The best part about being back in school is the 20 minutes of sacred independent reading time. When students come into class, either virtually or in person, they are expected to settle into reading. Pre-Covid, students would be scattered about the room, some at desks, some sprawled on the floor and pillows, others tucked into little crevices in the room, reading. Now students must remain at their desks lined in neat rows, spaced six-feet apart. I am pleasantly surprised by how easily students have settled into this new routine.
By the time the bell chimes, books are open, and students are reading, browsing the bookshelves or requesting a curated book pile. This twenty minutes offers me time to work with a few students who are looking for new books.
Book buzz is beginning to infiltrate the classroom.
One student, who has not read anything this year and probably didn’t read a single book last year, said she likes books with intense subject matter. I gave her a pile of books with edgy plots that would hook her immediately. She ended up selecting the only memoir in the stack, A Child Called It, an intense true story about surviving an abusive mother.
Another student, who is a voracious reader, asked if she could take several books home over spring break. YES! I encouraged her to take home as many books as she could fit into her backpack–she left with five novels..
One boy in my 6th period recently checked-out and finished Flamer. Today, he quietly recommended it to his friend, also in the class. The friend raised his hand to ask if he could check-out Flamer? YES!
Finally, a student who struggles to find engaging books, selected Female of the Species from the pile I book-talked at her desk. The heart-pounding novel is driven by a strong female character who seeks revenge for the murder of her sister. “I’m only a few pages in, but I like how this author writes,” YES!
There isn’t much I love about teaching in this new concurrent environment, but connecting kids to books and watching them fall in love with reading again is the gift I’ll hold onto until June.
The Way I See It 
Love this post so much! Love how you are hooking your students with reading. It reminded me so much of what Penny Kittle and Kelly Gallagher described in 180 Days. Did you read that book? Way to inspire love of reading!
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Yes. Loved 180 Days! Thanks for making the connection 🙂
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Those precious 20 minutes of reading time are sacred! You are brilliant at matching books with readers. I am so glad your students finally get to benefit from your book stack building.
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Others may be talking learning loss… but the real teachers are making sure students get something truly lasting… great to read this!
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This is just beautiful. Yes to books!
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Thanks for letting me be a fly on the wall during Independent Reading time. This slice shows what a master you are at matching kids to books and how much this part of each class is enjoyed by both you and the students!
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