The Year 8 Reading Challenge!
Every year near the approach of summer, I give Year 8s a Reading Challenge.
The rules are simple, I put all of the Year 8 English Classes against each other.
Books are chosen in consultation with the Literacy Activities Coordinator, who is also an English teacher. We look at books that we have multiple copies of and fly under the radar a little bit.
There are three tiers:
Tier 1 books are worth 1 point each and are relatively quicker reads.
Tier 2 books are worth 2 points each. I sneak some books into Tier 2 that could be Tier 1 as well.
Tier 3 books are worth 3 points and contain a few classics and heavier reads.
As a bonus, I give an extra point to any student who reads a book by a UK BAME author considering how underrepresented they are in the UK publishing industry.
The English class that gets the most points by 12th July wins Krispy Kremes for the class plus free books.
I'll visit each class and promote it, I'll also promote it in Library lessons. It's also an opportunity for me to check in with the students on what they're reading and remind them that they can borrow books over the summer. I then recommend them several books that can be read over the summer that they might enjoy.
It's a great way to get teachers and students reading and discussing what they're reading.
We already have a House Reading Challenge in place, students can submit book reviews either online or in paper format. All they need to do is to add "Year 8 Reading Challenge" to their submission form and we cross reference it with the book list to see how many points they get.
Of course, if a student approaches me with a book that isn't on the list but really loved it and has reviewed it, I'll assess it then and there and assign it some points. The point of this is to generate discussion around books and get the students reading, not worrying about what they're reading or what level.
It's a very loose system which works well as an end of year competition.
The rules are simple, I put all of the Year 8 English Classes against each other.
Books are chosen in consultation with the Literacy Activities Coordinator, who is also an English teacher. We look at books that we have multiple copies of and fly under the radar a little bit.
There are three tiers:
Tier 1 books are worth 1 point each and are relatively quicker reads.
Tier 2 books are worth 2 points each. I sneak some books into Tier 2 that could be Tier 1 as well.
Tier 3 books are worth 3 points and contain a few classics and heavier reads.
As a bonus, I give an extra point to any student who reads a book by a UK BAME author considering how underrepresented they are in the UK publishing industry.
The English class that gets the most points by 12th July wins Krispy Kremes for the class plus free books.
I'll visit each class and promote it, I'll also promote it in Library lessons. It's also an opportunity for me to check in with the students on what they're reading and remind them that they can borrow books over the summer. I then recommend them several books that can be read over the summer that they might enjoy.
It's a great way to get teachers and students reading and discussing what they're reading.
We already have a House Reading Challenge in place, students can submit book reviews either online or in paper format. All they need to do is to add "Year 8 Reading Challenge" to their submission form and we cross reference it with the book list to see how many points they get.
Of course, if a student approaches me with a book that isn't on the list but really loved it and has reviewed it, I'll assess it then and there and assign it some points. The point of this is to generate discussion around books and get the students reading, not worrying about what they're reading or what level.
It's a very loose system which works well as an end of year competition.
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