fyi : back issues
Winter 2003 - Literature Enrichment
Wider Reading Pairs @ MGC: an old idea and a new solution
By Sally Sutherland
Subsequent to researching many Wider Reading Models we tailored the practices of others to develop an achievable solution to our reality of limited personnel, budget and physical space.
The English Department at Melbourne Girls’ College supports the
development of student individual reading through a policy of allowing
students around fifteen minutes personal reading time each 70 minute period.
However, it was felt that students also required a more structured wider
reading program that included choice in conjunction with carefully selected
novels that would direct and extend their reading experiences.
We have introduced a Wider Reading Program that falls in between the Reading
Circle and individual reading. It is an outcome of our research on Middle
Years students, girls’ preferred learning style and visits to other
schools in both the private and State system.
What are we trying to achieve?
-An opportunity for students to share their reading experiences as we
believe you get the most out of reading if someone else has read the same
book.
-An opportunity to talk about books, one to one. Less cumbersome than
the Literature Circle, pairs allow greater time to talk.
-Maximise choice of titles as we know that students have a huge range
of mental age 8-16 years in average year 7 and broad range of interests
-Develop a selection of novels that are the best available in the various
genres.
-Enable the wider reading to enhance and extend novels studied as class
set texts.
Our solution
and why?
-We chose to concentrate on Year 7 to begin this program, as we believe
if we can get these students reading in their new transitional environment
they will more likely become life-long readers.
-Our budget is so small this year at $14,000 that we can only cover one
project and do it well. Cost is approximately $5000
-Buying only two copies of each book is most appropriate on our small
budget, as we cannot afford to make the mistake of buying multiple copies
of a book title students do not like. If a book proves to be unsuccessful
we can put two copies onto our main shelves or delete them without incurring
a great loss.
-Books to be stored in large boxes on a trolley so they can be taken to
classrooms or used in the English Class text library as we do not have
a separate room available for lessons or storage.
Wider Reading
pairs for 208 students
-8 large plastic boxes with lids purchased at Safeway
-40 + books, 20+ titles in each tub
-Novel selection using tools such as Literature Base, Magpies, Viewpoint,
Fabulous fiction: recommended subject lists for middle school students,
Newsletter of ACYL State Library of Victoria, Publisher’s Internet
sites, student borrowing, Student Book Club recommendations and Book Sellers
suggestions for new titles.
Box Subject headings:
1. True Stories (supporting
Chinese Cinderella as class text)
2. Relationships (family, friends, teenagers supporting class text Stargirl)
3. Law and Order (supporting class text Holes)
4. Animal Stories
5. Action and Adventure
6. Classics
7. Fantasy
8. Humor
Method
-All books are catalogued Wider Reading and have a letter on the spine
label relating to the box eg L&O/ Law and Order Box, boxes are labeled
clearly (did not use F as this is the symbol we use for our general fiction
collection).
-Forms are booked into the Library or TL takes trolley to English classroom.
- Students are given a brief that they must borrow a novel with one other
person, we have 26 students in each class.
-Boxes are spread around the room and students have most of the period
to choose, borrow and start reading together.
-Another session is booked in 3-4 weeks; students read the novel within
this timeframe.
-Teachers are given a pack of generic ideas that they may like to use
with the novels including oral and written responses.
-On the return visit students present their responses or students are
given time to develop their responses with the TLs help. Learning outcomes
-Students are all excited by choice
-Students were observed reading aloud together, discussing meanings of
words and talking about the book
-Reports from parents that students who do not read went home and talked
about their chosen novel and the process
-After only a week some students come back with their partners to get
another novel as they finished the first one
-Teachers have found it easy and interestingStudent work is always completed
and presented with enjoyment
Sally Sutherland is a teacher librarian at Melbourne Girls College.