Reading Identity – Page 14

I knew I had to teach reading when I was first hired as a 4th-grade teacher. After all, every teacher teaches reading. Yet, I didn’t know how to really teach reading. I knew components of effective literacy practice, and yet, what those actually looked like within my own classroom was a bit of a mystery. How did actual teachers of reading teach reading to kids who already knew mostly how to read?

My very first answer? Whole class novel, of course.

Thinking back to my own days of learning how to read, I knew to not go the basal approach, and yet I remembered that shared experience of reading the same novel as everyone else. Of discussing. Of trying to find meaning within its pages as we drove each other to deeper levels of understanding. Of even finding a few books I never knew I could love (For Whom the Bell Tolls, anyone?!) to remembering the year together (9th grade honors English with Mrs. Vincent at Lenox Memorial High School, Massachusetts)because of the very books we shared.

Since I knew my students were not quite ready for Hemingway, I picked what I hoped would be a great anchor text for us – Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, the beloved classic rite-of-passage read by Judy Blume.

I now had the book.

All I needed was the work to go with it.

So I found it on the internet, an entire packet just for the book, with questions, activities, and word searches galore. The students could even color in the pages if they so chose. Prep work done, I was ready. And so we began our fourth-grade year together within the pages of a very short book, 144 pages to be exact and we split it up evenly within the 7-ish weeks I had set aside for the task. 4 pages a night could certainly not be too much to ask. Let the reading begin.

And it did. So did the packet work. The lackluster discussions. The rigid instruction, and perhaps even some scolding when students dared to read ahead.

Rarely do I remember us marveling at the audacity of Fudge. Rarely do I remember gathering the kids around the pages of the book to look at something together. Rarely do I remember coming to class excited to discuss, to share, to connect around the book.

But the work pages. The long-drawn-out reading. The lack of excitement. That I remember.

And so for a long time, I swore off whole class novels. Even jumped in the camp of telling everyone else how awful they were. How they are killing the love of reading in kids. But what good does that type of rigid thinking do when my very own memories betray me of my own whole class novel experiences. And so it turned out that I, once again, was proven wrong.

Because it wasn’t really about the whole class novel. It was about me and my own adherence to terrible decisions that surrounded the experience.

So now, let’s look at this concept of the whole class novel and how we can actually make it work within our reading environments without killing the love of reading. It turns out what we need are just a few tweaks and perhaps a dose of common sense.

Step 1 – Redefine the purpose. Rather than using whole class novel to produce a lot of work, how about we redefine the expectation to producing a whole lot of talk.

Idea – Cut out the written work altogether or boil it down to one main product. Does it have to be written or can it be filmed? Does it have to be an analysis or can it be a discussion of relevance? By connecting the book read with other issues in our current society? Does it have to be produced alone or can it be produced with others? Can we assess the discussions as they happen and not worry so much about the end result? And can we please roll back on the annotations. There is very little reason to annotate an entire book, other than to prove you have read it. Is that really what we want kids to work on?

Step 2 – Redefine the access. One of the major problems within a whole-class novel is that for many students the book is not a great match for their current reading capabilities. While it is good to stretch students with challenge texts, you don’t want to put it so far our of their reach that they simply feel defeated and it becomes yet another nail in their “I hate reading coffin.” For others students, the book is way too easy and they would rather read other books after they have read this one.

Idea – Offer choice in accessibility. Do all students have to read it with their eyes or can it be listened to? Can it be shared as a small group read aloud? Can kids partner-read? Can kids read it quickly and show up ready to discuss when needed? Provide multiple access points so that all kids can focus on the purpose; engaging discussions.

Step 3 – Redefine what we read. Why is it that our literary canon are still the same books that I read more than 20 years ago in high school? Yes, there is merit at some point in your life to picking up some of the classics, but you will get infinitesimally more out of them when you are invested. To Kill a Mockingbird was incredibly boring when I read it in 9th grade, but when I re-read it as a 23-year-old, I had a better experience. So how about rather than using this format as a way to expose students to classical texts that they otherwise may not pick up on their own, instead use it to garner deep discussion that can mirror the societal discussion surrounding us? Besides, what about how problematic some of these texts are? we cannot keep hiding behind the cloak of “that’s how they spoke in that time” to make it okay to read them. See this great article here discussing some of the major issues with our current literary canon.

Idea – Critically evaluate the classics and give choice. Perhaps some kids do want to read the same books as their parents did, but others don’t. Take a critical lens to what you are offering up. Who are these choices for? Why are these choices offered year after year? When were these books selected? Simply saying its because they are classics is not enough when we have brilliant books that have been published within even the last 50 years. (Even this year!) There should be a balance.

Step 4 – Redefine the time. One of my major mistakes was to stretch our whole class novel out over way too long of a time period. I have seen some schools use an entire book for a quarter of the year. I don’t care how great the book is, few people can sustain their interest for 12 weeks or more.

Idea – Shorten the length. Three weeks max. That way you have to move through it at a good speed and you can focus on the most central or interesting parts. Within a three-week period, there is also a sense of urgency that otherwise can get lost. Students have to keep up with the text to keep up with the discussion rather than assume that they can simply read it later when it really starts to count.

Step 5 – Redefine your role. One critical aspect I lost within our whole class novel was that it was all centered on me. I generated the questions (or purchased them in my case). I led the discussions. I assessed the work. That is easy for kids to get through and exhausting for the teacher. There is also very little buy-in as far as responsibility and it is easy for kids to coast through, especially those kids who have pretty great reading skills. That is not the intent behind the work.

Idea – Share the responsibility. Start as a role model for how to lead discussions but then share the responsibility with students. Delegate who will come up with questions and who will steer the conversation? Getting students invested beyond the quick answer can lead to more engagement and definitely more understanding of what it means to engage others.

Step 6 – Use it sparingly. I have heard of school districts that mandate that every single reading experience is through a whole class novel for an entire year. In fact, my own amazing niece is currently a victim of that. I don’t use that term lightly, but you know what it has done for her love of reading after several years of this? Yup, totally quashed it. When I ask her what she reads for fun, she says nothing. That’s what doing the same thing over and over can do for you. It may have been great at first but going through the same routine over and over is sure to lead to routine fatigue.

Idea – Everything in moderation. Reserve the whole class novel for those one or two incredible books that you just know will light your class on fire. Reserve it for the fall as you establish your community and perhaps once more in the spring when you know each other so much better. Use it as a tool to challenge their thinking, their analysis, their communication. Put your all into it and then do something else; free choice, book clubs, anything but another whole class novel. Make it special and treat it as such.

While it has been a while since my students actively dove into a whole class novel with me, I am always on the lookout for that amazing text that I feel we all need to digest together. Once I find it, I cannot wait to dive in with my students. Until then, if you need more ideas and inspiration, please read Kate Roberts new book, A Novel Approach.

If you like what you read here, consider reading my newest book, Passionate Readers – The Art of Reaching and Engaging Every Child. This book focuses on the five keys we can implement into any reading community to strengthen student reading experiences, even within the 45 minute English block. If you are looking for solutions and ideas for how to re-engage all of your students consider reading my very first book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. Also, if you are wondering where I will be in the coming year or would like to have me speak, please see this page.

being a teacher, Reading, Reading Identity, student voice

One More Time for the People in the Back

April 7, 2018 Pernille Ripp

I don’t think that I can yell any louder.

How many times that I have repeated myself on this blog.

How many times I have repeated the voices of those who speak the words loudly, of those who spoke the words long before I ever did.

I don’t think I can say it in other ways than I have, but I suppose one more time for good measure. For the people in the back of the room, or for those who just showed up.

If we want to help kids like reading we need to surround them with books.

If we want to help kids like reading we need to give them time to actually read.

If we want to help kids like reading we need to create a community of readers.

If we want to help kids like reading we need to help them develop their reader identity.

We need to help them go beyond our help.

We need to help them go beyond their level.

Their Lexile.

Their data.

The computer program that tells them what they can do or not do as a reader.

We need them to see worth in what they are doing and worth in who reading helps them become.

We need to help them see that reading matters beyond the journal entry, beyond the project, beyond the thing we just made them do to prove that they are actually reading.

We need to speak books.

To share books.

To have books that show them who they are and also what others are.

To celebrate books and all types of reading so that within our classrooms and schools every child can see themselves as a kid who reads. As a kid whose reading matters. As a kid who doesn’t read “easy” books, who doesn’t cheat in reading when they listen to audio books. As a kid who might not just be a reader someday, completely dismissing that they are, indeed, already a reader.

And not just in their own eyes but in our eyes as well.

So I suppose I can say it one more time; what we do with the reading we do matters.

What we don’t do with the reading we do matters.

The identities we help create matter.

And the words our students share about what is killing their love of reading matters. the least we can do is listen to them.

And we must bring back common sense reading practices to protect the very kids whose reading lives we were told to nurture, to protect, and to grow.

Perhaps you will join in the yelling and the powers that may be will one day hear us.

If you like what you read here, consider reading my newest book, Passionate Readers – The Art of Reaching and Engaging Every Child, out August 2017. This book focuses on the five keys we can implement into any reading community to strengthen student reading experiences, even within the 45 minute English block. If you are looking for solutions and ideas for how to re-engage all of your students consider reading my very first book Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students. Also, if you are wondering where I will be in the coming year or would like to have me speak, please see this page.

being a teacher, Reading, Reading Identity, student choice, Student dreams, Student Engagement

Growing Readers Past our Classroom Walls

March 20, 2018March 21, 2018 Pernille Ripp

I recently had the gift of being observed by teachers outside of our district. Our students are used to it and go about their regular ways, no putting on a show for strangers here. I always get nervous because while I think our community it magical, I am not sure what it looks like to outsiders. Do they see all of the growth? The work? The small routines and decisions that go into creating the learning community we have?

During our conversation, a fellow teacher asked me how I help our students read outside of our classroom, after they leave, either for the day, the week, or even the year. And while I am not sure all of our students do, I have seen the change once again this year. I have seen many students read more. I have seen more students embrace books and reading. I have heard kids who told me they hate reading also have a favorite book to share when asked. Knowing that there is a change afoot, made me realize that once again, this subtle difference of not just wanting to read inside the classroom, but outside of it, is something we accomplish through a lot of small steps and not just one thing. And that as always many of the ideas I have come from others who have graciously shared their ideas such as Penny Kittle, Nancie Atwell, and Donalyn Miller with a few tweaks thrown in just for us.

It starts with a fully stocked classroom library because I need our students surrounded by books at all time. I need them to see the importance of always having a book ready, of always picking their next read.

Then it becomes where else do you get books from? We use our school library but also talk about all of the other books are present. Where can they access books beside our room? Where will they get books from over the summer? If they can’t get to a library, I will gladly lend them some.

It starts with the creation of a to-be-read list and while some readers already have these in place, many don’t. Many also don’t see the need and fight me for a long time about it, usually dismissing it with the idea that they already have a book to read. Yet, we make one and then we use it, day in and day out as I ask them to please open to it when we have a book talk in the room.

Then it becomes a tool they adapt to use on their own. So we start with one way to keep track but then we discuss how else they can have a list. Is it on their phone? Is it their Goodreads account? Is it the never-ending wishlist on Amazon? What will they actually use so that they always have ideas for what to read next? It cannot be my system because they will never maintain it once I am gone. And so when they ask me what they should read next my first reminder is always to check their to-be-read list, to start there so they remember all of those books they thought might be worth their time.

It starts with book talks by me. Every day, every class. Students get used to the routine and write down titles they are interested in.

Then it becomes book talks by students because little beats a recommendation from a fellow student. Whether it is through unofficial moments where I ask students to share a recent favorite read, our more structured thirty -second book talks where they actually write down what they will say and I have the covers ready to project, or to their end of year “Best book of the year” speech, they get used to discussing books, sharing favorites and not so favorite, of speaking about books without me.

It starts with book shopping with them, we set up our routine together the first week of school remembering how to book shop. Discussing how it is totally fine to judge a book by its cover as long as we look at other things as well. Then we book shop as a class or I help a child who needs it with one-on-one guidance.

Then it becomes them book shopping with friends. Rather than book shopping with me, I step further in the background, not highlighting as many books and also looking around for a peer for them to book shop with rather than me.

It starts with me being a reading role model. And being an obvious one. While I always say this is “our classroom,” it is my books read covers that grace our walls, and my book talks that dominate at first. However, that is not good in the long run because we don’t set students up for continued independence but instead further their reliance on us.

Then it becomes students as reading role models. And so, giving the conversational space back to students to make sure they know each other as readers, while they learn about themselves as well is a main focus for us. Students not only reflect on their own reading habits but also share with each other. They not only recommend books but also discuss reading plans. And while I certainly share my own as well, I am only one voice of many.

It starts with a discussion of summer reading and it’s importance. Casual comments made about keeping the reading spark alive, of discovering who they are as a reader.

Then it becomes making plans. Actually discussing how they plan on continuing their reading after they leave our classroom. They share ideas, I share ideas, and we discuss why it matters. We discuss the books they want to read. We take pictures of their to-be-read list and email it home. They borrow books from me and share their favorite reads. This isn’t a one day lesson, it is a lesson that evolves, that crops up when needed, that is repeated more urgently as the year winds down. After all, it took some of our students a long time to become readers, why should staying one take less time?

when I look at the reading community I get to be a part of every day, I cannot help but notice how the power of it always lies within the small details; the books, the displays, the conversations and yes, the patience and persistence that it takes to help build a reader. None of that happens overnight. None of that happens with just one book. Or just one person. It takes a community, it takes deliberate action, and it takes an endless amount of belief that every child can have positive experiences with reading.

Be the change, being a teacher, Literacy, Reading, Reading Identity

On Certain Books for Certain Kids

March 11, 2018 Pernille Ripp

We spend a lot of time in bookstores and libraries. So much so that my own children at the moment are playing library downstairs. We go for the inspiration, for the support of booksellers, to find new must-have purchases. We go as a family to recommit to reading, to get excited about what it means to be a reader.

But once in a while, something strikes me as out of place even in a bookstore. Today it was this sign at our Barnes and Noble.

I fixed it for them on my Instagram account.

And yet, all jest aside. These small signs. These sections of libraries. These displays that cater to only one identity, only one culture, only one representation. They may seem trivial at first and yet they add to the continued perpetuation that some books are for some kids. That some books will only be liked by the people it is directly marketed to. This is problematic because it once again speaks to certain books being for certain kids. It speaks to certain stories being the ones worth publishing. It speaks to how we only want diverse books if those books are diverse in the way we see fit. (Just like what the NY Times wrote about here.) It speaks to how we only display books celebrating African American history when February reminds us too.

We wonder why some of our students have stigmas when it comes to the books we read, and then don’t think to look at our own learning spaces to see where those stigmas are created.

But we have to do better than this. We have to do more, and it once again starts with the small details that we do have control over.

We have to first question how we use the word “Diverse” as Chad Everett cautions us to do in his blog post, where he reminds us all that the minute we call something diverse we are once again establishing whiteness as the norm.

We have to question the divisions we create in our classroom and school libraries. When we hand boys “Boy books” and don’t book talk a book to the whole class because it really is just meant for the “girls.” When we describe certain books as girly or fluffy and then hand it to a female.

When a child needs our help with book shopping and in our eagerness to help that child “see” themselves in books we only hand them books that feature characters that look like them. We have gotten better at handing white, hetero, cisgender kids window books, but don’t other identities deserve that too?

When we invite female authors to our schools and then only invite the girls to see them because boys might not understand or be engaged with the message.

When we create displays that honor African Americans and only pull out books that feature them marching or Civil Rights or in chains as enslaved people.

When a child tells us they loved a certain book and we assume we know why and don’t ask them what they loved it so we can help them find a better book, not based on our assumptions but actually on their desires.

When we only purchase books from the large publishers and don’t seek out the independent ones like Lee and Low who have been focused on creating a better world through books for many years.

When we herald big publishers creating special imprints to honor the voices of those who have been traditionally left out from their publishing houses, but we don’t question why they were left out in the first place. Why not publish them within their traditional branch?

When we are quick to “otherize” books and then hand them to kids as something that they can only identify with because of a shared trait, we are quickly teaching kids that they should only care about those that they share those same traits with. That unless they can find a surface commonality with someone then their time is not worth investing.

And so we must continue to do better. We must evaluate our learning spaces, our books, our displays, our book talks, and even who we hand which books to so that we can do better. We must continue to push for better representation and for an end to the notion that certain books are for certain kids, rather than just waiting to be discovered by everyone.

being a teacher, Literacy, Reading, Reading Identity

Some Small Ideas to Help Students Self-Select Books Better

February 4, 2018 Pernille Ripp

I was asked this morning on Twitter how we move students beyond wanting hand-picked recommendations every time they book shop. How do they move beyond needing someone, typically, the adult or trusted reading role model to help them find the next book to read?

The truth is there is no simple answer, however, there are things that we can do starting on our very first day that starts this process of independent book selection that will last beyond our classroom experience. And while it certainly starts on the first day of school, there is no “too late” for this to be implemented. These ideas make a difference no matter when, so it is not too late (nor too early) to start working toward student independence in self-selecting texts. So where do we start?

We build our libraries, both whole school and classroom libraries.

In fact, we need to become advocates for our school library and our certified librarians to make sure that everyone knows just how much they matter to our school and to our reading lives. (If you need to see research on the importance of school librarians, here is a great place to start). And then we build our own classroom libraries as well, filling them with a wide representation of topics, readability and format that fits all of our readers and not just a few.

In fact, we must bring classroom libraries into every classroom so that children can see that reading is something that can happen in any subject area and not just English. While supporting classroom libraries and school libraries may seem costly, they make a difference, in fact, Morrow and Neumann both report that children read 50-60% more in classrooms with libraries in them than those without. And we must think of the books that we surround our students with asking ourselves not just WHO is represented, but HOW are they represented and also who is NOT represented? Students must be able to find themselves but also see others in the very books we place in front of them.

We carefully craft our book displays.

I was at my public library yesterday, a beautiful building that has a dedicated library staff, and yet their teen section is bland and boring. Every time I go there, I wonder why? Why not pull books and put them on display? Why not use the power of visual representation to pull our readers in? Why not show off the hottest new reads and help kids find the books they may not know they want to read? SO in our classroom, the displays are always changing. The books facing out rotate through. Our book tree where students and I showcase our favorite books is always being reworked. Books surround us because they need to be staring at us, calling to us at all times. And I place books knowing where they will catch the eyes of students so that they want to grab them. Not in haste, but carefully so that students feel the urge to read.

We have a to-be-read list.

This simple list in our reader’s notebook is our someday list to quote Nancie Atwell. The books that perhaps we want to try reading. The books we are enticed to read but may not have time to read just yet. The book list is always growing and it is a must for all students to have it in some form, whether on paper or on their device. Whenever a child book shops, I ask them to pull out their to-be-read list so that it becomes a habit. Whenever a book talk happens, I ask them to pull out their to-be-read list so that they remember they have it. We discuss them, we share them, and we remember that they should be filled with maybe books because they know that some of those books they will abandon. This list is also sent home with students on the last day of school physically, and an image of it is emailed home or shared in some other way.

We book talk books almost every day.

I start every single day with 10 minutes of independent reading unless we are in book clubs where the time comes later in the period. After this sacred ten minutes, it is time for a book talk, first by me and then by others. I keep my book talk short and sweet, holding up the book and showcasing an image of the cover behind me so that students can write down the title. If it is a student doing a book talk I quickly find the cover to project behind them as well. I remind students to write the title down if they are enticed by it, otherwise, many will forget to do this simple step.

When students do book talks, we either do it on the fly, asking simply if someone has a book they want to recommend or I have them fill out a notecard with a 30-second book talk and then give them their notecard when it is their time to recommend. I will have the book cover images ready to project as well.

We do lessons on how to book shop.

One of the first lessons I do in the year is how to book shop, while this may seem crazy, I teach 12-year-olds after all, I have found it to be a necessary reminder. Kids will tell you they know how to bookshop but then they simply go through the motions, not actually looking at the books or even finding any they want to read. So we break it down into a whole lesson, described more in detail here so that students know what I am expecting and are also reminded of what they should do while browsing books. Before we head to our school library every other week, they are also reminded of how to book shop down there, transferring their skills to a different environment as practice, because this is what they need to do once they leave us.

We just say no.

Many of my students would rather I book shop with them at all times, and while I will gladly support this in the beginning of the year, as the year progresses I pull back that support. I tell them they have to book shop on their own, show me their pile, and then I can certainly help out after. While it depends on the child, some get the idea pretty quickly and develop that independence, while others need repeated experiences. While I feel bad telling a child “No,” I also see the necessity of it; if we never say no, they will never stop asking, because, let’s face it, it is much easier just to ask an adult than do the work themselves. We have to teach children to not be helpless in our classrooms, and that includes when they select their next book. If we never give them the opportunity to try to figure it out themselves then they will not have grown like they should have.

We dive into their reading identity.

If a child does not know how to self-select a text, independent of Lexile, levels, or other outside systems, then they do not know themselves as a reader. So this becomes our mission throughout the year; having students reflect on who they are as a reader and how they create successful reading experiences for themselves. After all, as an adult reader, this is how I keep reading; I am in tune with what I am in the mood to read. This is what I describe a lot more in detail in chapters 4 and 5 of Passionate Readers. After all, if a child does not know how to create a successful reading experience for themselves while they are with us, then how will they do so once they leave us.

Throughout the year, we set meaningful reading goals, we reflect on how we are growing, and we decide what’s next for our journey. This ownership is vital for students to develop as readers and needs to be carefully cultivated throughout the year, not left to chance or happenstance.

We read every single day in class.

You may wonder what does actually reading have to do with selecting the book they are reading, but the answer is; everything! If we do not have students read in front of us, we will not see their reaction to the book they have chosen to read. We will not be there to notice when they start to skim the pages, pretend to read or shut the book completely. So if we want students to successfully self-select their texts then we need to also give them the time to actually try the text out with our guidance if needed. This also goes for those kids that consistently pick “Ok” books. These are the kids that are having decent reading experiences, but not amazing ones, these are the kids we end up often losing as readers because they never have incredible experiences and thus never get what the magic is all about.

How do I know how students are feeling about their books? I ask them in my quick reading check-ins during their independent reading time and we discuss how book abandonment as a major component of being a reader who knows themselves. Because the ten minutes (and I only do ten because I have 45 minutes altogether, if you have a longer period do more!), allows me time to see my students reading, I can often point out things they have not noticed themselves yet. It allows me a chance to connect with them, reader to reader and to individualize their instruction.

Helping students self-select a text has many different components, and in all honesty, this blog post is only the beginning. For further reading, I highly encourage you to read Donalyn Miller’s Reading in the Wild, Teri Lesene’s Reading Ladders, Penny Kittle’s Book Love, and my own book Passionate Readers.

being a teacher, books, Literacy, Reading, Reading Identity

Small Ideas For Creating Visible Book Buzz

January 6, 2018 Pernille Ripp

I start thinking of summer on the very first day of school. As I greet my new students, I cannot help but wonder; who will leave us a reader? Who will include books in their summer plans?

With this in mind, I teach with a sense of urgency as so many of us do. I am not just teaching for the now, I am teaching for the after. After the bell rings. After Friday afternoon. After the day before break. After the school year is over.

I teach for the kids who come to me loving reading; my job is to protect that love with all I have.

I teach for the kids who see no point in books. Who scorn every day when I ask them to settle in, settle down, get to reading. For the kids who would rather sit in silence and pretend to read than actually read a book.

And I hope that this year, this time in our classroom, perhaps a seed will be planted. Perhaps an idea will form that reading is not the slow, quiet torture that they have decided it is and that perhaps there is indeed books out there for them.

And so in those very first days, we make reading visible. I book talk a book on the second day of school. This year it was Dear Martin by Nic Stone. I make it the expectation that books are shared, discussed, rated, and abandoned when needed. We speak books as our primary language, immersed in everything else we have to do. The book buzz builds and at the end of the year when I ask what made the biggest difference, there it is, nestled in with time to read, a community of readers, a classroom library; recommendations. But what does that look like? Here are the simple, yet powerful components, plus a few extra ideas that we use to create a visible book buzz.

What Mrs. Ripp Read over the Summer Display

This year, I didn’t just portray the covers, I made a display of the physical books that I had read and wanted to share from the summer. On the second day of school, I pointed to the tree and told them that these were books that I would highly recommend. That this tree would soon be overtaken by their favorite reads, but for now it showcased mine.

What is Mrs. Ripp Reading Display

Throughout our school, you can see a variety of staff reading displays. I chose to not just display what I had just read but keep a visual record of all of the book covers for the year. My students know that my goal is 90 books for a year and so this also keeps a visual track of that. This hangs by our door so it is the last thing they see as they leave.

Our Favorite Books Tree

Within the first few weeks of the year, the tree I used to display my summer reads turns into the students’ favorite reads instead. If books are in high demand this is where they go, if a student loved a book, this is where they can place it to be read by others. This tree is many of our student’s first stop to bookshop. Hat tip to Nancie Atwell for this genius idea.

A To-Be-Read List in the room

Our someday list, wish list of books, books I cannot wait to read. Whatever you call it, I am grateful that advocates like Teri Lesene, Nancie Atwell, Donalyn Miller, and Penny Kittle remind us that students need to have reading plans and that includes having ideas for what they want to read next. In our reading notebook, we have a few pages dedicated to just this, or students can choose to use their devices and Goodreads for example. Whenever a book talk is underway, students are reminded to write down any titles that catch their eye. At the end of the year, we take a picture of the list and send it home to parents/caregivers so they have ideas for summer reading.

A daily book talk.

After our ten minutes of independent reading, I try to start the day with a book talk. Usually, it is a book I have just finished or an old favorite. The book talk is short and sweet; what’s the book about, why did I like it and why might others’ like it. Students have their to-be-read list out and ready to add titles to it.

30-second book talks.

The day we came back from break, I asked my students to write down a 30-second book talk on a notecard. They had to write the title, the author, a little about the book and then why others may like it. It took us about 5 minutes. I then collected the cards and now pick three cards every day for students to do their book talks. The students experience little stress by it because the work is already done and I get to have the book cover ready to display for students to see while they speak.

Book speed dating.

Another take on short book talks is when students split into two equal groups; one with a favorite book in hand, the other with their to-be-read list. Students then line up in front of each other and when I say go, they have 45 seconds to book talk the book in their hand. When the time is up, every child on one side takes steps to the side, thus standing in front of a new child. We do this five or six times in a row. The next day, the roles switch.

Book group book talks.

Once in a while, I will book talk an entire group of books centered around a format, theme, or author. This way students are given multiple ideas for what to read next if they like one of the books. Recently I did this with free-verse books, one of the most popular formats in our classroom, and the books have been flying off the shelves since.

Book shopping

We book shop every three to four weeks in our classroom. It is a community event and one that we discuss how to do well. The goal for every child is to walk away from the book shopping experience with at least a few new titles they want to read. I have written more extensively about our process, right here.

Sharing on Instagram

I resisted Instagram for a long time as I didn’t want to share more aspects of my life, and yet, I needed a quick and easy way to recommend books without having to write an entire review. Enter Instagram. The bonus to sharing “live” recommendations of books on here has been that some of my students follow me on there to get recommendations. As I only use Instagram for book-related things, I don’t have any hesitations with students following my account. To follow my account, go here

There are more ways to build book buzz, but these are a few that work. Other ways include book abandonment, creating enticing book displays, acknowledging our own reading gaps, involving the school librarian and other reading adults, and speaking books to all students. I wrote about all of these and more in my book Passionate Readers, a book MiddleWeb has said should be required reading in all Reading Methods Classes. While those are huge words to live up to, I think it once again speaks to the power of all of the little things we do to create passionate reading environments.