At Burke Elementary we use our current Texas Bluebonnet Books for our blogging book club. All 3rd - 5th grade students are encouraged to blog but to be invited to our Bluebonnet Bash students must read/blog a minimum of 5 books but are encouraged to read/blog all 20 nominees. Once they have completed a book they log on into my library website, find the Bluebonnet tab, locate the picture of the book they read and leave a comment (blog). Their comment must be significant to the reading they did. They should be able to tell me about their favorite part, favorite character, what they did/did not like, if they connected to it/how, etc. It can not be a general blanket statement to be considered for our Bluebonnet Bash. Once they post their blog I will respond to it and we get to blogging.
Other Blogging Book Clubs
For fourth and fifth graders who often do not have time to meet after school due to their participation in other clubs, I have Blogging Book Clubs. I do a few commercials on morning announcements to generate interest, then have students sign up for the book they would like to read. At the end of the year I will do more than one book at a time to get more students involved, but be prepared to dedicate a lot of time to your blog with multiple books! I give the first 15 students who turn in their permission form a book from the library to borrow (purchased with book fair funds), then anyone else who wants to participate has to get their own copy of the book. We meet once during the school day to hand out books, discuss expectations and the calendar, and make sure everyone knows how to access and use the blog. Then we're off! These book clubs are very fast paced; some kids get ahead and others have to catch up a little, and that's okay. At the end of the book club (usually about six weeks) I have a celebration during the school day where we wrap up the book with a fun game or activity and usually some snacks. These blogging book clubs are great for the spring after testing because teachers don't mind giving up class time and kids are excited to do some REAL reading!
Below are links to resources and my blog for some of the titles I have done.
I use WordPress for my library blog; it does require a bit of a learning curve, but once you find a template that works for your needs it's really easy to use. I like that students do not need to enter an email address to blog and that all posts requires my approval before anything goes live. Other platforms you could use are Weebly, KidBlog, and Edmodo.
Parent letter for Blogging Book Clubs
For fourth and fifth graders who often do not have time to meet after school due to their participation in other clubs, I have Blogging Book Clubs. I do a few commercials on morning announcements to generate interest, then have students sign up for the book they would like to read. At the end of the year I will do more than one book at a time to get more students involved, but be prepared to dedicate a lot of time to your blog with multiple books! I give the first 15 students who turn in their permission form a book from the library to borrow (purchased with book fair funds), then anyone else who wants to participate has to get their own copy of the book. We meet once during the school day to hand out books, discuss expectations and the calendar, and make sure everyone knows how to access and use the blog. Then we're off! These book clubs are very fast paced; some kids get ahead and others have to catch up a little, and that's okay. At the end of the book club (usually about six weeks) I have a celebration during the school day where we wrap up the book with a fun game or activity and usually some snacks. These blogging book clubs are great for the spring after testing because teachers don't mind giving up class time and kids are excited to do some REAL reading!
Below are links to resources and my blog for some of the titles I have done.
I use WordPress for my library blog; it does require a bit of a learning curve, but once you find a template that works for your needs it's really easy to use. I like that students do not need to enter an email address to blog and that all posts requires my approval before anything goes live. Other platforms you could use are Weebly, KidBlog, and Edmodo.
Parent letter for Blogging Book Clubs
online_book_club_letter.doc | |
File Size: | 29 kb |
File Type: | doc |
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Hatchet Jeopardy (challenging!)
Hatchet Jeopardy (challenging!)
hatchet_questions.doc | |
File Size: | 24 kb |
File Type: | doc |
hatchet_calendar_2013.rtf | |
File Size: | 95 kb |
File Type: | rtf |
11_birthdays_questions.doc | |
File Size: | 24 kb |
File Type: | doc |
11_birthdays_calendar_2013.rtf | |
File Size: | 96 kb |
File Type: | rtf |
Storm Runners by Roland Smith
storm_runners_questions.docx | |
File Size: | 12 kb |
File Type: | docx |
storm_runners_calendar_2013.rtf | |
File Size: | 95 kb |
File Type: | rtf |
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
the_lightning_thief_questions.doc | |
File Size: | 29 kb |
File Type: | doc |