Unbelievably, we are already five weeks into the new school year, and midterm grades will be posted by tomorrow morning. We have had a busy first half of the quarter, mainly establishing classroom routines and activities that we will use for the rest of the year. One important routine we've been working on is independent reading.
In order for students to develop their reading skills and become more aware of their reading tastes, students read independently every other day in class and are asked to read as many evenings at home as they can. In fact, if all goes as planned in class each day, reading at home is often kids' only homework for language arts. Using an easy-to-follow formula, students have determined their individual reading rates and are expected to meet that reading rate goal each week (we log pages Monday to Monday, so logs are checked every Monday and students' progress is noted). Students are encouraged to log pages frequently during the week so that they are aware of where they are at in meeting their reading rate goal. Also, when students finish a book, they set a new reading rate (which may go up or down, depending on the complexity of the text they are reading). These activities give students the responsibility of record-keeping and in creating a plan to meet their reading goals each week. During reading conferences each week, I meet with several students (one at a time) to check in with what they're reading and how their reading is going.
Students also offered input on how their reading logs should be graded and the following is what we agreed upon: 1) Logs will be worth 10 points each week. 2) Students receive full points if they meet or exceed their individual reading rates. 3) Students who are up to 10% below their reading rate will receive 8 points (B). 4) Students who are 11-15% below their reading rate will receive 7 points (C). 5) Students below 15% below their reading rates will be put on the ICU list and need to "catch up" to at least the C-range of their pages. 6) Students who want to improve their reading log grades (either B's or C's) have 2 days to complete their "catch up" pages or keep their original grade.
Starting this week, students will begin sharing book talks about books they have recently read. To plan their book talks, students complete a brief planning sheet, compose three paragraphs of what they plan to say during their book talk, and then deliver their book talk to the class. These talks are a great way for students to learn about what their classmates are reading and to get titles to add to their "wish lists" (books they plan to read in the future). Students have received hard copies of their planning sheets and rubrics and can review additional directions in our shared folder on Google Drive.
Talking about books with students is one of the things I most enjoy. At this point, some kids know exactly what they like in a book while others are exploring different authors and genres, trying to find "the" book that will hook them. Though it takes time, my hope is that each student - by the end of the school year - will have established an at-home reading habit and know which authors and genres they love.
In order for students to develop their reading skills and become more aware of their reading tastes, students read independently every other day in class and are asked to read as many evenings at home as they can. In fact, if all goes as planned in class each day, reading at home is often kids' only homework for language arts. Using an easy-to-follow formula, students have determined their individual reading rates and are expected to meet that reading rate goal each week (we log pages Monday to Monday, so logs are checked every Monday and students' progress is noted). Students are encouraged to log pages frequently during the week so that they are aware of where they are at in meeting their reading rate goal. Also, when students finish a book, they set a new reading rate (which may go up or down, depending on the complexity of the text they are reading). These activities give students the responsibility of record-keeping and in creating a plan to meet their reading goals each week. During reading conferences each week, I meet with several students (one at a time) to check in with what they're reading and how their reading is going.
Students also offered input on how their reading logs should be graded and the following is what we agreed upon: 1) Logs will be worth 10 points each week. 2) Students receive full points if they meet or exceed their individual reading rates. 3) Students who are up to 10% below their reading rate will receive 8 points (B). 4) Students who are 11-15% below their reading rate will receive 7 points (C). 5) Students below 15% below their reading rates will be put on the ICU list and need to "catch up" to at least the C-range of their pages. 6) Students who want to improve their reading log grades (either B's or C's) have 2 days to complete their "catch up" pages or keep their original grade.
Starting this week, students will begin sharing book talks about books they have recently read. To plan their book talks, students complete a brief planning sheet, compose three paragraphs of what they plan to say during their book talk, and then deliver their book talk to the class. These talks are a great way for students to learn about what their classmates are reading and to get titles to add to their "wish lists" (books they plan to read in the future). Students have received hard copies of their planning sheets and rubrics and can review additional directions in our shared folder on Google Drive.
Talking about books with students is one of the things I most enjoy. At this point, some kids know exactly what they like in a book while others are exploring different authors and genres, trying to find "the" book that will hook them. Though it takes time, my hope is that each student - by the end of the school year - will have established an at-home reading habit and know which authors and genres they love.