One day, my assistant principal did a walk through and left a note of praise and asked a question about independent reading. Her question made me do some reflective thinking and sparked in me our Reader's Spotlight. I wanted a way for students to share what they were reading, thinking, and writing about during independent reading in a quick and fun way. A couple of times each week, we come together for Reader's Spotlight. (Grab a copy of my template)
Students gather together in the front of the room with their book. I ask for volunteers who would like to come forward in to the Reader's Spotlight. They simply share the title of the book and 1 or 2 things off the slide. I brainstormed a list of a few things students could share about and have a question with each to help generate some ideass. You could definitely change this up. And of course, students can always share other thoughts as well. After the student shares, other students can ask any questions they have for the reader.
Reader's Spotlight benefits include:
1. Communication- students must be able to articulate and clearly share their thoughts with their classmates and respond to questions that are asked
2. Synthesizing & Comprehension- students must combine all the information they are reading, share what is important,
3. Excitement for Reading- all students hear about mulitple books, authors, genres and get excited about the books their peers are sharing
My students have absolutely loved Reader's Spotlight! I believe this is worth the 5-10 minutes we spend sharing at the end of reading workshop to help build our reading community.
How else do you highlight the books your students are reading during their independent reading time?
