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Step 1
First, find the time. This is a common hurdle, especially in high schools, where English class is often only 45 minutes long. You’ll need to take a hard look at your existing classroom routines and start working on your own mindset. It’s difficult to rationalize allowing students to just sit and read, when there’s so much to accomplish, but you must make time for students to do just that.
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Step 2
The next step is to get administrator buy-in. Some administrators are aware of the research that supports independent reading programs, while others will need some convincing. Point them towards the work of Kylene Beers, Nancy Atwell, and Kelly Gallagher, or towards organizations such as the International Reading Association, the American Library Association, and the National Council for Teachers of English.
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Step 3
Once you have administrator buy-in, you’ll need books for your students to read. If you have the funds in your budget, take a look at Booksource and Scholastic for books to purchase. Booksource allows you to search by reading level, interest level, featured authors, and more. Scholastic is good for buying pre-selected independent reading sets for up to grade 9. Aim for having at least a couple of hundred books, especially if you have multiple sections using the library, or more if your students will be “checking out” books to take home. Be sure to cover your demographics: choose fiction and non-fiction, and books that appeal to girls and boys, hi/lo books, and books with a range of subjects and themes. Graphic novels, picture books that build background knowledge, and almanacs are always a good addition.
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Step 4
Speaking of buying books, what if you don’t have money in your budget? One thing to check is to see if you have any Title I funds available. These funds, which are targeted to at-risk students, can often be used to purchase accessible titles for your library. You also should look for grant opportunities: see the website Donors Choose to write a mini-grant for yourself. Ask students to donate books. Join your local Freecycle group or look on Craigslist to find people who are donating. And last, be the squeaky wheel and constantly talk about what you’re doing. You’ll be amazed by how many people are cleaning out their former teenagers’ libraries now that those “kids” are no longer at home.
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Step 5
Finally, plan for how you want to implement and assess. Ask yourself: how many minutes and how many days per week can I devote to this program? How am I going to monitor student progress? Many teachers have found that nothing kills a love of reading like book reports. Alternative ways of monitoring progress can include daily status checks to see how students are progressing and having students give periodic book talks. And as a last bit of advice, don’t forget to model. Students often come from homes where adults don’t read, so seeing you read can be an inspiration. It also gives you an opportunity to read through the library yourself, so you can be part of your community of readers and not just its referee.
Comments
askapeach said
on 11/9/2009 Good advice for setting up an independent Reading program in high school. With less than an hour per class, being creative is important. Title I funds are great and Scholastic is a wonderful source of books.
nelcazpe said
on 11/7/2009 great article . . .
moneyteacher said
on 11/7/2009 very well written article and even though it doesn't really apply to me i still enjoyed it and look forward to reading your future articles. 5* & rec.
jaicard said
on 11/6/2009 Well written and thorough article!