SCHOOLS

When students finish & report their first book . . .

• Lanyard

• First Button

• Eligible to enter the writing contests

After EACH FOLLOWING book & response finished . . .

• Button for each book

When a student reaches FIVE books read . . .

• Magnetic "Best Books" Bookmark

• Eligible for Battle of the Books

When a student reads ALL FIFTEEN books on his or her grade-level list* . . .

• A "Master" Button

• A copy of City Spies by James Ponti (3rd/4th) OR Greystone Secrets #2: The Deceivers (5th/6th)

When a student reads ALL THIRTY books on BOTH LISTS* . . .

• A "Grand Master" Button

• A copy of City Spies or The Deceivers (whichever was not received for "Master" level)

• A combo book light/bookmark

• A Best Books T-Shirt

Prizes for teachers, administrators, specialists, and other school employees . . .

• A lanyard, then buttons for each book they read--encourage them to wear their lanyards so kids can ask them about the program or talk about books with them.

• A school employee who reads all of the books on one list will receive a "Master" button.

• If an employee reads all 30 books* (both lists), we will make a "Grand Master" button and send it with a copy of both prize books!

• Report employees who have read 15 or 30 books on the "Materials Request Form"--there's a link on Yammer.

When students finish a book, they should report the book in a way that holds them accountable for the reading. Each school can decide the best way to do this for their students.

IDEAS

1. Interview The BBC leader asks questions and discusses the book until satisfied that the student really finished the book.

   • Advantages: Students get one-on-one time and an opportunity to discuss, ask questions, share feelings . . . You also have no forms to copy or keep track of.

   • Challenges: This takes time, of course. There may also be days when several kids want to interview at the same time. Also, if you're tracking student reading, you have to remember to document the interview (no papers to remind you later).

   • Click HERE for some interview question ideas.

2. Simple Worksheet/Graphic Organizer the leader chooses a general graphic organizer or worksheet where students record facts about the book (title, author, characters, setting, etc.)

   • Advantages: Easy to track--if it's complete and has a name on it, you know who is finished. It's also easy to distribute papers to a group of kids who have finished so no one has to wait. If you don't like the samples, a quick Google search will give you many more choices. Finally, if students want to do the Battle of the Books, having one paper with all of this information to review is a bonus.

   • Challenges: These are very easy for students to copy off of each other, or to find the information online without reading. They can also feel tedious to do if the student reads many of the books (lots of information, no higher-order thinking). You also have to have copies on hand when students finish.

     • Here are some sample forms: SUMMARY WORKSHEET, 10 READING GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS shared for free download at Teacher Beacon (book critique, character analysis, story map, and story stems recommended), NONFICTION NOTES by Jessica Heeren, SEQUENCING MAP by Team Tom Education, and FOR SUMMARIZING by Kristine Nannini

3. Open-Response Prompts the leader can interview the student with these questions or ask them to write down an answer.

   • Advantages: Unique answers (hard to cheat). These questions require higher-order thinking which engages students much more than recalling facts. Asking students to comment on their reading at this level, whether orally or in writing, helps them internalize the themes and lessons of what they read and to interact with text more meaningfully. This also helps students remember what they read better (although it's not necessarily the facts and details that they need for BOTB).

   • Challenges: For the student, this is harder to do and often requires more time. For the leaders, this requires work ahead of time (collecting and creating questions, deciding how you want students to respond). If you ask for writing, you will also have to read to check for understanding rather than the quick skim of a graphic organizer or worksheet.

   • Click HERE for one idea to use higher-order thinking questions in what functions as a handout. (You could also just use the questions on it for interviews.)

   • Check out the "Teaching Resources" guides too--they often have discussion level questions that will work well (scroll down!)

Do you have other ideas? Have you seen someone do something that works really well? Share it on Yammer or talk to Marci Bishop to have it added here.

FOR THE SCHOOL Best Books LEADER How you track your students is up to you. If you plan to do Battle of the Books, you will need to know who read at least five books Otherwise, it's just nice to have a record if there are questions and to track "Master" requests.

Here is an SAMPLE TRACKING SHEET you're welcome to use. (You must be signed into your GraniteSD account). Click File, then Make a Copy to create one you can edit.

This document is an INDIVIDUAL TRACKING FORM for students to track their reading. Use this if it helps you; no worries if it doesn't.

FOR BOOK MASTER (15) & GRAND MASTER (30) READERS Report these on the "Materials Request" form. You'll find a link to this form pinned on our Yammer team page. You can also report school employees who have read all thirty books on this form. At least once a week (usually Tuesdays), we will check this form to create a prize package for those who reach this mark and send it to you to deliver. Watch for District Mail (one of the larger book envelopes--please return the envelope via district mail ASAP)

The last day to request buttons/prizes is Friday, April 23, 2021.

Remember--to participate in the program this year, each school must make its own starter kit.

You will start to run low on some items, though, especially if you have a lot of support from your teachers sharing books with their whole classes or other success stories!

To request materials (buttons, lanyards) fill out the form pinned on our Yammer Page. Watch your District Mail for delivery within the next week.

The last day to request buttons is Friday, April 23, 2021.