The Missouri Reader Vol. 37, Issue 1 | Page 31

USING TRADE BOOKS IN ALL CONTENT AREAS
Dianne Swenson Koehnecke
ne of the major problems in teaching young
adult literature is that it is not regarded as necessary in
all content areas. Teacher training programs in the
secondary area do not help this situation; in fact, they
may inhibit students‘ progress in understanding and
using young adult literature. Most secondary
programs only require one course in content area
reading. A Young Adult Literature course is required
only for middle school students in language arts and
secondary programs in English. However, today‘s
course contents are not only expected to include
reading in all content areas, but to choose books
wisely for diverse learners. Trade books (any type of
fiction or nonfiction book that is not a textbook) can
help teachers in all content areas incorporate
interesting material for their students just by using the
common KWL theory with relevant, up to date trade
books.
Often, students struggle to comprehend their
textbooks because they are usually not given any trade
books to enhance the material in the texts. Few
students rave about a ―wonderful textbook,‖ but many
adolescents will share their enthusiasm about
nonfiction/fiction books, interesting articles in
magazines, newspapers, or on the internet. Today,
Young Adult Literature does not merely refer to trade
books, but also includes a wide range of literacies
other than the textbook. By using these various
literacies, teachers can enhance student understanding
and appreciation in all content areas. The American
Library Association (ALA) through their YALSA
(Young Adult Literature Library Services
Organization) offers a list of award winning books for
adolescents in all content areas. These books are not
―stuffy‖ or difficult in language, but offer relevant
information young adults enjoy.
When using a common reading strategy for
different subjects, students understand that their
curriculum is integrated because they can use similar
reading strategies for the various types of literacies
they are reading, whether it be a newspaper article,

an internet article, an article from a library data base,
or a fiction or nonfiction trade book. Unfortunately,
secondary content area
teachers may think the
task of teaching reading
and writing is the job of
the English teachers and
may say they don‘t have
the time to teach these
skills. Ironically,
English teachers have
just as much specific
content to teach as
other areas and do not
have any more time than
other content-area teachers do to teach students how
to read to learn (Irvin, Buehl, & Klemp, 2003).
In addition to the frustration reading level of
young adults, another group of students can be
classified as alliterate, which means they can read but
prefer to do other things, such as play sports, talk on
their cell phones, or socialize with their friends and
say they are just ―too busy‖ to read.
Dianne Koehnecke is an Associate Professors
at Webster University-St. Louis, where she
teaches graduate courses in: Content Area
Reading; Young Adult Literature; and
Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry. Dianne is
currently completing an eBook with
colleague Paula Witkowski called
Connecting Content Area Reading
Creatively.

Before Reading, During Reading,
and After Reading Strategies
Before reading, during reading, and after reading
strategies are effective in helping students understand
the process and product of comprehending and
appreciating young adult literature. Good readers
automatically use these strategies, but all readers, no
matter what their readability level is, can benefit from
©The Missouri Reader, 37 (1) p.31