Creating Positive Reading Attitudes
With Book Choice, Book Recommendations, and Book Talks
Why is a positive reading attitude important?
Having a positive attitude about reading may increase motivation to read.
- Developing students’ reading motivation may also support their reading proficiency (Guthrie et al., 2007).
- When children are positively motivated and believe they can master a skill they are more likely to take part in tasks that necessitate the skill, persevere when they come across difficulties, and have a strong sense of their capability and success when it comes to reading (Metsala, Wigfield, & McCann, 1997)
The critical period of the elementary school years is where reading motivation and achievement are developed. A lack of motivation to read can develop as early as first grade and can have harmful effects on later reading ability (Putman & Walker 2010).
Second Grade Book Talk
why does it work?
- A key factor in fostering students’ reading motivation is providing students with opportunities for meaningful social interaction around books (Miller, 2015).
- Students’ motivation to read increases when they are provided with opportunities to choose their books and discuss those books with peers (Moss and Hendershot, 2002).
- Being given the opportunity to recommend books, having books recommended to them, and having their reading choices validated increases students’ motivation to read (Gambrell, 1996).
How did I do it?
I conducted an action research project which included the following components:
- What: Motivation to read
- Why: This study sought to rejuvenate students’ motivation to read, and for students who had not yet lost their motivation to read, this study sought to inspire them to hold on to that motivation and remind them that reading is meant for both academia and pleasure.
- How: I brought the social aspects of reading into focus by allowing students to read any books of their choosing, to recommend the books they read to their peers, and to discuss those books with peers who have also read those books.
- Who: Participants included nineteen 2nd-grade students in one class
- Where: The study took place in a 2nd-3rd grade school in rural eastern North Carolina
When: The intervention occurred over a 6-week time frame (January 5, 2016-February 11, 2016).
What do the results show?
Findings indicate that providing students with opportunities to choose what they read, and discuss their reading with their peers builds a positive community of readers with this group of participants. In this study, a positive community of readers included student-initiated book sharing, student-initiated discourse about books, and positive student attitudes about reading.
What can you do?
-increase the amount of time for the study
-begin the study earlier in the school year
-implement the intervention in more classrooms and across varying grade levels
Resources
- Book recommendation template
- Book recommendation bulletin board set
- Book recommendation sign
- Book talk discussion cards
- Book talk anchor chart 1
- Book talk anchor chart 2
- Book talk anchor chart 3
- Book talk anchor chart 4
- Book talk guidelines for teachers
- More about motivation to read
- The powers of reading
- Motivation to Read Profile
- Elementary Reading Attitude Survey