Last week I decided it was time to
start a new round of literature circles, but instead of me giving the book
talks before kids chose what they wanted to read, I tried an idea I got from
someone (maybe Donalyn Miller?). I
told the kids we were going to be doing some speed dating (lots of giggles – it
is spring in fifth grade) but with books. There were probably some disappointed kids, but also a few
who were no doubt relieved.
Anyway, the gist of speed dating with books is to spend a couple of
minutes looking at the cover, reading the back blurb, and then reading as much
as you can of the book before the timer goes off. Make a note of your first
impression, and then move on to the next book.
I had ten different books set out,
and handed out some writing paper for notes. I set the timer for three minutes, and the reading began.
After the timer went off, I encouraged them to give it a rating of some kind
(my ESL colleague suggested the standard 5 star rating, which worked really
well), and then the kids all moved over one chair. I set the timer again, and
the kids started in on the next book.
It was one of the quietest 30 minutes I’ve had recently, and I am pretty
sure some kids read more in that 30 minutes than they usually do at
school. When they were all done, I
had them rank their first three choices, and then I put them into groups based
on their choices.
I would definitely do this again –
I think at this point in the year, the kids know themselves as readers well enough
to be able to make a decision without my giving the book talk. Some kids still
chose books that I am not sure they’ll be able to finish, but for the most
part, I kept them with their choices. We’ll see if they are still happy with
their choices when they’re done with the book!
