By Alanna King, Beth Lyons, & Lisa Noble
Read Into This is about books, articles, fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels, media texts, cookbooks, and everything in between. We will explore how we read and how what we read makes us who we are and helps us learn about those around us. Can’t wait for you to join in and talk wordy with us.
Connect to Read Into This on voiceEd Radio
Follow Read Into This on Twitter @into_read
What inspired the Read Into This podcast?
Alanna: Ok so can you even remember the first time we started talking about trying to start a podcast? I have a feeling that Stephen Hurley was giving us a nudge. I’ve always dreamed of being the voice of audiobook narration, and I even did some professional voice work in my twenties. To me audio just has a quality in it that is somewhere between reading a book and movies, in that there are pictures I get to create in my mind as I listen. My story about wanting to podcast has a lot to do with a conversation I had at TMC2020 this year with my guest Walquiria Salinas and Anita Brooks Kirkland. Having seen Walquiria’s enthusiasm for Canadian school library research, I wondered aloud …could we translate all of the papers and articles into the 6 UNESCO languages? We all had a good laugh and then Walquria said “No, but since I am learning English if you could make an audio recording then I would be able to follow along with the article.” And that became my reason to get out of bed each day. Lisa, how did you first get interested in podcasting?
Lisa: I’m a former college radio host, and when I met Stephen for the very first time, years ago, at an edu-event in Peterborough, he immediately dropped the podcast hint. I’ve wanted to do it for ages, and the two of you kind of nudged me a little harder, and here I am. Doesn’t hurt that I really like to talk – about pretty much anything!
Beth: Stephen definitely gave us the nudge. He sent out a direct message on Twitter asking if there was a time we could all get together to chat about “idea that he had”! He wanted to see what we thought. There were lots of ideas being thrown around in the Twitter thread and we set a time to chat together over Zencastr. At the time Lisa couldn’t make the voice meeting so it was just Alanna, Stephen and I chatting and sharing ideas. I have been intrigued with the idea of starting a podcast for a year or so now but could never really wrap my head around a concept that I loved or felt I could carry on my own. I love listening to podcasts, especially long form podcasts where the participants get into a deep discussion and it feels like you are sitting in on a conversation. So when Stephen prompted us with the idea of a podcast related to books and reading I was very excited, and when Alanna shared the idea of connecting to Canadian School libraries and the Treasure Mountain Papers I was hooked.
Alanna: Yes, Stephen is definitely the podfather.
What topics, issues or ideas are you most interested in exploring with Read Into This?
Lisa: For me, I’m fascinated by the way things like privilege and gender and intersectionality affect the way we read and what we read. For years, as an elementary teacher, I was able to put together groups of kids who just wanted to sit and talk about what they were reading (not reading one book) on an extra-curricular basis. I’ve found that a harder sell over the past few years, and I’m fascinated by why. I also really want to know why the readership of fiction, particularly literary, tends to skew female. I very much like talking to just about anyone about what turns their crank reading-wise. I’m an incredibly omnivorous reader.
Beth: I like talking to people about why they choose the books they read and their reading habits. It’s especially interesting to see how people think or believe their habits have changed over time. I am a reader who constantly has multiple books on the go and I like hearing from people who are similar to me and why they read this way, as well as people who read one book cover to cover. I find the act of choosing a book to read very personal and dislike having my reading materials dictated to me (perhaps why I only recently joined a book club for the first time) but there are other people who love to go by recommendations and reviews when choosing their reading materials. It’s all such an interesting mix! And when you throw in the idea of genre hierarchy- which reading materials are valued over others, especially by educators and parents- there’s just such a huge scope for discussions.
Alanna: I’m really enjoying hearing about the library contexts from other parts of Canada. I haven’t interviewed everyone from every region yet, but I’m working on it! I’ve been finding that I am enjoying podcasting with the same topic with multiple readers. So far we’ve tried topics like Adolescents to Adults, where we explore the formative books that sort of changed your perspective as you grew up. We’re just starting another series too called Fighting Injustice through Fiction which was inspired by the Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD) this year. I hope to pair teachers who promote Canadian books in their classroom with the author to talk about the issues in the books and how they’re impacting readers.
What are the challenges so far in trying to put this podcast together?
Alanna: It’s amazing what happens when you say to someone “Hey I’m really interested in what you’re doing. Would you come on our little show and talk about it?” 98% of people say yes without hesitating. So creating content isn’t really a big deal. Occasionally we have little hiccups with someone’s internet connection, but we can generally work through those in a sound check in just a few minutes.
Lisa: Time! And for me, there’s been a bravery leap to take. I have done college radio – both music and arts programming (shout-out to CHUO Ottawa, which was an incredibly supportive place to volunteer) . However, I have a much harder time just saying to people “hey, would you like to talk about …..?” Even with people I know quite well. So, working on being brave in that way is a big thing for me. I’m also not a teacher-librarian, so sometimes, even in our conversations with the three of us, things turn a little curatorial, and I have to work to situate myself there.
Beth: I have found that since we launched during the pandemic and after the emergency distance learning started, I have to schedule my time carefully with two young children at home. They do not care if I put a “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door! However, when I am able to find time to sit down, either with my co-hosts or guests, then the conversations are a form of self-care for me. I have always been a pedagogy nerd and a book lover so being able to talk in depth with people who feel the same feeds my soul. I love exploring the nuances of why someone reads and what they read and really enjoy finding guests beyond the scope of school library professionals in order to bring new voices into the space.
What are the goals for Read Into This?
Beth: For me, personally and selfishly (!) I love to hear what other people are reading and why they are reading it. I love the process that goes into choosing a book and then recommending a book to others. It’s such a personal thing to choose a book and yet it’s often something we do in groups and with other people. I like hearing and having discussions with people about how a book has changed them or touched them and their life. I like to hear about how life has changed what people read and the genres that attract them.
Lisa: Like Beth, I want to know what people read. I also want to know how we use the show to work against that hierarchy of form that I think still exists, where people think if it’s not a “book”, it doesn’t count as reading. One of my students answered a question last week on what the favourite thing was that he’d read by saying it was the manual for his trampoline, because it resulted in something concrete. I think that’s an awesome answer, but he thought he was kind of being a smart aleck. I’m really invested in helping people see that reading procedural writing (and being able to identify good procedural writing) and other forms is absolutely reading! If the podcast helps with that, that’s a huge win for me!
Alanna: I want to revisit all of the work that’s inside Treasure Mountain Canada, School Library Journal and even School Libraries in Canada (1998-2012). There is so much that has changed, and so much that hasn’t. That’s what bringing this podcast together is really about for me. I want to feel closer to the entire network of school library voices in our grand country. We’re almost all dealing with the same issues and concerns but in different contexts. If I can, I’d like to amplify this work beyond our borders too through our connections in IASL, IFLA and even UNESCO as school libraries around the world are also networking to share our learning. With the power of podcast technology, the sky is the limit in terms of possibilities.
If you’d like to get in touch with us, please reach out through Twitter:
Read Into This @into_read
Lisa Noble @nobleknits2
Beth Lyons @mrslyonslibrary
Alanna King @banana29
And follow the podcast on voicEd Radio: voiced.ca/project/read-into-this/
or on the CSL website: www.canadianschoollibraries.ca/read-into-this/
Alanna King is an agent of change in Ontario’s Upper Grand District School Board. A shameless promoter of her own professional development, she tirelessly spends her time learning and tracking its impact. Alanna was a recipient of the Canadian School Libraries 2020 Angela Thacker Memorial Award for her outstanding contribution to teacher-librarianship and the development of the school library learning commons. She can best be reached on Twitter @banana29.
Beth Lyons has taught in the Primary, Junior and Intermediate divisions and she is currently the teacher-librarian at Larkspur Public School in the Peel District School Board. She believes in being open about her own learning journey as an educator and a teacher-librarian and reflects on her time in the Library Learning Commons on her blog The Librarian’s Journey and on Twitter @MrsLyonsLibrary. She is passionate about helping others find what they love to read and embracing their inquiry mindset. She has been actively involved in the transition of the Library Learning Commons at Larkspur Public School and sees the role of the teacher-librarian as a curator, an advocate, a risk taker and an ally. Beth believes in encouraging students and educators to bring their voice and ideas into the LLC as the space continues to evolve. Whether through loose parts, photography, art, STEAM and other mediums, she loves to connect and share ideas on social media.
Lisa Noble has taught in the Primary, Junior and Intermediate divisions, including Core French and music, and is currently teaching Grade 7 with the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board. She is passionate about building community in the classroom and school space, and can often be found lingering at the intersection of technology, pedagogy and equity. Creating opportunities for students and teachers to engage in mindful making, and reflect on their own self -and co- regulating strategies is an ongoing focus for Lisa. She is a reader, knitter, spinner, baker and fitness enthusiast, and can be found exploring all of her lifelong learning interests on Twitter at @nobleknits2.