Reading Worskhop: Book Club Etiquette

Better late to the party than to not show up at all... With that being said, I'm linking up for Workshop Wednesday on this Thursday evening to share thoughts on how I wrap up my launching unit in Reader's Workshop.

We're getting ready to wrap up our launching unit this week and start our first class read aloud next week! Finally!! As we go into our first novel, we also start our book clubs during Reading Workshop. These books are usually the same genre/theme as our class read aloud and students choose from several (8-10) choices and levels. These books allow my teaching partner and I know to know what's going on during "independent" reading and check in on students as they practice skills we model during our read aloud time...

However, before we start book clubs in Reading Workshop we usually go over some typical etiquette type things. I found this great run-down via Buzz Feed titled the "13 Worst Things that Can Happen While You're Reading" and I thought I would share some of these with my students this year. As we start our workshop and especially book clubs it's important to remind students of some etiquette since they will be reading and working together but often not always in the same "spot" in a novel... You can check out the full version here or check out the "5th grade" short and sweet version I plan on sharing with my fifth graders below.

The Six Worst Things that Could Happen During Reader's Workshop

1. You spill something all over yourself and your book :( Remember, to keep our water bottles and drinks away from our books! Reading Workshop is not the best time for learning to drink with your toes!

2. Your bookmark falls out and you haven't been recording on your reading log! #FAIL

3.You waste valuable reading time by going to the bathroom!

4. Someone tells you a surprise twist ending! Oh, the horror! We never tell each other the endings to our book club novels even if they are in our reading groups! This could ruin a friendship!

5. You left your book somewhere. To participate in book club you need to bring your book to class every single day. If you don't have your book, you're not ready to learn or to read.

 

6. You have to wait for your friends to finish a book so you can FINALLY talk about it! Don't worry, they will finish it eventually. You can start a new book while you wait for your friend to finish their novel.

 

Setting up some "humorous" but strict guidelines really helps create a successful environment for the rest of the year! Last year our book clubs were a HUGE success! I can't wait to start reading Rules by Cynthia Lord next week and start rolling out our realistic fiction book club!

Hope everyone has enjoyed a great "short" week!