40 Book Challenge & Beyond- a note from Mrs. Miller

Dear Parents and Guardians,                                                                                             

I know this post is lengthy and a lot of information is flying your way, but please take time to read this to better understand my approach to independent reading this year. Middle school is a time when students' lives become overwhelmingly busy, from sports to clubs to social lives, and often, reading starts to slip through the cracks. One of my primary goals this year is to take all that is new and exciting and connect it to relevant, impactful literature that can help students strengthen independent skills, develop a critical lens for evaluating the world, and recapture the pleasure of reading. 

40 Book Challenge

This year, we will embark on the 40 Book Challenge. This challenge is an exciting journey that allows for individualized reading, exposes students to a wide variety of current and classic texts, and fosters positive reading habits. The goal is that a student will read 40 books by the end of the school year. Since there are approximately 40 weeks in a school year, this equates to about one book per week. The 40 Book Challenge is not meant to be a grueling task for students, but rather a way for our class to become a true community of readers. Research has proven time and again the benefits of reading a larger volume of books and a wider variety of benefits. There are tremendous benefits to increased reading, and below are a few:

o  Reading relieves stress. Middle school is stressful. Reading takes you out of the present and into another place and time; it is a perfect escape.

o  Reading builds academic stamina. Reading for an hour or two in one sitting is a basic expectation that students will encounter in higher-level high school and college courses. While this is a ways off, building stamina now will yield positive results — and less stress — later. In this class, we will exercise muscles soon to be strained in the coming years. Reading for fluency and stamina has been proven to improve the reading rate for students.  Fast reading develops confidence and an appetite for books, but it only happens when students find books they genuinely enjoy reading.  

o   Reading improves writing. The more students are exposed to reading, the more they will be exposed to vocabulary words in context. This will translate into their writing. Additionally, they will gain exposure to a variety of writing techniques, styles, and voices. 

If at any time during the year your child becomes frustrated with reading due to the 40 Book Challenge, please contact me as soon as possible so that we can get down to the root of the problem. The purpose of the challenge is to help students set and achieve goals, expose students to a variety of literature, and strengthen language arts skills.  

Reading Time

Students will be required to read/listen to their independent books throughout the week on their own as they work toward achieving the 40 Book Challenge. We will keep track of each student's reading through an electronic book log, conferences, bookmark trackers, and class activities. Outside of school, students should have a dedicated time each day to read. A recommended time is 20 minutes per day. If your child is exceptionally busy and spends much time in the car (between practices etc.), I strongly recommend Playaways or audio-books. These are also a great way for struggling readers to accomplish their goals. 

Please review the following resources, as they can help you make informed decisions about what books are appropriate for your child.  

o       Common Sense Media 

o       Scholastic 

o       Amazon

o       Goodreads

o       School Library Journal 

o       American Library Association

o       School or public librarians

o       Ask us - we are happy to share what we know