40 Book ChallengeDuring this school year, you are challenged to read 40 books of varying genres! Below are some of the highlights from this challenge:

•Read 40 books at your level this school year. Yes, 40! You really can do this, and it requires that you carefully select books that you are motivated to read.•Just like in a marathon, you will need to pace yourself. An average pace for this includes reading about one book per week.•The books are required to be from a variety of genres (see the following pages).•Keep track of the books you want to read so you are prepared to start new books quickly, write down the reading interests you have so you can explore other book possibilities, and list the books you end up reading this year. •You must write about what you are reading and discuss it with your teacher at your reading conference. •At least one book per month MUST be an Accelerated Reader (AR) book; the AR test must be taken and turned into the teacher by the last day of each month.

Reading WorkshopYou are going to have reading workshop time every day in class—it is a time set aside in class to read independently, write about, and discuss a book of your choosing according to the 40-book challenge genre requirements. You may also need to spend time at home reading, in order to fulfill (or exceed!) this challenge.

Why?Reading, writing about your reading, and verbally discussing what you have written all make you a better reader. The learning targets below show what we are going to achieve.

Reading Learning Targets- I can read and understand literature and informational texts.- I can analyze how elements of a story interact (setting, characters, etc.)- I can give an objective summary of the text, which is separate from my opinions about the text. - I can give text evidence that strongly supports my inferences, analysis, and opinions of the text.- I can analyze the development of the theme throughout a text- I can determine the theme of a text.Writing Learning Target- I can write an informative essay/letter.Speaking & Listening Learning Target- I can prepare for a discussion and participate by referring to my findings during the discussion.

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Genres at a GlanceFiction

Code Genre DefinitionTL Traditional

LiteratureStories that are originally passed down orally from one group to another in history. This includes folktales, fairy tales, fables, legends, and myth from different cultures.

RF Realistic Fiction

Stories that can be true to life but are mostly from the author’s imagination.

HF Historical Fiction

Stories that take place in the past and are from the author’s imagination. They have some truth to them.

F Fantasy Made-up stories that have some elements that could not be true or could not have happen in this world (i.e., fairies, talking animals)

SF Science Fiction

A type of fantasy that uses science and technology (i.e., robots, time machines)

NonfictionCode Genre DefinitionI Informational Texts that provide factual information to

readers. B Biography The author tells the story of a real

person’s life. AB Autobiography The person tells the story of his/her own

life. M Memoir The author tells about an experience or a

part of his or her life.

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Reading RequirementsBook Minimum: ____

Requirement Genre TallyTraditional Literature

Realistic Fiction

Historical Fiction

Fantasy

Science Fiction

Informational

Biography/Autobiography/

MemoirChoice

My Reading InterestsTopics that interest me Types of books that interest

meAuthors who interest me

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Books I Would Like to ReadDon’t forget to ask friends or siblings for ideas of what they have liked reading.

You can also find great lists of teen book suggestions online.Title Author Check (√)

when read

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Books I Would Like to ReadDon’t forget to ask friends or siblings for ideas of what they have liked reading.

You can also find great lists of teen book suggestions online.Title Author Check (√)

when read

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Reading ListSelect a book to read. Enter the title, author, and reading level of the book on this reading list. Try using www.arbookfind.com or www.scholastic.com/bookwizard/ to locate the level. If you still can’t find it, talk to your parents or teachers to see if there is another way to determine the level of the text. When you have completed the book, write the genre and the date. Note whether the book was easy (E), just right (JR), or a challenging (C) book for you—or write (A) and the date you abandoned a book.

# Title Author Reading Level

Genre Code

Date Completed

E, JR, C, A

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# Title Author Reading Level

Genre Code

Date Completed

E, JR, C, A

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# Title Author Reading Level

Genre Code

Date Completed

E, JR, C, A

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# Title Author Reading Level

Genre Code

Date Completed

E, JR, C, A

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Guidelines for Reading Workshops

1. Read a book and/or write your thoughts about your reading. You might be writing thoughts that you will consider later, or you might be drafting, revising, and editing to work on your final letter.

2. Work silently so that you and your classmates can do your best thinking.

3. Use a soft voice when conferring with a teacher.

4. Select books that you think you’ll enjoy, and abandon books that aren’t working for you after you’ve given them a chance.

5. List the book, reading level, author, and title when you begin, and record the date and genre when you finish. You should also write if it was easy, just right, challenging, or abandoned.

6. Always do your best work.

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Reading Conferences: Share your thinking!Every two weeks, you will participate in a conference with your teacher. You will discuss your thoughts about one of the books that you have been reading. If you have read several books since your last conference, then you may select the one you think you can talk about best. If you are currently reading a very long book, then that is what you will discuss.

You are expected to prepare and write a three-paragraph letter in your Reading Notebook, so that you are able to share and discuss it at your conference. You will need to plan your time well, so that you can do your best possible writing—it is up to you to follow the steps of the writing process to plan, organize, write, revise, and edit carefully. The final letter may be handwritten on the lined pages, or you may type it and glue it into the notebook.

What to include in your letterParagraph #1 = a summary of what you have read so far (include the title/author name, as well as the plot elements)Paragraph #2 = This paragraph will depend on which quadrant you are currently in:

Quadrant 1 = What is the text saying? o Include information about the characters, setting, important events in the plot,

conflict.o Make a prediction about what will happen next.

Quadrant 2 = How does the text work? o Include information about:

important vocabulary – What words are repeated? What words are important to know in order to understand what is happening?

the text’s structure – What point of view is being used? Is there a narrator? Does the text use a lot of dialogue or not? Are there two contrasting characters? Is there a problem the characters are trying to solve? What is their solution? How do all of these things impact the plot of the story?

the author’s craft – What literary elements does the author use (simile, metaphor, alliteration, etc.)? How does this impact your understanding of the book?

o Develop a line of thinking – Make a prediction about the theme/message of this book.

Quadrant 3 = What does the text mean?o Include your line of thinking from Quadrant 2.o Include evidence that proves/disproves this line of thinking (it’s ok if your

line of thinking turns out to be incorrect). Quadrant 4 = What does the text inspire you to do?

o Include the correct/accurate theme/message.o How does/can this theme/message impact your life?

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Paragraph #3 = thoughts about the book that you want to share, including predictions, connections, and wonderings based on evidence from the text (see below for ideas)

When you consider your thoughts for the third paragraph, the following is a list of possible topics to write about.

•What surprised you?•What did you find interesting?•What part of the book puzzled you or made you ask questions? •What does the story mean to you? •How does the information in the book fit with what you already know? •Does the book remind you of yourself, or people you know or of something that happened in your life?•Does this book remind you of other books, especially the characters, events or setting?•How do the illustrations add meaning to the story?•How does the book make you feel? •How does the author describe things?•How does the author use time in the story?•How did the author build suspense?•Why do you like/dislike the book?•Why do you think the author wrote this book?•How do you feel about the authors writing? •Would you recommend this book to another reader?•If you abandoned this book, why?•What do you predicted will happen? Were any of your past predictions correct?•What would you change about this book?•Are there examples of stereotype or bias? •What did you find interesting? •What did you wonder about?•Was the book easy, just right, or challenging, and how can you tell? •Tell about the genre of the book and its characteristics. •What do you think the author’s message was? How do you fell about the author’s message? •What is one of the themes of the story? •Is there something you didn’t understand?•How do you feel about the character(s)?•What do you notice about the author’s style of writing and use of language? •What do you know about the author; does it have something to do with the story? •What was funny to you? •What did you like/dislike about the setting? •How does the setting affect the characters?•Were there good word choices or special languages?•What did you think about the author’s lead? •How did the author capture your interest? •How did you feel about the ending? •Do you have any new insights or understanding after reading the book? •What do you want to remember about this book?

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Preparing for Your Conference1. Be sure you wrote all three paragraphs: a) a summary; b) your thoughts and opinions such as

predictions/connections/wonderings, and c) author’s theme/message including your reaction.2. Be sure to include an overall opening and a closing of at least one sentence each. 3. Reread your letter to be sure it makes sense.4. If you got feedback from the teacher or a peer, check that you responded to it.5. Check your spelling, capitalization, and punctuation.6. Write the date.7. Assess yourself with the rubric at the bottom of the page—can you make improvements in

advance?8. Bring the book with you, and be ready to respond to questions that the teacher may have.

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0 Novice -1 Apprentice - 2 Practitioner - 3 Expert - 4

Rea

ding

Res

pons

e/Id

eas

-Did not write

-Paragraphs make the book seem unclear or confusing

-Includes an incomplete summary, incomplete or unlikely quadrant information, and/or disconnected opinions

-Included basic summary, some personal opinions and ideas, and the author’s likely theme/message

-Includes specific details from the text

-Included thorough but concise summary, thoughtful opinions and ideas, and a well-thought-out response to author’s theme and message-Every paragraph includes specific details from the text

Writ

ing

-Did not write

-Only wrote one full paragraph

-TS and/or CS are missing-Includes many incomplete or irrelevant sentences

-Only wrote two paragraphs

-TS and/or CS are repetitive-Includes some incomplete or irrelevant sentences

-Wrote three paragraphs

-Includes basic TS and CS-Includes complete but simple sentences

-Wrote three or more paragraphs

-Includes thoughtful TS and CS-Includes complex sentence structures

Con

fere

nce -Did not

meet with teacher

-Listened but did not answer teacher questions-May have talked about other things

-Limited effort put into answering teacher questions

-Answered all teacher questions adequately

-Answered all teacher questions thoughtfully