Book Whisperer

After reading The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller I have changed a few things about my reading classroom.
1. Status of the Class
2. Independent Reading Time
3. Segmented classroom schedule

1. Status of the Class
Taking a Status of the Class on the books that my students are reading is something that I used to do as a history teacher. I would ask the students the title of the book they were reading, what page they were on, and how many pages the book had in total. I would do this every day with my homeroom. It allowed me to keep track of my students' reading lives, but only inasmuch as learning what books they were reading and how many pages they were reading each day.

After reading The Book Whisperer I have a new appreciation for Status of the Class. I have started using it in my reading classroom with all five of my classes. This time I call the students to my conferencing table one at a time to get the same information I used to get, only now I also ask the students about their books. I am learning which students are enjoying their books, which students have a hard time recalling information, which students are reading a book that may be too difficult, and more. I am going to start asking specific questions instead of my regular, "What's going on in your book right now?" including *What problem is the character facing?* *What do you think is going to happen next?*

2. Independent Reading Time
Since I only get to see my classes for 55 minutes each day, if i don't give them time to read in class I would never be able to figure out which students pretend to read. Now I am able to see which students are just going through the motions. This also allows the students to get practice at reading for extended periods of time. Some students will not be able to read at home due to many different circumstances and if I don't allow them time to read in class, they might not read at all on their own time. Giving them independent reading time with books they want to read they are starting to find a love of reading. Of course, not all students are going to love and embrace this time, but it's my job to work with those students and get them there.

This also gives me time to read. I take time sometimes to read along with them. When they see an adult excited about reading and actually reading and completing books, that enthusiasm spreads. Students need role models in so many different areas of their lives and reading is an important one. I keep an updated board that lets students know the title of the book I am reading, and because they see that and see the book in my hands they tend to ask questions about the book. Soon after I normally see a few students checking out that same book.

3. Segmented Class Time
This is one of my favorite new ideas from The Book Whisperer. My class is not segmented into thirds like she suggests, but that wasn't a neat enough schedule for me with 55 minutes. 55 doesn't split well into thirds. My schedule is this:

• 10 minutes whole class novel - right now is Hatchet, next will be A Wrinkle in Time
• 15 minutes mini-lesson - sometimes this comes from the textbook that was adopted for our reading curriculum, sometimes it's a picture book, sometimes it's an article from NewsELA or readworks.org
• 15 minutes independent practice - this is time I use to pull students for extra practice and allow them to read, work on responding to reading, or work on practice sheets
• 15 minutes independent reading time - this is time they read silently and I can work on Status of the Class 

I have set up alarms on my computer that go off at the end of each of these times. It keeps me on track, but also lets me know when time is up. I like that it's a guideline and I can go over a bit if needed or end early if the lesson is finished. The students have gotten used to the alarms as well and know what they mean. I always make sure they get that 15 minutes of reading time and the 10 minutes of novel time. 

Something new that I am going to start doing is Reading Fridays. We will do the whole class novel for 20 minutes on Fridays and then students will have 35 minutes of independent reading time. I love this. This allows my students to get an hour and 35 minutes during school time where they are reading every week. How awesome is that?!

If you have read The Book Whisperer, what parts of it have you implemented?