Measuring Your Reading Rate STEP 1: Measuring Your Reading Rate

DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE? “There’s no such thing as a kid who hates reading. There are kids who love reading, and kids who are reading the wrong books.” – James Patterson DISCUSSION: DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE?

DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE? “I know what is most important: students need to be reading and writing more than they need to be listening to me talking.” – Penny Kittle DISCUSSION: DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE?

So, how should it be set up? Old-School Reading So, how should it be set up?

HOW DO STUDENTS “FAKE” READING? “Independent reading allows students to build stamina so they can read The Great Gatsby. Pretending to read it is far more damaging.” – Penny Kittle DISCUSSION: HOW DO STUDENTS “FAKE” READING?

*STAMINA: The ability to sustain prolonged physical or mental effort

“Read at a comfortable pace for two hours or more each week outside of school.” “The goal is to increase students’ reading stamina to work toward the college expectation of at least 200 pages a week…” – Penny Kittle

Read for 10 minutes Record # of pages read today! Write your name (first & last) Write the title of your book Write the TOTAL # of pages Read for 10 minutes Record # of pages read today!

Take the number of pages read and multiply by six to calculate how many pages you can comfortably read in that book in one hour. *pages read x 6 = _______ Example: Keisha read 10 pages in ten minutes… *10 x 6 = 60 pages per hour

Doubling the “per hour” results will give you the expected-pages-per-week. Use this number to estimate how long it takes to finish a book. *60 x 2 = 120 pages per week “I also explain that increasing stamina means they may only read for ten minutes at first but should gradually increase to an hour or more in one sitting.”

STEP 2: Finding the Right Book

Now that you know how fast you can read, you need to find a good book to improve your skills. *Access this website to help you research your options… https://www.goodreads.com/

“My Next to Read List” After researching or asking about good books, write down a list of THREE potential books you could read in the coming months. “My Next to Read List” ___________________________________

“We need to balance pleasure with challenge, increasing volume for all readers… as they choose books, set goals, and develop a reading habit.” – Penny Kittle

Tracking Your Progress STEP 3: Tracking Your Progress

“My measurement of success is how students talk… as self-engaged, curious readers.” – Penny Kittle

Interacting With the Texts STEP 4: Interacting With the Texts

“Scribble. That’s what I tell all the writer’s I meet “Scribble. That’s what I tell all the writer’s I meet. Don’t sit down to write a book, just start to scribble.” – Frank McCourt, author of Angela’s Ashes

Annotating the Text A critical step in reading analysis, as it provides documented evidence of a person’s engagement with a written text. (First impressions may be forgotten or dismissed if not written down.)  

Some suggestions for annotating: • Vocabulary—identify & define • Make connections to your life. • Make connections—other parts of the book/works • Visual connections—include artwork or drawings • Rewrite, paraphrase, or summarize a part of the text • Note the historical context of situations described • Note an explanation of the text for clarity • Note an analysis of what is happening in the text • Research the Internet to see what others are saying • Find some literary criticism on author/text