In Givors, an association establishes a quarter of an hour of daily reading to children in a disadvantaged district

The sixth 3 class is barely installed when the sound signal sounds. On the benchmarks of the science room, no microscope, nor a test tube, but a book that each of the students, aged 11 to 12, draws from their bag. A manga for Ilhan, a novel for Joumana, an album for Kaïna. While the hubbub of recreation filled its hall a few seconds ago, the Lucie-Aubrac college plunges into absolute calm. Some feet fidget with impatience and some looks get lost behind the window. But only the noise of the pages breaks the silence. “I find it hard to read with me with my brothers and sisters, it’s the only time I can move forward in my story!” “Reads Nabil.

Installed in a disadvantaged district of Givors (Rhône), south of Lyon, this priority education establishment (REP) has established the quarter of an hour of reading. Every day, from 10 a.m. to 10:17 a.m., everyone is invited to read a book of their choice. A project launched five years ago by her energetic documentalist, Gaëlle Devin. “Here, this is a real subject, whatever the level or matter. There are difficulties in understanding the instructions, a very poor vocabulary and little familiarity with the book, ”she explains. To convince the interest of reading and take the 520 students, she has the idea, in 2021, to call on the association “Silence, we read! ” (GROUND).

Dopy creativity

At the origin of this concept, an idea launched thousands of kilometers away, in a high school in Ankara (Turkey), in the early 2000s. The writer and filmmaker Olivier Delahaye discovers, fascinated, this ritual of reading. “I immediately thought it could bear fruit in France!” He says. Because for ten years, studies of the National Book Center have reported a real dropout among 7-19 year olds. In 2024, they spent only 19 minutes to read against 3 h 11 to screens every day.

Accompanied by the director of the Turkish high school, Ayse Basçavusogluet, and Danièle Sallenave, of the French Academy, Olivier Delahaye founded the association “Silence, we read! »Objective: to set up the same system in interested establishments. Support from six months to one year on average, for a price between 500 and 1,000 euros. Since 2016, the initiative has attracted more than a thousand schools, colleges and high schools, across the country. “Reading should not only be associated with learning, but with pleasure, which improves expression, stimulates curiosity, boosts creativity! », Enthuses Hélène Labreigne, in charge of support and development at SOL. Not to mention the secondary profits, because a quarter of an hour of reading, it is all minutes of silence that promote the concentration of students and improve the climate in a class.

In order for the system to settle in the long term, the association follows a precise methodology: create a solid steering committee, convince all the staff of its benefits, but above all find solutions to practical difficulties. “He must agree on a schedule that avoids nibble on courses or arrange“ resources ”so that no one will find himself without a book when the time comes. »»

Seed

In practice, each establishment adapts. In Lucie-Aubrac, some teachers read a story aloud, others sit with their class to give an example. Among the students, some evoke with a broad smile this moment “of pleasure”, “cool”, “which changes”; Others are less convinced like Joumana, who confides “to hate” reading. All seem to be conquered by this silent break: “I realize that it calms me!” », Confess Ilhan, 11, his favorite manga in his hands.

The team does not put on an improvement in skills, but rather hopes to sow seeds. “We are not going to save reading, but once the books are closed, there is always one that asks me for the definition of a vocabulary word that he has just discovered, and that’s already won! “Smiles Julie, a very invested SVT teacher.

A dynamic that Gaëlle Devin maintains by proposing a multitude of projects, including actions with the media library or challenges to the CDI. So much so that reading has become a “marker” of the establishment. In the hall, a quote from Daniel Pennac now floats on a banner, like a flag: “Each reading is an act of resistance. »»