5 Ideas to Engage Readers
It’s basic psychology: the more engaged your students are in what they’re reading, the more they’ll want to read.
And the more they read, the better readers they’ll be.
This applies to both the strongest and the weakest readers in your room. It even applies to you as a reader.
You can best grow your readers by encouraging them to read more by fostering more interest.
Here are 5 ideas to engage readers that you can use today to get them reading more.
Interest Inventories
Use interest inventories to find out what your students want to read.
Have you tried asking your students what they’re interested in? An interest inventory is simply an informal assessment that measures students’ reading habits and topics of interest. Knowing this information can help you figure out where to start when you’re aiming to engage your readers.
There are tons of reading interest inventories in the world for you to choose from! And the prime time to give an interest inventory to your students is at the beginning of the year, but it’s never too late to give one if you miss the August/September window.
You can grab an interest inventory that you can give to students at the beginning of the year, middle of the year, and end of the year that measures reading habits, lists topics of interest, and serves as a form of self-reflection on your students’ growth as readers. This interest inventory is included in both printable and interactive Google Slides and is available as part of the Reading Log Alternative and Management System.
2. Book Trailers
Use book trailers to garb attention and create interest in new books.
Book trailers are short clips intended to introduce and hook readers. Book trailers catch students’ attention and hook their interest in a book title. There are so many ways to share book trailers to engage your readers.
Book trailer videos: There are tons of video book trailers available, like Scholastic’s playlist on YouTube.
Teacher-led book trailers: You could highlight a book a day or a book a week. You could spotlight a loved title that is already on your shelf or new books you order as they are delivered to you.
Student-led book trailers: You can create a system in which students have an opportunity to share what they've read and loved. Peer recommendations are STRONG motivators. You can snag a simple template that walks students through creating book trailers or book commercials - they are included in both printable and interactive Google Slides as part of the Reading Log Alternative and Management System.
3. Tried and True Book Lists
Put tried and true books in the hands of your students that you have personally read or come recommended by sources you trust. These are quality reads that are also guaranteed to be enjoyed.
The reality is that you sadly don’t have time to have read every title available to your students. The good news is that you’ve got access to all the help you need in finding high-quality, accessible texts that will engage your readers.
FIRST, go visit your school and public librarians! More often than not, they’ll jump at the chance to help connect you with a list of books that they love and would recommend for your kids. Your school librarian may even know the reading preferences of your kiddos better than you do because she’s likely been reading with them weekly since Kindergarten if your school has a regular “specials” rotation.
Have you tried asking your fellow teachers what books their students are loving? Foster a book-loving community amongst your teacher friends to create a network in which sharing book recommendations for students Is a regular thing.
After visiting with your local book lovers, you can also discover more top-notch recommendations through reputable lists that are updated regularly, like the following:
Caldecott Medal Books: a list of winners of an annual award given to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children
Newbery Medal Books: a list of winners of an annual award given to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children
Coretta Scott King Award Books: a list of winners of an annual award given to “outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values”
American Indian Youth Literature Award Books: a list of winners of a biennial award honoring “the very best writing and illustrations by Native Americans and Indigenous peoples of North America”
Arab American Book Award: a list of winners of an annual award given to authors and illustrators of books written by and about Arab Americans
Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature Books: a list of winners of an annual award recognizing “individual work about Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage, based on literary and artistic merit”
Read Aloud Revival’s Book Lists: an extensive collection of book lists including categories like “Books Boys Love” and “Series to Hook Your Developing Reader”
4. High-Interest Material
Students are more likely to read topics that are weird, surprising, and attention-grabbing. This is called high-interest material.
The best thing you can do to support struggling readers is to provide them with rich reading material that engages readers and encourages them to read more AND that builds their skills. The solution: high-interest reading passages.
Struggling readers need engaging texts written about topics that are interesting, weird, or attention-grabbing. These types of texts are called high-interest. They also need these passages to be on a level that they can read relatively easily. This is sometimes referred to as “hi-lo”, which means high-interest but low-level.
Again, go talk to your local librarian about hi-lo reading material. A quick Google search will also connect you with a wealth of lists of hi-lo titles, such as this list from the School Library Journal of hi-lo series and this list from the Young Adult Library Services Association of hi-lo books.
You can also snag a FULL YEAR’S worth of differentiated AND high-interest reading passages for the entire school year for HISTORY and SCIENCE.
5. Easy Access
Make books accessible and highly visible. Simplify the selection process.
Looking at rows and rows of book spines can be overwhelming. Obviously, shelves are practical for allowing space for LOTS of books. Here are two ideas for utilizing the space-maximizing shelves while reducing the overwhelm that they can bring in order to engage readers:
Use buckets with labels. Create groups for recommended books (like the Newbery Award Winners bucket you can see in the images below) and frequently requested topics (such as a bucket for animal lovers as shown below).
Use wall space wisely. Do you see the yellow poster with a grid of books? That poster showcases the Newbery Award Winning book titles that students will find in a bucket below it. On another wall not pictured is a series of genre posters and book title icons that students can find in corresponding buckets. Use your wall space as a visual display to draw interest in book titles.
As you can see in the pictures below, your classroom library does not have to be Pinterest-worthy to be functional. You can make what you have work for your readers.
