In order for students to be good readers, they must practice reading. Reading is like playing a sport or playing a musical instrument; one must practice in order to become better. This is the reason for the 2 hour reading assignment each week. I expect students to read and log two hours of reading time outside of school. The only time that may be counted in school is during study hall and recess time.
The purposes of the reading log are many. I look each week to see what each child is reading, first of all. I am able to assess whether or not students know how to pick "good fit books" for themselves. I'm also looking at genres of book selection so I may help students find books. After a period of time (10 weeks), we will go back and review our logs. We will calculate how many pages on average we've been reading each week. This practice will be done 3 times a year and hopefully students will notice improvement as the year progresses.
All of the information on the reading log will be reviewed and used as data for a portfolio entry called "Who am I as a Reader?" Students will reflect on all of the information they have collected in their logs to answer this question.
It is important for children to be completing these logs appropriately. The data will be used in the future.
