Independent Reading Systems That Work in a Middle School Classroom
As this school year comes to a close, I’ve been thinking a lot about systems. I saw this quote by James Clear (my nerdy crush 😍) recently, and although he predominantly researches and writes about adults trying to develop habits, his work has A LOT to do with teaching in a classroom.
In his book, Atomic Habits, he wrote: “If you genuinely care about the goal, you’ll focus on the system.” Well, if you’re reading this post, I’m pretty sure we have a common goal: to help every student in our classroom become a reader. But, as James points out, without a system that works, the goal will never be achieved.
When it comes to creating a simple, but effective, independent reading system in your classroom, I have a couple questions (and resources) for you:
1. Are you making it easy for kids to find a book by having quality titles in your classroom or an easily accessible school library?
Books need to be in your students’ face, whether that’s on shelves next to their desks or on weekly trips to the library. If you want your students to become readers, you need to prioritize making it easy for them to get interested in a book. I do this by making my classroom library shelves pretty, organized, and I make sure that displayed titles rotate often.
2. Do you have a simple plan for helping students check out books and find titles they love?
Book-talking is so important to get students excited about a title, but it’s also important to have some self-sufficient systems, like book recommendation flags or posters. For managing your library, a book return bin and simple clipboard checkout works, or you can go digital with Booksource.
3. Do you have a system for keeping kids accountable for reading?
Over the years, I’ve found that reading logs, sticky notes, graded reading conferences, or reading assignments were either unsustainable or sucked the joy out of reading. If your goal is like mine--to cultivate lifelong readers--then page goals are for you. Read all about them here. I promise they will be a game-changer.
4. Do you have strategies for students who get distracted during reading time?
I’ve come to learn that there are a variety of reasons students can’t focus on their reading, and it’s not always purposeful reluctance like we often assume it is in the moment. Check out this post to help you strategize how to support those students.
5. Do you have strategies for reluctant or struggling readers?
My book talk guides not only facilitate book talks, they also offer discussion questions, alternative titles at varying reading levels, and insights into the plot and characters of each novel so you can support all the readers in your room. These FREE bookmarks help to keep students motivated and build momentum. Activities like Book BINGO can also rekindle some excitement around the books on your shelves.
6. Do you have a system for conferring with students and supporting them through their reading challenges?
These conversation starters and character and vocabulary tracking bookmarks can be helpful. Patience and consistent check-ins are key--just another reason I love page goals! They give you a reason to stay involved with your students’ reading on a weekly basis.
7. Finally, do you give students opportunities to share books they love with their peers?
Take some of the pressure off yourself and allow students to do the work! Students love to hear from each other and see what their classmates are reading. This little activity is a fun one to promote a reading community, too!
At the end of the day, simple systems that facilitate daily growth are going to outpace any big project or reading initiative. It’s the tiny steps we take in the classroom that move the needle for our students. Do them (and yourself) a favor and invest some time in creating systems that work for YOU. I’m just here to help.
Happy reading systems!
♥ Kara & Riley
