One thing that I try to get across to my students is that reading is something that they will take with them the rest of their lives. I show them every day that I still read books for pleasure. I post pictures of books that I have read in my classroom. I write on a whiteboard the title of the current book I am reading. I talk to my students about the books I'm reading and recommend books to them every chance I get. They see me check out books from our school library. They see me get emotional with books. They see that reading can be a part of an adult's life.
Something that helps me prove this to my students is goodreads. I show them my account before I show them Biblionasium. On goodreads I can post book lists. I have books that I want to read, books that I am currently reading, and books that I have already read. I show them that my friends on goodreads are also reading and updating their reading lists. I show them the challenge I set for myself and how I update what I'm reading each day, like a reading log that some students don't like to do. I can also show them the reviews that my friends and I write about the books that we read.
Once they see that adults actually keep track of their reading this way I send them to Biblionasium. I set up accounts for all of my students. This website is just like goodreads. Students can create their own book lists. They search the site and add books to their bookshelves. They can write reviews to the books and send recommendations to their friends. They can also set challenges for themselves and update how much they read each day.
Why do I choose Biblionasium over goodreads for my students? The main reason: age. My students are still young. Biblionasium allows me to have a sense of peace with what my students are doing. Goodreads is available to people of all ages. Some will post things that I may not approve of my students having access to. Biblionasium is geared towards students so I know that what they come across will be appropriate for their age range. The students enjoy the badges that they can earn by doing different things on the website. It gives them ownership of their reading lives and gives them some freedom.
In order to raise readers, we have to show kids that we are readers. This is one of the things I feel like I do well in my classroom.
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