Book Talks

Lesson Summary

Students will read from their independent books to develop comprehension skills and strategies, practice reading engagement, and build literacy stamina. The teacher will conference with students, guide book choices, and informally assess reading behaviors. This is the most important work of the day. Students will then promote literacy by creating a podcast, and then will discuss their choice texts as a discussion board with their classmates as a formal assessment of the text.

TIPC Ratings

Research & Information Fluency

Rating:Ideal – Explanation: The justification for this category is the development of the Book Talk. The entire premise of the project is to promote literacy of novels. Students are investigating and researching authentic texts to build their comprehension. They do this by researching books in a student generated database of novels and reviews, using their own critical thinking skills to navigate through their own research of main ideas, supporting details, context clues, vocabulary, etc., in order to assess various novels, their opinions of them, and eventually find a quality authentic text to read. This is the same skill as evaluating resources, a skill done usually taught when evaluating credible sources. It is in this case, students are applying the skill to finding quality texts.
In addition, students compiled a vast amount of information on their novels, and had to maintain a level fluency with their digital tools. Students were taught how to use Schoology as integrated with English Language Arts (journals), created google docs (outlines), reviewed and created annotations on a documents (rough draft of presentation), created Podcasts and sound files (Audacity), created image files, (novel “button”), and used a discussion board to communicate with their peers about their novels and their research.

Communication & Collaboration

Rating: Ideal – Explanation: The teacher reaches the target category because the teacher of this lesson facilitates the creation of the online book talk. Whereas students discuss books periodically as a class informally, the teacher facilitates a digital, permanent recording of this student generated discussion. The teacher also facilitates the process online communication, and as such the skills involved with digital citizenship and online etiquette as expressed through the safe discussion of books.

According to this category, students in a 21st century classroom communicate and collaborate ethically and effectively to reach a common goal or create a product.Students are taught how to use a discussion board to communicate with peers and experts. Students are required to make one post reflecting on their own book, one post positively critiquing another book, and must respond to one other student’s critique or self-reflection with adequate detail.

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

Rating: Ideal – Explanation: The lesson hits the target category because the teacher facilitates and formatively assesses authentic tasks where students are engaged in meaningful questioning, critical thinking, and problem solving. The teacher guides the students through revision of the the book talk scripts, guiding students through the task of the writing process. In addition, the teacher guides the student to think more critically about main ideas associated with their novels to evaluate their novels on a deeper level. Other authentic tasks facilitated by the teacher as described in other sections of the lesson plan include the final discussion board. As shown through one student’s example, students provide deep critical thinking about a novel of their choosing, think about who the characters are, why the conflict happens to that character, and how the character attempts to solve that conflict. In addition, students brainstorm problem-solving skills through the struggles of their characters by attempting to understand why the conflict exist in the novel, how to solve the conflict in a better way, and what underlying questions are at the heart of the book. Students begin to think more critically and through the discussion board attempt to answer questions like “Why is there bullying?”

Creativity & Innovation

Rating: Ideal – Explanation: This lesson reaches the target category because students develop original statements centered on the main ideas of their stories, but then provide a convincing argument to read their book by creating an original image jpeg and audio recording mp3 piquing their classmate’s interest about their chosen book. To do this, students apply critical thinking and research methods about their book, considering the best qualities of their book to share, but also decide the most effective way to deliver the main ideas. Students use online digital tools, and collaborative processes in order to develop each other’s interest in certain books, and create their own dialogue about shared loved books.