I have been struggling since August to keep my students interested in reading while we have been virtual. I was at such a loss for what to do and how to get them excited while not having a physical copy of a book in their hands. Luckily, our school/district pays for a program called MackinVia. I definitely have not used this program nearly enough for my students this year. Over the weekend, I decided to play around with it and incorporate it into our weekly classwork. I teach an intervention/enrichment class as well, once per week.
This week, I decided to shake things up and do a "First Chapter Friday". I've been trying to hype the kids up all week and even shared the book and plans for our enrichment class Friday. Let me tell you, they are pumped. I recorded a quick 10 minute video of myself reading chapter one of the book with Screencastify, then shared the video on a Google Slide. Then, students are asked to record thoughts, share predictions and questions while they listen to me read. Lastly, I have them explain whether or not they would like to read this book, based on the first chapter. Many students LOVED the book after just the first chapter. It only took ten minutes to get them hooked and excited to read more!
Wow! this is such a great idea, it seems so simple yet very engaging! I may have to use something similar for my kiddos, although they cannot read on their own, they do enjoy looking at books sometimes. Many of my kiddos parents don't read to them, but I could record myself reading a book to them then share it and have them draw a picture of what they enjoyed! thanks for sharing this idea!
ReplyDeleteI love the idea! Most of my students only read when they are on a live virtual meeting with me and I think so much has to do with access to books and just interest in reading. Introducing them to a text in this way may just get my students interested in reading! I will have to check out the program you mentioned and ask our administration if we have access to it.
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