100 Club AND Nighty Reading... {How They Work Together in My Room}

Gooooooood morning and happy Tuesday!

First up today- I am helping out the talented Ashley Hughes {aka- The School Supply Addict} with her 4,000 follower giveaway and today my prize is up for grabs!  You can win my "Special People Flippy Book" set with flippy books for Mother's Day, Father's Day, and Grandparent's Day!

Click the pic to head to her blog to enter!

And... the meat of the post today...

How my 100 Club and nightly reading work together in my classroom...

Thank you all so so much for your interest in the 100 Club!  If you aren't sure what I'm talking about, this is an optional "club" my students can join by reading books.  They can join the club at 50 books and then get recognized again at 75 books and then 100!

I've gotten quite a few questions about how this works with nightly reading and so that's what I'm going to fill you in on today.

First of all, we don't do reading logs.  What?!  No reading logs?  How do we know our kids are doing their required nightly reading?! 

I should say we don't *JUST* do reading logs.

Students do fill out a log of their reading... it looks like this:

Students fill in the date, book title, genre, strategy (I'll get to that in a second), number of pages read, and the AR reading level (or color) of they book they've read.

Then they write about their reading- telling how they used the strategy they selected.

So, they might summarize their reading, tell a prediction they made, make a connection, or tell how the author helped them visualize.

This is our RRJ (Reading Response Journal).  I LOVE THIS.  It's more than just a reading log because I can see my students' understanding and metacognition.  I can see who is really reading.  I can monitor their thought process as they write about the same book over several nights.  Not only that, but they are writing every single night which is huge!

I read these each morning (Tuesday-Friday) and write a brief comment back to students.  They always race in from their special to find their RRJ at their seat and immediately flip to see what I've written.  Sometimes it's just a smiley face, but they love to see it in there!

So, how do these two things work together...

In my room, the 100 Club is optional.  If a student wants to be in it, they just fill out both forms- their RRJ reading log AND their 100 Club recording sheet.  If they don't want to participate (which most DO!), they just don't fill out the 100 Club sheet.  It's that simple.

Here's a pic of the 1st sheet of one of the 100 Club recording sheets...

I would not use the 100 Club as a replacement for a reading log system; I would (and do) use it in addition to.  When I taught 1st and 2nd graders, they had to write their book title down on their homework sheet every night and they had to do the same thing as my 3rd graders: write it again on the 100 Club sheet to count it for that.

It's not hard.  It won't hurt them.  And no one ever, truly, said anything negative about it.  The funny thing is that sometimes kids would read a book for their RRJ that they didn't love and they wouldn't want to count it for the 100 Club!  I loved seeing that kind of thinking about reading and the pride the students took in wanting to reach their goal in the club... that they wouldn't want to get there reading books they didn't love!

I hope that helps answer some questions.  If you have others, please ask as I'm happy to share!

If you're interested in either item- the RRJs or the 100 Club, they are both available in my TpT store...  Just click the pics to check them out!  Both files include an editable element so that, using PowerPoint, you can customize some things to fit your classroom needs.

Get Those Kids to Read-- 100 Club!

We all know that the more you do something, the better you get at it... and that includes getting our students to read!  And read a lot!

A few summers ago, I read The Book Whisperer and loved it!  If you've not read it, it's so inspiring and motivating!  Well, as I was waiting for my new professional reads to come in the mail this summer (Teach Like a Pirate and  Comprehension Connections), I revisited The Book Whisperer for inspiration while I waited.

Now, the first time I read it, I wanted to do something like she did in the book to motivate my students to read, read, read and so I started something in my classroom called "The 100 Club".  Is it just me or will kids do anything to be in a "club"?  {On a side note, I had 23 out of 26 kids miss three or fewer homework assignments this past year so they could be in my homework club!}

Back to the club... to be a member of this club, kids just have to read.  And they can read as few as 50 books to join.  Kids reading 50 books, on their own time- NOT during Daily Five in class, can be BRONZE members.  Kids reading 75 books (again, on their own time at home or school- NOT during time I give them for reading) are SILVER members.  And the biggie... kids who complete 100 books (home, own time, etc...) are GOLD members in the club.

I have a banner hanging in my classroom and I add students' names on a sticky note to the level of the club they've completed...  I made this banner on VistaPrint.

they get a Brag Tag...

 

and they also receive a printable award!  At the end of the year, we have a celebration for the club members!

Students have a recording sheet they keep in their FALCON folder (which is a school to home to school folder) and they write down book titles as they read them.  I also use this as a way to help them remember to take AR tests since they're writing down things they've read at home!

The way I have it set up is that they have to read 35 assigned "types" of books and then 65 of their own choosing.  The 35 include things like 8 chapter books, 2 books about our state, a book by an author from our state, 5 biographies, 5 math concept books, etc...

Now, if you're thinking that 100 books is too many and that this isn't possible... when I first started it three years ago, I was worried.  I actually thought parents would be mad at me for suggesting such a thing!  This is #1 OPTIONAL and #2 COMPLETELY do-able.  Parents were very receptive and excited to see their children excited about reading and making a goal.

I did it for 2 years when I taught 1st/2nd grade and had HUGE participation.  One of my 2nd graders completed it FOUR times!  If you require nightly reading and you have 170 days of school, students have to read almost one book per night and they can complete this.  And it's at each students' individual level so they are choosing books that are readable for them.

I love this club.  One hundred is such a magical number and kids get so proud and excited to have accomplished the feat of doing 100 of something... and it's BOOKS... so that's even better!

After re-reading The Book Whisperer, I was so re-energized about the 100 Club!  I completely re-vamped my awards, reading list, etc... and added a ton of goodies to the pack!

I have just listed it on TpT and will give away a set to a random commenter tomorrow!  So, let me know what you think in the comments and check it out on TpT if it sounds like something that could help your kiddos love and grow as readers!  This would work for grades 1-5 and I think even K could use this program with parent support!

Click the pic for more info!

Find the 100 Club on TpT or TN or my blog shop!
You can use the coupon 5OFF at my blog shop to get $5 off a purchase of $20!

100 Club for Reading

Happy Wednesday!

I went in to school today to work on organizing (who knew I had so much glitter?!) and to do a few bulletin boards. As soon as I get my official class list, I will finish my "Welcome" board in the hallway... and I'm super excited to show you the picture of it!

This is one that I finished today- my board to display the members of my "100 Club". I ordered the banner from Vista Print and the little white basket at the bottom of the banner has some star sticky notes and a marker, so when a kid completed a level, I will add their name to a sticky note and put it in the appropriate section on the banner.


If you aren't familiar with my club, it is an optional "extra" for my kiddos in which they can earn a place in the club by reading extra books outside of school time.

My students last year were really psyched about the club... I think anytime you call something a "club" they get pumped about it! I had two students to read over 200 books and one who completed the 100 Club 4 times!

This was also a good way for them to keep track of books they read at home and needed to take an AR test on in class.

You can check out my 100 Club pack on TpT by clicking the picture below!

OK! That's it for today!