American Association of School Librarians 12th National Conference and Exhibition October 6-9, 2005 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Teacher Book Clubs: A Tool for Collaboration Cassandra G. Barnett Sarah Roberson Friday, October 7, 2005 10:00-11:15 A.M. David L. Lawrence Convention Center Room 326
Teacher Book Clubs: The FHS YA Lit Model Original Purposes : A Tool for Collaboration Cassandra Barnett to identify for class use high quality young adult fiction that addresses grade level essential questions to increase each participant s ability to discuss or recommend contemporary young adult titles with individual students or classes to establish ties between young adult titles and classics that could serve as bridges for students to experiment with using young adult literature in the classroom Plan Choosing Titles Titles to read Who will participate Format of meeting Format of discussions Logistics Theme, genre, random? Recommended lists Teacher recommendations What kids are reading Professional reading Participants Meeting Format All inclusive or exclusive? English teachers or all content areas? Grade levels? What do participants need to prepare for each meeting? Who leads the discussion? What should be discussed? 1
Discussion Meeting Logistics Book Author Reflection logs Classroom applications Where and when to meet Allow for socializing Food Benefits of the Book Club to Teachers Participants expand their repertoire of YA titles Participants re-discover the joys and frustrations of the reading experience Collaborative partnerships are formed Benefits to the Library Partnerships with classroom teachers Improvement in collection development More opportunities for sharing books with students and teachers Circulation Statistics How has the FHS YA Lit group affected student literacy in the classroom? Reader s Choice book groups Nonfiction book groups Whirligig Reading aloud in the classroom FVR Focus groups 2
Contact Information Cassandra Barnett cbarnett@fayar.net Sarah Roberson sroberson@fayar.net Fayetteville High School Library 479-444-3050, ext. 123 3
REFLECTION LOG Learning Team Member: Date: Facilitator for Session: Start/End Time: Length of Session (hrs): Focus of session: Resources used for preparation or participation (Please be specific): Reflective questions for session: Session Notes See page 2 for Session Reflections and Applications 1
Individual Reflections/Learning from Session (See reflective question(s) above.) Future application of team/personal learning to curriculum planning, instruction, or assessment in your classroom, your school, or the district. Team Member Signature and Date of Log Completion 2
Interest Survey Name: Grade: Gender: 1. How often did you check out a book from FHS Library last year? a. Every day b. Every week c. Every month d. Once or twice a semester e. Never 2. What do you read most? a. Books b. Magazines c. Newspapers d. Comic Books 3. Which type of books do you prefer? a. Fiction b. Non-fiction 4. In fiction, what THREE types of books do you like best? a. Adventure b. Science Fiction c. Historical d. Humor e. Fantasy f. Mystery g. Suspense h. Realistic i. Romance j. Horror k. Other (please specify) 5. In non-fiction, what THREE types of books do you like best? a. Biography b. Sports c. History d. Humor e. Health f. Entertainment g. True Crime h. Self-help i. Science
j. Poetry k. Other (please specify) 6. Which ONE best describes how you decide what books to read for pleasure? a. Friend s suggestion b. Teacher s suggestion c. Librarian s suggestion d. Parent s suggestion e. Browsing in the library f. Browsing in a book store g. Book display h. Book list i. Other (please specify) 7. What is the ONE thing that the library could do to help you read more? 8. What is the one BEST book you read last year?
Teacher Book Clubs: a Tool for Collaboration Bibliography Barrett, Virginia Denise. Are We Reading to Our Teens? Book Report. May/June 2000: 35-38. Bean, Thomas W. Making Reading Relevant for Adolescents. Educational Leadership. November 2002: 34-37. Carman, L. Kay, ed. Reaching Out to Religious Youth: a Guide to Services, Programs, and Collections. Greenwood Village, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 2002. Daniels, Harvey. Literature Circles: Voice and Choice in the Student-Centered Classroom. York, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers, 1994. Gallo, Donald R. How Classics Create an Aliterate Society. English Journal. January 2001: 33-39. Gardiner, Steve. Ten Minutes a Day for Silent Reading. Educational Leadership. October 2001: 32-35. Hall, Susan. Using Picture Storybooks to Teach Literary Devices: Recommended Book for Children and Young Adults. Westport, CN: Oxford Press, 2002. Herald, Diana Tixier. Teen Genreflecting: a Guide to Reading Interests. Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited, 2003. Jones, Patrick, Kirsten Edwards and Patricia Taylor. Core Collection for Young Adults. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, 2003. Layne, Steven L. Life s Literacy Lessons: Poems for Teachers. Newark, DE: International Reading Association, 2001. Meltzer, Julie, nancy Cook Smith and Holly Clark. Adolescent Literacy Resources: Linking Research and Practice. Providence, RI: LAB at Brown University, 2001. Nichols, C. Allen. Thinking Outside the Book: Alternatives for Today s Teen Library Collections. Greenwood Village, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 2002. Nichols, Mary Anne. Merchandising Library Materials to Young Adults. Greenwood Village, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 2002. Sullivan, Michael. Why Johnny Won t Read. School Library Journal. August 2004: 36-39.