Listen. Connect. Empower.

Why a blog post about something as simple as putting sticky notes on books?  This was something bigger.  This was an experiment in the social reading experience.  Our students are social creatures (mostly).  Reading appears to be a solitary endeavor.  However, when a book moves from the quiet place in our head and our heart into the world, we give a little piece of ourselves away with the recommendation.  Through recommendations, students are connecting with one another and with the text. Student recommendations I believe one of the most powerful ways to spread a love of reading is to share book recommendations with one another.  My TBR list is ridiculously long, but I prioritize these according to what my friends and colleagues are saying about what THEY are reading.  Why not take this same approach with my students? I like to begin class by sharing what we are reading.  We do this in a variety of ways - small groups, partners, whole group, lightning rounds, post-its, etc. 

Every year our community participates in a town read.  Books are chosen with incredible attention paid to the ENTIRE community.  There is always an adult choice as well as a related YA and young reader choice.  This year the adults are reading How To Be a Good Creature by Sy Montgomery while our youngest readers are reading Inky's Amazing Escape .  Here is our school's journey: Day 1 We began class by watching a video of an octopus escaping from a boat to set the scene (thank you Sarah Bickel )!: Students watched the video and "ooh-ed," and "ew-ed" their way through it.  Now I had their attention!  We segued into our book which shares the true story of Inky the Octopus's escape from the New Zealand Aquarium.  Things that caught my students' attention: Octopus are hatched from an egg the size of a grain of rice. They are independent immediately after birth. Inky liked to play with legos and Mr. Potato Head. Inky could fit i