Reading Goal
My goal is to encourage and promote a positive reading environment. To achieve this goal, I will provide opportunities for students to self-select reading material, read a variety of genres of fiction and non-fiction, and provide time for students to share their reading with their peers.
Creating an environment where books are valued
Telling Our Reading Story
At the beginning of the school year, I asked students to reflect on their reading story. This reflection opened up conversations about what makes us readers. It also gave us the chance to talk about why we don't always enjoy reading and how to get out of a "reading slump". By having these conversations it helped create a culture where it was okay to abandon a book, read books of different genres and difficulty, or admit that we don't always love reading.
Daily #Bookaday Read Alouds
We used picture books as a means of literary analysis this year. Picture books were a gateway for students to learn and hone reading skills such as identifying character traits, making inferences, finding main ideas and theme, and practicing using Notice and Note sign posts. Mid-year we analyzed a variety of picture books and participated in a mock Caldecott election, where we selected the book we felt should be the 2017 Caldecott medal winner.
Book Talks
Every Friday, I book talk a new book to share with the class. On occasion we also did a "First Chapter Friday" and I would read aloud the first chapter of a book to generate an interest. Students are invited to share books they've finished as well.
Daily Independent Reading
Students are given 10 minutes of independent reading time EVERY DAY and this time was non-negotiable. This enabled me to not only read along with my students to model my reading habits, but also conference with students about their reading lives.
