Turn Your Reading Responses Into a Card Game
“Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or duty. It should be offered to them as a precious gift.”
If you follow our blog, it is no surprise to you that we are huge advocates for choice when it comes to independent reading. We have written blog posts on it here….here…..and here. We have our students read a book of their choice independently, in class, for 20 minutes a day (we strive for five days a week, but realistically we are lucky if we can allow choice reading 3-4 days a week). During this time, we conference one-on-one with our students about what they are reading. We keep track of all of our conferences in a handy-dandy folder. We like to handwrite our conference notes because it is just easier for us to have all our notes in one place. However, we know many teachers have found success with taking notes on their computers as well. If you would like a copy of our reading conference forms, you can click on this link. It should instantly download the files for you.
A quick lesson idea we wanted to share with you all was on a way we like to gamify our reading responses. We think it is a fun and interactive way for students to analyze the book that they are reading. We hope that by giving students several options to show their understanding of the book that they are reading (independently, in book clubs, or a whole class novel) that they will shine like the diamonds they are.
We created a deck of cards that highlight various reading analysis skills. Each card has various questions pertaining to a singular skill or element of fiction. Reading skills being assessed include inferring, analyzing, synthesizing, critiquing, summarizing, text connections, and predicting. The elements of fiction being assessed include characterization, plot, mood and tone, point of view, theme, setting, social lenses, suspense, foreshadowing, symbolism, and flashback.
We envision students playing the Reading Response Card Game in groups or individually. The games they play could be simple. Take the deck of cards and randomly hand each student a card (or choose one student to hand out the cards for you). Have them analyze their text based on the card they receive. Or to provide movement, you could place stacks of cards around the classroom in various locations. Have students choose a location and pick one card from the stack of cards. Have them analyze their text based on the card they pick.
For group analysis, you could place students in groups of 3-4. Give each group a deck of cards or a stack of cards from the deck. Have the students each draw a few cards and be specific with that number. (How long do you want students to play? The more cards they draw, the longer the game). Students take turns holding out their hand of cards and their team members pick a card. (Think Old Maid or Go Fish) Students then either write their responses out in their notebooks, or they share their answers verbally with their peers.
If these games sound like something you want to try out with your own students, check out our Reading Response Deck of cards here.