Alternatives to traditional book reports

For example, ask students to write a letter to the author, expressing appreciation for the story or asking. Heres foster describing one idea that caught my attention. Replace boring book reports with projects kids love teachhub. Take the information presented into consideration, and you are sure to make the right alternative to your book report. Students write a scouting report for fiction or nonfiction. These 6 creative alternatives to the traditional book report can be used with any novel or short story and will engage even your most reluctant students. If you want to try alternative book projects in your classroom, i have expanded on these ideas and created. Five alternatives to traditional book reports on tuesday evening i gave a presentation in second life for school librarians and media specialists. One of the topics that i talked about was alternatives to traditional book report assignments. Bring your traditional book report assignments into the 21st century, and make the format as much of a teaching moment as the content with these four ideas. Alternatives to traditional book reports richard byrne. Promoting frequent and enthusiastic reading, offers creative alternatives to my letters and journals. Teachers assign a lot of book reports to ensure that students read lots of books, especially at that critical early age when they are still trying to master the written word. Mention the words book report, and chances are, youll see eyes roll.

The site is made by ola and markus in sweden, with a lot of help from our friends and colleagues in italy, finland, usa, colombia, philippines, france and contributors from all over the world. And most importantly, they really dont measure the comprehension of a text or confirm that they have even read the text. Fifty alternatives to the book report diana mitchell students tire of responding to novels in the same ways. Write to the author of the book telling himher what you liked about the book. Fresh ideas for creative book reports education world.

Students select a book to read based only on its cover art. These book project ideas are a break from the traditional book report and can be used with any book. Some alternatives to that classic classroom assignment, the book report, all inspired by an article, essay, blog post, illustration, interview or work of multimedia in the new york times. Ways to respond to literature using new york times models the new york times. Baseball book reports printable handouts with a baseball theme for young readers. Education world presents 25 ideas for you to use or adapt. In this case, the article you are reading will help you with book reports alternatives. In this alternative to the traditional book report, students report on their novel choices that feature journeys by creating postcards one of the settings featured in their books. While this post is a followup to that presentation, the post on its own should give you some ideas for alternatives to traditional book report assignments. Asking students to create an alternative ending to a book one.

Do your students grumble every time you mention the words book reports. Shelfari allows students to display books that they have read on a virtual bookshelf. Traditional book reports should be a thing of the past. Spice up those old book reports with some new, creative ideas.

In this alternative to the traditional book report, students create book trailers using microsoft photo story 3, a free downloadable software program for digital storytelling. Book report alternatives for students with dyslexia. Examining story elements using story map comic strips comic frames are traditionally used to illustrate a story in a short, concise format. Through i found an article by jen dobson with some great ideas for alternative projects. Book report alternatives for kids who hate to write well. The techeducator podcast is a weekly round table discussion about current topics in educational technology.

It is hoped that this diverse group of suggestions will whet the interest of students in exploring new directions and in responding with greater. Have groups of students read the same book and then discuss the story, plot, characters and more. Book report alternatives for students with dyslexia and learning disorders writing book reports can be challenging for some students with dyslexia and other disabilities involving writing and language. When you have a child who hates to write, short book reports can be just as daunting as a fullfledged. Teachers will find creative alternatives to the traditional book report that tap into student interests and creative writing in ban the book report.

If you want to provide your students with alternatives to traditional book reports that will appeal to their artistic traits, here are some suggestions and each is worded exactly the way i have given them to students, on speciallycreated handouts. Aug 10, 2015 10 alternatives to traditional book reports leave a comment. Although i do not assign the traditional book reports i was required to produce in own reading past, i am always looking for more reading response options. These alternatives can be more appealing and that will give the students a chance to express themselves in alternative ways. The internet is one of a number of alternatives to fulltime attendance in traditional education programs for midcareer professionals seeking information about occupational safety and health osh for immediate use or in pursuit of an advanced degree. Help your students make the books they read come alive with these 22 creative book report ideas and. Alternatives to traditional adversary methods of presenting. Rubric for alternatives to book reports or traditional book reports.

Well, guess what, your students dont want to write them either. This alternative to book reports is particularly appealing to boys who are already excited about graphic novels. These ideas describe a few of the alternatives to traditional reading logs or book reports that we use in class. Aug 02, 2007 50 alternatives to a book report i just read a great article from nctes english journal it is a pricey subscription but well worth every penny when i can cough up the money for it again. Use any combination of soap, wood, clay, sticks, wire. Students could design a tattoo for a character and then write an essay explaining or justifying their choices. I love read180 and what i have seen it do for my kiddos so i was excited to get a chance to implement it again. Animoto is a tool that will help create a slide show with pizzazz. Use these twentyfive ideas to shake up your bookrelated activities.

Many more can be found on the sites listed in technology connections download now or at the end of this article. Students can accomplish all these criteria by retelling a story in different mediums, such as comic life software, which, as it sounds, creates comic strips, or a fun app for the ipad called puppet pals, which lets students animate. These engaging projects move beyond traditional book report formats and. Fortunately, there are a plethora of alternative methods to accomplish the same goal. Not only is it a great alternative to traditional book reports but it incorporates art which is being cut out of most schools due to funding. Sep 22, 2014 i bring this up, not because they are visual, but because they are different from the traditional book reports of tell me what you read or summarize the plot. Shelfari is not only a great alternative to book reports, it is also a nice alternative to reading logs. Even book reports based primarily on writing dont have to follow the traditional format. They then analyze why the art attracted them and anticipate what the book may be about before examining the rest of the information found on the book cover. On tuesday evening i gave a presentation in second life for school librarians and media specialists.

In this alternative to the traditional book report, students report on their novel choices using facebooklike pages. Alternative book reports for the 21st century whooos. Another idea that works well for both nonfiction and fiction book reports. Are you interested in kicking your next literary adventure up a notch with your students. List of alternatives to the traditional book report. What you actually need is alternatives to book reports. Here are some alternative assignments that share the same benefits and instructional results but are infused with fun. Do your traditional book report assignments seem old and tired. Fifty alternatives to the book report readwritethink.

With a traditional book report, students describe the major plot points or the main characters. However, you do not have any idea of what book to choose to consider in your report. Oral reading of my favorite part of the book benefits students who lack confidence in oral reading. Quadramas great alternative to a traditional book report. This site enables students to connect with other students and. Last year was my first year teaching read180 in a few years. This is a great alternative to traditional book reports. This allows students to explore their favorite trends in books. Some suggested options include writing a diary entry for a character or a letter to the author, or presenting a talkshow interview.

In this episode of the techeducator podcast we share our digital alternatives to traditional book reports that will get your students thinking creatively and really passionate about their favorite characters. Five alternatives to book reports your students will love. A great place to find examples of book trailers is book trailers for readers. What makes these different isnt that they are visual, but that they are a little more creative than typical book reports. Write a series of questions and answers from the protagonist or antagonist. This bundle includes everything you need to implement five outsidethebox projects that your students will love. Alternativeto is a free service that helps you find better alternatives to the products you love and hate. They want new ways to think about a piece of literature and new ways to dig into it. Oct 20, 2017 book report alternatives for kids who hate to write. In short, a book trailer is a short video created by students to highlight the key points of a book.

My students love picking which project they will do for their individual reading book. You can help students develop or hone their communications skills through alternative book report assignments, such as. Art create a picture or collage of the book students might illustrate a particular. Book trailers are short videos designed to spark a viewers interest in a book. This list of 30 creative alternatives to the traditional book report emphasizes multiple intelligences and student imagination.

You take a clean sheet of paper or open a new page of microsoft word in order to accomplish the book report assigned. What makes this fun is that kids get to rethink the role of the setting in the book. In short, a book trailer is a short video created by. Halfway through grade one, my adored, grandmotherly teacher saw fit to promote me, in one dizzying moment, from a member of the earthbound turtles reading group, past the bluebirds in the treetops, to join the soaring eagles. In the mean time i signed up for nctes weekly newsletter via email. Ive also included suggested requirements for these thoughtfuland funresponses to literature. While this format is important in assessing understanding of literary elements, offering alternate book report formats encourages students to use creativity and other writing skills in presenting information about a book. In this lesson, students select a book to read based only on its cover art. I ran a post about book trailers during the summer which you can read here. The words book report can elicit groans from students at any age. Video tape oral book reports and then have the children take turns taking the video home for all to share. With several projects for each genre, this book will easily take you and your students through the school year.

Some require very little actual writing but require the same thinking and rehearsal as a more formal piece of written text. I remember how much fun it was having my preschooler dictate an alternative ending to stuart little it helped engage him in the story and revealed more about his thinking processes and grasp of t here is a great post in edutopia about alternatives to book reports some great ideas. Book reports are a valuable tool for assessing students understanding of independent reading, but writing report after report can become rote for students and. In this lesson, students use a sixpaneled comic strip frame to create a story map, summarizing a book or story that theyve read. This is a very creative book report and allows the students to be artistic and less focused on just writing a paper. Fantastic list of alternatives to writing book reports. Writing a summary of a book isnt necessarily the most effective way to demonstrate learning in the digital age. Creative activities for any book plus a powerpoint on how to craft a book report. Nip that collective groan in the bud by offering your students fun alternatives choices that allow them to connect to a book in ways that are me. So, with that in mind, i have created some visual writing ideas that are alternatives to the standard book report. These are great alternatives to book reports that will keep your students from readicide. Instead of writing a paper outlining the plot, characters and other elements of the book, students include that information on shapes that hang from a clothes hanger or other device. Creative alternatives to book reports conversations.

Alternatives to traditional adversary methods of presenting scientific expertise in the legal system. Home school lesson plans 25 alternatives to a traditional book report. While this post is a followup to that presentation, the post on its own should give you some ideas for. The main goal of traditional book reports is to summarize plot, describe characters and detail main events. As a book report template, the center image could be a copy of the book cover, and each section expands on key information such as character names, themes, conflict, resolution, etc. Nov 10, 2011 below, we present some alternatives to that classic classroom assignment, the book report. Fifty alternatives to the book report teaching ideas ncte. As long as your children or students reach the objectives you expect them to achieve after reading a book, why not allow them to demonstrate their learning. When creating their book trailers students should be trying to sell viewers on a book. After reading the book, they use an interactive tool to create a new cover for it. While this post is a followup to that presentation, the post on its own should give you some ideas for alternatives to traditional book report. Book report alternatives for middle school education.

Students draw scenes from a selected part of the bookperhaps a scene. Take a look at these fun and effective alternatives to book reports and get your students and. Ten alternative book report ideas classroom tested resources. Students tire of responding to novels in the same ways. Most kids dread doing book reports but this book has plenty of great projects alternatives as alternatives to a traditional book report.

Having students create book trailers is an excellent alternative to traditional book report projects. Fun, easy, creative ways for kids to make a book report. If you ever get to hear him at a conference or workshop, you will see how amazing his method is even for reluctant writers. The ones that came with our reading program were terrible so i set out over the summer to create some exciting and fun alternative book projects. An alternative to book reports featured, reading sunday, july 16, 2017 for many of us, just hearing the words book report gives us a flashback to tedious reports that we were tasked with completing when we were in school. Teachers alternatives to book reports for the artists.

Creative alternatives to book reports lexia learning. Book reports are a valuable tool for assessing students understanding of independent reading, but writing report after report can become rote for studentsand reading them can be equally tedious for educators. Dec 10, 2018 explore newenglandteachs board book report alternatives. Although these projects are designed for particular genres, they are flexible enough to be used with any genre and any book. I mean, do you really want to read 30125 recaps of the same book. Instead, english teachers need to approach book reports in a way that will engage and teach students just as much as the material the report is on. Be book report pen pals and share book reports with children in another school.

The techeducator podcast is a weekly round table discussion about current topics in educational. Its also engaging and a simple way for teachers to change up there usual assessments. Alternativeto crowdsourced software recommendations. Elementary teachers share tried and true resources tested in our own classrooms classroom tested resources. They might use traditional mediums paper, markers, and so on, or those with. Mar 30, 2015 instead, english teachers need to approach book reports in a way that will engage and teach students just as much as the material the report is on. Oct 26, 2007 creative alternatives to traditional book reports by heather idoni added friday, october 26, 2007 the homeschoolers notebook encouragement and advice for homeschool families vol. Hanging book reports provide an alternative to traditional book reports.