Even in the age of iPads and Kindles, there is still a certain excitment to cracking open a brand new book. The Witches arrived today, with their shiny covers and smooth pages...but I like to make sure that the "next chapter" we are starting was not just the one in the book. I had asked the students to tackle some new projects while reading Island of the Blue Dolphins and was curious to hear their feedback. My goal is always to plan with my students in mind, and what better way to keep them in mind than by asking what was on their minds?
"Google documents were great, but frustrating (several lines could become deleted by accident by another student) when we typed a lot...maybe we can use that for vocabulary or setting, but use kid blogger for longer responses"
"We could do blog posts after reading a chapter, instead of waiting to post at the end of the book"
"Instead of reviewing a chapter for homework, I liked when we could draw a picture of what we read during class "
"I liked the collaborative chapter reviews, sometimes I write slower, so I have ideas that I never get to write down."
While I was digesting their feedback, I caught several students trying to sneak a peek at our newest novel. It was clearly time to crack open the books and start a new chapter. The collage below is the students sketching the opening scene in the novel.
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