that's why I say reading has the power to alter
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the behavior of the world, because we'll stop arguing with each other and we'll
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start arguing with ourselves.
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And that's how the greatest form of evolution takes place.
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I completely agree. In my opinion, that's what I've experienced.
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You just can't be afraid to look at yourself and say, I really need to do something
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about this because it's not great. Right.
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Yeah, I love that. It's self-reflective. Great answer.
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It does. It forces you to say, I have only looked at this through my own lens
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because it's the only life I've had.
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It forces you to look at things through a different lens.
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Well, and it also lends itself to how we really try to have our libraries have
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representation in all in the book collection and making sure that students can
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see themselves, but also see other people.
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And, you know, you might have heard along the way, the windows,
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the doors, yeah, the sliding glass doors, you know, where you can,
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or the mirrors, I forgot the mirrors. New Year's windows and sliding glass doors.
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Yeah, thank you, Jan, where you're reflecting back on yourself,
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you're looking out the window at something else, and then you can go back and
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forth between the worlds through the sliding glass doors.
00:18:49.842 --> 00:18:55.110
And it really does create full human because you are all these ideas that you
00:18:55.110 --> 00:18:58.676
have to wrestle with with yourself to figure out who you are and who the world is around you.
00:18:59.355 --> 00:19:01.490
Yeah, and if you're honest with yourself.
00:19:03.973 --> 00:19:10.579
It also reinforces humility because you realize, man, in this entire ecosystem,
00:19:11.265 --> 00:19:13.244
I don't want to get too philosophical here, but,
00:19:15.344 --> 00:19:19.390
we are specks in comparison to what all of this thing represents.
00:19:20.644 --> 00:19:24.133
And it's liberating in some degree.
00:19:25.537 --> 00:19:29.454
It's also concerning in some degree. Yeah.
00:19:30.452 --> 00:19:33.579
Each day, I guess you can decide which one you want it to represent.
00:19:35.880 --> 00:19:41.418
Do you have a memory of a child or a parent saying something to you that's kind of stuck with you?
00:19:42.352 --> 00:19:47.901
Anytime someone tells me that I've inspired them to read, it sticks with me.
00:19:48.058 --> 00:19:55.532
Oh, nice. I mean, for the first, I'm 32, so I started playing football. I don't know.
00:19:56.719 --> 00:20:01.319
What grade are you in at? How old are you in fourth grade? Probably like nine or ten.
00:20:01.919 --> 00:20:05.779
Okay, let's go with ten so I can have a good round number. Easy man off.
00:20:08.779 --> 00:20:16.257
When I was, I started playing football at ten, and from the time I was ten until I was 25, 26,
00:20:17.613 --> 00:20:24.262
I had only been acknowledged for my athletic performances. Great catch. Good block.
00:20:24.581 --> 00:20:27.852
Man, you're fast. I didn't know you could jump that high.
00:20:28.696 --> 00:20:29.938
Wow, your hands are big.
00:20:34.693 --> 00:20:43.540
And so subconsciously, you begin to think of yourself, how the world perceives and values you.
00:20:43.865 --> 00:20:47.377
And then someone says something out of nowhere and it's like, whoa, what do you mean?
00:20:48.110 --> 00:20:52.324
So I think I'm all I'm all I'm still taking it back any time that happens.
00:20:54.807 --> 00:21:00.273
Yeah, I know that you don't want it to be all about you and you're not in it for you.
00:21:00.733 --> 00:21:05.623
But along with the help of our listeners, we need to get you in front of as
00:21:05.623 --> 00:21:11.322
many students as possible. I've enjoyed meeting you and thank you today for your time.
00:21:11.988 --> 00:21:18.313
Time it's been a pleasure having you join us today we will have a link to readwithmalcolm.com
00:21:18.313 --> 00:21:23.133
in our show notes thank you for the work you're doing and for reminding us that
00:21:23.133 --> 00:21:25.501
it's never too late to pick up a book.
00:21:26.459 --> 00:21:31.217
Oh, I appreciate you. Thank you. Thank you both. We exchanged ideas,
00:21:31.217 --> 00:21:32.892
and now it's time for the recap.
00:21:33.847 --> 00:21:37.607
I loved talking with Malcolm about his reading journey. Yes.
00:21:37.607 --> 00:21:41.587
There are a few key points that I want to highlight from the conversation.
00:21:42.278 --> 00:21:48.455
To start, I feel so sad for the little boy that did not feel welcome in his school library.
00:21:49.112 --> 00:21:53.517
Yeah, it makes me sad, too. I mean, the truth is how often we have librarians
00:21:53.517 --> 00:21:58.227
out there that are so focused on being the keeper of the books that they have
00:21:58.227 --> 00:22:02.967
no idea how they have created a barrier to library services for students in their schools.
00:22:03.734 --> 00:22:10.927
Yes, he unfortunately remembered his school libraries and just the be quiet rules.
00:22:11.727 --> 00:22:15.317
And I guess those types of spaces are still out there, Julie,
00:22:15.317 --> 00:22:21.292
but there are times when it's OK to have an active space. Yes, absolutely.
00:22:21.462 --> 00:22:26.867
And like other librarians, I've worked with administrators whose vision was
00:22:26.867 --> 00:22:29.919
the library is a silent, studious climate.
00:22:30.395 --> 00:22:35.617
And that means we need to accept the challenge and change the mindset of the
00:22:35.617 --> 00:22:40.647
adults in the building that the library is also a space for collaboration,
00:22:40.647 --> 00:22:44.704
creativity, and celebrating. Yes, absolutely.
00:22:45.128 --> 00:22:49.897
And just, you know, self-reflecting, even in the most welcoming libraries,
00:22:49.897 --> 00:22:53.104
there are students in your school that do not feel like they belong in the library.
00:22:53.521 --> 00:22:54.587
So let's think about that.
00:22:55.267 --> 00:22:59.437
What can you do to reach out to struggling students or students who may seem
00:22:59.437 --> 00:23:01.037
uninterested, but really it's
00:23:01.037 --> 00:23:04.337
a defense mechanism because they don't know how to make the connection.
00:23:04.713 --> 00:23:08.963
Be the connector that they need. Seek out the students that need you.
00:23:09.736 --> 00:23:15.890
Yes. Speaking of need, his memory of having to put that book back at the Scholastic
00:23:15.890 --> 00:23:21.040
Book Fair because he didn't have money broke my heart. And I know that's the
00:23:21.040 --> 00:23:22.810
reality for many students.
00:23:23.729 --> 00:23:28.768
And I hope that librarians take inspiration from his foundation's mission,
00:23:29.198 --> 00:23:31.903
which is, you know, to get more books in the home.
00:23:32.648 --> 00:23:40.150
Actively seek out Title I funding, community grants, or fundraise so that finances
00:23:40.150 --> 00:23:43.038
never prevent a child from owning a book.
00:23:43.648 --> 00:23:47.218
And as a reminder, if you work at a Title I school,
00:23:47.729 --> 00:23:52.617
set up an account with First Book Marketplace because they have popular books
00:23:52.895 --> 00:23:57.330
and sometimes their paperbacks are only $1 each and you can purchase books in
00:23:57.330 --> 00:23:59.210
bulk for bigger savings.
00:23:59.210 --> 00:24:00.987
Yeah, great ideas.
00:24:01.121 --> 00:24:08.446
So, you know, librarians out there listening, please make your students feel welcome in your space.
00:24:08.824 --> 00:24:13.124
Seek out the resistant students. Go out of your way to find them.
00:24:13.478 --> 00:24:16.443
And always work tirelessly to get books in the hands of kids.
00:24:17.120 --> 00:24:24.200
Yes, I also noted from talking to him that we need to remember that getting
00:24:24.200 --> 00:24:30.465
to know our school community, the culture and their interests will help us meet their needs.
00:24:31.069 --> 00:24:35.600
This is especially important for our events and programs that we offer in our
00:24:35.600 --> 00:24:40.240
spaces because you're going to attract maybe those reluctant students and their
00:24:40.240 --> 00:24:44.717
families if your programs match what's important to them.
00:24:44.862 --> 00:24:51.360
So if soccer is popular, offer a World Cup of Reading Challenge or something
00:24:51.360 --> 00:24:55.077
like that. You have to know what will build connections.
00:24:55.361 --> 00:25:00.818
One time I designed an activity, Julie, based on the board game Clue,
00:25:01.277 --> 00:25:04.063
you know, Professor Plum in the kitchen with the lead pipe. Yeah.
00:25:04.835 --> 00:25:09.662
It failed big time because students were not familiar with clues.
00:25:11.202 --> 00:25:17.042
And it ended with Mrs. Wilson on the floor with exhaustion from explaining how the game worked.
00:25:20.162 --> 00:25:23.692
You can laugh at me. I laugh about it now, but epic failure,
00:25:23.692 --> 00:25:25.145
epic failure. That's all right.
00:25:25.575 --> 00:25:29.682
So if you want to know more about some of the amazing school programs that Malcolm
00:25:29.682 --> 00:25:32.518
provides, you can visit ReadWithMalcolm.com.
00:25:33.188 --> 00:25:38.612
And to end, you guys, Malcolm just reminds us that reading's greatest gift is
00:25:38.612 --> 00:25:43.202
teaching students how to step outside their own shoes, build humility,
00:25:43.822 --> 00:25:45.611
and foster self-reflection.
00:25:46.413 --> 00:25:50.059
Thanks for tuning in, and we'll be back July 13th.
00:25:51.771 --> 00:25:57.733
Make sure to visit our website at www.libraryexchangepodcast.com.
00:25:58.006 --> 00:26:00.113
You'll find episode notes and links.
00:26:00.281 --> 00:26:05.639
You can even submit your questions or inspiring stories that may be featured on the podcast.
00:26:05.935 --> 00:26:09.822
If you're looking for some swag for your library or book-loving friends,
00:26:09.822 --> 00:26:13.151
visit libraryexchange.etsy.com.
00:26:13.627 --> 00:26:17.182
That's a lot of URLs, so I'm glad you had to say all of that, Julie.
00:26:19.042 --> 00:26:24.697
Thanks for joining us. We can't wait to have you back for our next episode of Library Exchange.