[LIT] Weekly Home Reading Homework help

[Bill IVEY]

"A list for improving literacy with focus on middle grades."
<lit at literacyworkshop.org> on Thursday, August 10, 2006 at 11:20 AM -0500
wrote:
(...) 
>What if I were to set up a Book of the Month Club?  Students would read a
>book and then we would set up 'book talks' that could take place during
>the regular school day or plan a Breakfast Book Club / After School Book
>Club.  I could facilitate discussions based on literary analysis /
>character analysis / theme / connections / evaluation of the book. 
>Students would receive credit for reading, attending and participating in
>the book talks.  This is just in the initial stage having been sparked by
>all of you who have written in.  Thank you.  Perhaps some parents would
>want to be a part of this too?

Hi!

Wendy, this looks like a really solid idea. I do have a couple of ideas to
go along with it. As I remember, someone on the "Naked Reading" chat was
talking about a similar idea - unfortunately, I don't remember who. At any
rate, this person has had experience doing a club like this, and learned
in her/his third year that the kids were just as happy reading 100% books
of their choice, and simply talking about them to each other. I know Teri
Lesesne mentioned book talks as one of the most effective ways to build
interest in reading, and that both she and Stephen Krashen have researched
and written about the importance of personal choice.

As for the notion of parents wanting to participate, that sounds
wonderful. I know in my school, we have instituted the idea of a
book-in-common to be read by students, teachers and parents - an  idea
that originated with our parents. We are trying it out for the first time
this year.

Take care,
Bill Ivey
Stoneleigh-Burnham School