Literacy Matters! - Home Book Speed Dating: The Hows and Whys - Mrs. ReaderPants Skip to content FacebookPinterestInstagramShopping-cartEnvelope Menu Book Speed Dating: The Hows and Whys Oh, this lesson is awesome! Y’all, this activity went SO. The best part? How I implemented Book Speed Dating in my middle school library: Prep: Decide how you want the tables set up. Action Students could sit at any table. I went through the PowerPoint slides (available in my TPT store–see link below), introducing speed dating and how it relates to our book speed dating activity. Timing Time to start! First minute–Choose a table. The all-important “second minute” I believe too many students, particularly reluctant readers, choose a book based on the cover or that they’ve seen the movie. This is why I believe the second minute of this activity should never be skipped. We also talked about how sometimes, your “date” looks really great, but when he/she starts talking, you realize she has bad breath or he can’t string together a complete sentence without cursing. What Would I Do Differently?
The Benefits of Reading Aloud to Middle School Students By the time many students reach middle school, they no longer have books read aloud to them at home or at school. But research shows benefits of hearing books read aloud, including improved comprehension, reduced stress, and expanded exposure to different types of materials. For five minutes of each class period, I read aloud to my middle school students. I’m often asked how I “give up time” each day to read, but the five minutes are a gift to my students. Enriching Classroom Community During daily independent reading, students choose a book that is both interesting to them as individuals and appropriately challenging for their ability. When choosing a book to read aloud, I look for books that represent diversity in a way that counters stereotypes and provides opportunities for students to develop compassion and understanding for others. Connections to Content Reading aloud allows me to model reading strategies. Share a Love of Reading Reading is fun.
Nudging parents to be literacy partners Most parents know that reading to a child, and listening to them read, is important. For many, the desire and intention is there, but due to the pressures of family, work, and life in general, home reading can drop off the list of things to do, especially as a child moves through primary school. How can teachers take advantage of a family’s knowledge that home reading is important, to prompt more of this behaviour? We sought answers to this question in a study recently published in Educational Psychology. The purpose of the study We tested a behavioural science strategy that has been used to increase participation in social programs to examine if teachers can effectively urge families to spend time reading at home with their child (Colgate & Ginns, 2016). Based upon the widely accepted idea that individuals are influenced by observing or learning about the behaviour of others, parents were provided with a descriptive norm message. What did we find? What does this mean for teachers?
CCBC Book Discussion Guidelines - Cooperative Children's Book Center Ginny Moore Kruse and Kathleen T. Horning © 1989 Cooperative Children’s Book Center Look at each book for what it is, rather than what it is not. Make positive comments first. Try to express what you liked about the book and why. All perspectives and vocabularies are correct. Listen openly to what is said, rather than who says it.Respond to the comments of others, rather than merely waiting for an opportunity to share your comments.Talk with each other, rather than to the discussion facilitator.Comment to the group as a whole, rather than to someone seated near you.
Build a Reading Culture – Pete the Librarian I asked teacher-librarians for their favourite and most effective ideas to build a strong reading culture in schools. The response was overwhelming, and I’ve collated the ideas under six categories: Reading, Events, Programs, Relationships, Students and Environment. Many thanks to everybody who responded with such enthusiasm and generosity. Select an image to open in a new window. Like this: Like Loading...
Joint media release: Australia's most borrowed books Lust for money joins Australians' and New Zealanders’ lust for blood in the most borrowed library books Index Readers continue to love crime and thriller novels, but Scott Pape’s “The Barefoot Investor” makes an appearance in Civica’s Annual Libraries Index indicating that everyday financial fears are also real Canberra, 24 July, 2018: For the third year in a row, the 2018 Civica Libraries Index sees Australian and New Zealanders continuing to thirst for crime and thriller stories, with these titles dominating the list once again. However, people’s desire for trusted independent financial advice has resulted in Scott Pape’s “The Barefoot Investor” dominating the non-fiction category and being the fifth most borrowed book nationwide. Lee Child’s “Night School” topped the list of the most borrowed; it is the 21st book in the Jack Reacher series and depicts his army experience in the 1990s. Great annual results Index highlights Most borrowed Non fiction Biography Children’s and Young adult books
Booktalks Quick and Simple FAQ's What is a booktalk? I like to use the analogy of a movie trailer. How do booktalks differ from book reviews? Although similar, they perform different functions. So, all booktalks in this site are recommended? Inclusion of a title in this database does not imply a recommendation nor guarantee that the work is suitable for all situations. Why was Booktalks -- Quick and Simple begun? The impetus to put the booktalks on line came when I was asked to do booktalks for a class with very little notice. How many booktalks are included in this database? As of August 2003, there are over 1,400 titles -- some with multiple booktalks -- in the database. What age group are the booktalks geared toward? The books included in the database are geared toward students in grades K-12. How are interest level and reading level determined? I use standard sources to determine interest level. How often is the database updated? The database is updated monthly. Are the booktalks available in print format? Yes. Yes.
Readers Recommend This is reading promotion idea that's inexpensive, low-tech, includes student voice, and I totally nabbed it from the amazing Librarian Tiff five years ago and I still love it! It's kind of what you can call an oldie but a goodie. I don't put this display out at the beginning of the school year. I've found that it's good to bring it out mid-year or connected to a reading promotion lesson activity like Speed Dating with Books to generate interest. It's kinda like a low-tech YELP review for books! I was inspired by Librarian tiff because she also does this in her school library and created this amazing graphic below, made it Creative Commons, and gave it out to the world! Easy How To: I bought some colorful mini clipboards from Amazon & lined sticky notes. Student Voice: The kiddo can write anything. This way kids can recommend books to other kids and be heard. Save the Stickies! I was inspired to create a NEW Speed Dating notation sheet for kiddos. Reading is the Key! Your Turn! Cheers dears!
Friday essay: why YA gothic fiction is booming - and girl monsters are on the rise An 18-year-old girl prepares to die to enable the birth of her half-vampire baby. Her spine is broken in the process, and the fanged baby begins to gnaw its way through her stomach before the girl’s husband performs a vampiric Cesarean section. This is a crucial moment in Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight novel series, published from 2005 to 2008. Meyer’s books heralded a new, and continuing, wave of Gothic fiction for Young Adult readers, which revisits familiar literary Gothic conventions: ancient, ruined buildings and monstrous supernatural figures like the vampire, werewolf, ghost and witch. The Gothic romances of the 18th century, such as the novels of Ann Radcliffe, and the enduringly popular Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897), sought to recreate feelings of terror and horror for an audience of adult readers. Read more: Friday essay: what might heaven be like? The phenomenally popular YA genre, targeted at readers between 12 and 18 years old, evolved from realist novels of the 1960s. Why now?