First... Do they have reading material available? Do you spend a couple minutes in book talks to build interest in a book then allow kids to take that book home? Do you allow kids a few minutes to do their own book talks? I'd suggest bringing technology in... Allow kids to post about their nightly reading on a wiki or create a book commercial podcast
Second... It may be time to build some urgency. Have they been taught (not told...my word choice is deliberate here) why time spent reading will help them. Third... I would allow reading materials other than books. I teach a similar population.., not saying this is easy... Dont give up. It's too important. Sent from my iPhone On Jul 18, 2011, at 2:04 AM, "[email protected]" <[email protected]> wrote: > > Hello, > > I would greatly appreciate your thoughts about the use of reading logs in my > sixth grade reading/writing workshop. My homework policy is that students > read 30 minutes 5 nights a week or 150 minutes a week. They are free to read > any book they choose. I give students a reading log, due every Monday, that > asks them to document the minutes they read nightly, I ask them to write > about their independent reading weekly, based on the strategies and or > elements of literature we were studying. I maintain a classroom library and > students have access to the school library every 2 weeks. My problem is that > my homework completion rate is TERRIBLE. Rather , I should say that fewer > than 50% of my students regularly turn in their homework. Atwell, Miller, and > many, many other language arts teachers consider reading at home an important > part of their reading program. I am tempted to drop the the reading log > requiremnent, but I don't want to "dumb down" my expectations for my students > who are predominantly blue collar and poor. I want students to have some > accountability, but at the same time I don't want to make the homework > process so cumbersome that it turns my students off to reading independently. > What are your experiences and insights that can help? Thank you. > > Darlene Kellum > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Mosaic mailing list > [email protected] > To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to > http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org > > Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive > _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive
