Ultimate Library List

Source: Miller, D. (2009). The book whisperer. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Book Commercials

Book commercials are like mini advertisements for books that students have enjoyed reading. Once a week, ask if anyone has a book that they'd like to tell the class about. This should be a short, impromptu teaser for each book that is suggested during this time. Model how to appropriately suggest a book during a book commercial. Talk about what information to share what information probably shouldn't be revealed. You can keep tallies of the students who have shared and give them a grade for it if you'd like. Keeping track of who shared is a good way to also keep a variety of students sharing.

The students listening to the book commercials should get out their Reader's Notebook and open to their "List of Books to Read" page. They should write down any books that stand out to them.

Source: Miller, D. (2009). The book whisperer. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Reading: Useful Resources

Association for Library Services to Children

This site includes Newbery, Caldecott, Printz, Coretta Scott King, and other book awards given each year. 

Books That Don't Bore 'Em: Young Adult Books That Speak to This Generation (Blasingame, 2007)

This book includes lists of books that will appeal to a wide variety of students, as well as information about how to appropriately select books for yourself and your students. 

Goodreads

This is a free social networking site where readers can keep track of the books they have read and suggest books to their friends. Good way to keep in touch with former students.

Jen Robinson's Book Page

This blog is filled with detailed reviews of children's books, authors, and publishers. 

teenreads.com

Good resource for students. Includes lists of books that other teens have voted into the most popular book list. 

Source: Miller, D. (2009). The book whisperer. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Why You Should Read Children's Books as an Adult

by Jen Robinson

1. It's fun.
2. It keeps your imagination active.
3. It strengthens your relationship with the children in your life who read.
4. It sets an example for the children in your life, making them more likely to become readers.
5. It clues you in on cultural references that you may have missed (both current and classical). 
6. It's fast. Children's books are ususally shorter than adult books, so if you don't think you have time to read, you DO have time to read children's books.
7. It allows you to read across genres. Children's books aren't limited to mystery OR science fiction OR fantasy OR literary fiction. They can have it all.
8. It's like time to travel--it's an easy way to remember that child you once were, when you first read a book. 
9. It's often inspirational--reading about heroes and bravery and loyalty makes you want to be a better person. And couldn't we all do with some of that?
10. Did I mention it's fun?

Source: Jen Robinson's Book Page, 2005.

Keeping a Reader's Notebook

This is a way for teachers to be constantly communicating with students about what is taking place during their silent reading time. It can be used as part of a Reader's workshop. Below are some suggestions from Donalyn Miller, author of The Book Whisperer, for how to utilize this tool.

(70 page spiral notebook)

Divided into several sections for the different reading activities...

• Tally List: If you require your students to read a certain number of books from each genre as part of a Reader's Workshop, this is a good way to help them keep track. Make some sort of document that can be copied and pasted into the notebook 

• Reading List: In this section, students can make a list of all the books they have read or started to read and didn't finish. Each entry should include the title, author, and a completion date. You could also have them write a short response about the difficult of the book. 

• Books to Read List: This is a great place for the students to keep track of the books that they'd like to read. Make suggestions to students and encourage the students to make suggestions to each other.

• Response Entries: This will be where the bulk of the writing in the notebook takes place. This should be reflective and include the student's feelings on the book and the author's writing. This is a great place for teacher responses. Write letters back to the students responding to their thoughts and questions. Push for deeper reflection when necessary. 

Teachers should keep some form of a notebook too. It is important that teachers model the behavior that they expect from students. Keep a list of all the books you've read the entire year and some of your responses to these books. Refer to your notebook during conferences with students. 

Miller, D. (2009). The book whisperer. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Read Aloud Favorites

Fiction
ELEMENTARY
Each Little Bird That Sings, by Deborah Wiles
The Sixth Grade Nickname Game, by Gordon Korman
THe SOS File, by Betsy Byars
The Word Eater, by Mary Amato

INTERMEDIATE
The Beasties, by William Sleator
The Underneath, by Kathi Appelt
The Schwa Was Here, by Neal Shusterman
Seedfolks, by Paul Fleischman
The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan

Memoirs
ELEMENTARY
Guts, by Gary Paulsen
Knots in My Yo-Yo String, by Jerry Spinelli
The Tarantula in My Purse, by Jean Craighead George

INTERMEDIATE
My Life in Dog Years, by Gary Paulsen
Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio, by Peg Kehret
How Angel Peterson Got His Name, by Gary Paulsen

Source: Miller, D. (2009). The book whisperer. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Word Wall

Word walls are a great way to help students become familiar with high frequency words or words associated with a specific unit. They are for teachers to refer to when instructing and for students to refer to when writing.

1. Prepare the word wall: find a blank wall in the classroom and divide it into 26 sections, labeling each with the letters of the alphabet.
2. Introduce the word wall
3. Add words to the word wall: Students can suggest words for the word wall. The word is written by a teacher or student on a rectangular card and posted up on the word wall under the appropriate letter. 
4. Use the word wall! Refer to it for a variety of activities and encourage the students to look at it when they are writing and working. 

Source: Tompkins, G. E. (2008). Literacy for the 21^st century: a balanced approach. Pearson

Education, Inc.