How to Do a Reading Response Textbook

Returning to the text invites deeper learning and agreement

Much of the writing we assign our students is public writing—writing to communicate with others. Writing-to-learn is personal writing, writing that helps students increment comprehension of texts—fiction and nonfiction—in all disciplines. Reader response compels readers to interact with the text and makes visible for readers and their teachers the depth of text comprehension. Reader response is a tool for thinking and unlocking the text. This is the tenth article in a series of columns on scaffolding writing-to-learn by teaching a variety of reader response strategies before, during, and after reading.

In classrooms everywhere, after reading a book, a chapter, or an article, one sound is commonly heard: the closing of that book or mag. How are teachers to know what their students have read and what they accept comprehended and learned from their reading? When students are reading whole-class texts, is a test the most appropriate assessment of comprehension and learning? When they are reading in book clubs or individually, how do teachers induce them to demonstrate their learning; render to the book, chapter, or article for fifty-fifty more learning; and railroad train them to synthesize this learning by combining new learning with what they already know?

If teachers have been pedagogy and scaffolding preview responses and during-reading responses as described in the beginning six columns of this Write to Larn series, they take been able to monitor students' reading and comprehension while they are reading texts. Therefore, at that place are two goals for later-reading response: to take readers back to the book (or other texts) to support synthesis of learning and to share that learning with others, either their classmates, their schoolmates, or the outside world. Post-reading presentations likewise serve to share texts with other readers with the goal of increasing classroom reading.

Rationale

There are multiple benefits for inducing students to render to the text. The first time a text is read, the reader is dealing with the physical procedure of reading and decoding as well every bit encountering and adjusting to new characters and settings, and in the case of nonfiction, new, and oft complex ideas. When students reread or even re-skim after finishing a text, they pick up additional information, going deeper considering they have already covered the nuts such equally the plot and the topic. Rereading can let them make more than sense and ameliorate understanding of complex texts.

Withal, rereading is time-consuming, and there are non many students who would be inclined to follow directions to reread or even re-skim. Request students to set up a written, spoken, or agile presentation based on reading furnishings a more than willing, and fifty-fifty enthusiastic, render to text. When groups of 8th graders were assigned to collaboratively write a five- to 10-stanza rap (ane-2 for each act) based on their reading ofMuch Ado near Nothing, they dove correct in, pages flight back and forth as they searched through the text, working diligently to create the all-time rap to present to their classmates. When walking downwards the hall after course, they were asked by another educatee what they had done in class; and were overheard to say, "Nothing. Just wrote raps. Fun." Afterward they presented their raps, which did illustrate deep understanding of the Shakespearean text including the characters, the plot, and theme, the teacher asked how many times they went dorsum to the play, rereading scenes and discussing pregnant. They looked surprised and said, "Too many to count."

Text Reformulation—Why Poetry?

Text reformulation, in which readers turn the text into another format, can be implemented to not only let readers discover what they know and expand that agreement, but share that cognition with others. The previous three columns in this series each shared 1 afterwards-reading response strategy using a specific form of verse—Constitute Poetry, I Am Poetry, and Poetry in Two Voices. Writing Found Poetry causes readers to look for important words, phrases, and details in the text, developing a theme or discovering significant. I Am Poetry results in reading from dissimilar perspectives and digging deeper into a graphic symbol or subject, while Poesy in Two Voices effects comparisons within text or between texts or the reader and the text.

Narrative Verse

Another style poesy can serve as text reformulation is for readers to rewrite text every bit a narrative poem, choosing only the most important details from each chapter or plot element to convert into stanzas. For more than appointment, these narratives can be presented as a rap, as in the Shakespeare case given previously. A chapter in a history or scientific discipline textbook, or an informational book, can besides lend itself to a narrative poem or rap, as readers personify topics, as they did when writing I Am poetry (Roessing, 2019a).

Summarizing and rewriting Affiliate 11 ofThe Giver as a quatrain, a pair of 8th graders wrote:

Jonas' first time equally Receiver, something occurred that was weird

When he was touched on the dorsum by an old homo with a beard.

He saw himself on a hill with some snow and a sled

Even though he was nevertheless in the Customs, on elevation of a bed. (Roessing, 2009)

An additional advantage of going back to the book is that readers tin can metacognitively analyze both their new learning and how the text effected that learning. Readers can evaluate the effectiveness of the text and how text is structured and can consider author's arts and crafts. Deliberation of writer's craft likewise serves to employ texts read as mentor texts for writing and to grow readers as narrative and informative writers.

Book/Text Reviews

Whether students are reading whole-class, book club, or self-selected texts, fiction or nonfiction, ane effective and valuable after-reading response blazon is writing a book review. Readers tin can written report mentor reviews, analyzing components and evaluating the components that make them effective. They volition probably discover that all reviews contain certain elements:

• title
• writer
• publisher
• copyright appointment
• genre
• a short summary
• the reviewer'southward opinion supported with examples

Students should also note that at that place are elements that appear in but some reviews, and there are elements specific to certain genres of texts. Some examples are

• format or text features
• number of pages
• price
• awards
• reading level and/or interest level
• quotes from the text
• other texts by the same writer
• author biographical information
• comparisons to other texts

When writing volume reviews, it is necessary to think of the audition and the purpose of the review—whether it is to critique the work or entice others to read. An added reward is that text reviews are a form of argument writing, a fashion of writing required under all state standards. See figure 1 for a pupil book review ofBoy: Tales of Childhood past Roald Dahl.

Figure 1
Educatee Book Review

Boy by Roald Dahl, Puffin Books, 1986, 176pp, $vi.99, ISBN 0-14-130305-0 The author of the famousCharlie and the Chocolate Factory returns in his memoir of early childhoodMale child by Roald Dahl. This volume follows Dahl's early life chronologically, giving part and piece of his life in piddling stories: The mouse scheme from kickoff grade, the Matron from middle school, and the ballsy torture of fagging from loftier school. For but 176 pages this volume has a loftier interest level, since the volume is written from his adult perspective, older readers tin can connect to his experiences, while younger readers tin enjoy the easy read and enjoyable stories. The book takes identify mainly in Dahl's early on childhood, in his two schools, his vacation in Norway. Every bit a young child Dahl was bold and adventurous, most 7 year onetime boys wouldn't put a rat in a processed shop jar. This volume shares all the exceptional writing and interesting stores every bit his other books such every bitCharlie and the Chocolate Manufacturing plant, andMatilda. In fact, most of his stories tin trace dorsum to the writing in this book.While there isn't one unmarried plot, simply many plots, each are unique and entertaining. The story of the mouse scheme is full of suspense as the headmaster stares downwards all the little boys deciding which i it is he going to beat with his wooden pikestaff. The horrid Matron who condemned boys to the walked down to be caned, and the "crack that echoed throughout the hushed hallways". All of the characters take realistc personalities and are unique. The St. Peter's headmaster who disliked chirapsia the boys but liked seeing them learn their lesson. The candy store owner whose just pet peeve was children. The mighty Boazers, the testosterone loaded teenagers who loved chirapsia up their little retainer boys, like making them warm upwardly an icy toilet. Finally, Dahl'due south writing is creative and enjoyable, but information technology isn't always present. In some parts the lack of metaphors and vibrant descriptions lulls the reader into a trance of skim reading, for example, when he talked on nearly how he admired the bike passenger and why he idea he was and so cool. His writing does take its adept though, for example, instead of merely saying his nose was falling off he says its "Ding-Dangling" and instead of tobacco he says navy fine cut, and instead of fish he say flounder with beloved glaze and pepper. With phenomenal storeis and characters, this volume is a good ready for all ages. I would highly recommend this for a quick, easy, simply interesting read.

Since writers appreciate writing not only as a review and reflection of their reading but for an accurate audience, teachers should brand reviews useful to the public. There are journals and newspapers, even the school newspaper, that publish reviews, or they can be collected in a classroom binder, a class book web log, or on a school library website for other students to read when choosing books to read or texts to use as groundwork reading. Some textbook companies may be interested in educatee reviews of their textbooks or chapters. Come across figure 2 for sample guidelines for a novel review (Roessing, 2019b).

Figure 2
Guidelines for a Novel Review

Introduction, including essential elements: author, title, publisher, copyright engagement Curt Summary, 1-paragraph that includes all major characters, setting, and plot elements: exposition, inciting incident, conflict, climax, resolution Opinion, 1-2 paragraphs: Your critical analysis of the novel (or the assigned novel element) Text show and quotes, supporting views (include page numbers) Conclusion: Summarizing statement near novel or statement about the theme

A book review requires that readers return to the text for details, thus aiding additional learning from the text. Reviews, contrasted with reports or summaries, also necessitate reflection and synthesis. Readers demand to reverberate on what they know nearly story elements as information technology pertains to a novel, or text structure and features of informative writing when reviewing informational texts—nonfiction, textbooks, or articles—also as writer'due south craft, in their evaluations.

When students write reviews of textbooks or capacity, they evaluate the writer's style—how the author explains material that is new to learners. They also consider how the material is presented: how information technology is chunked and organized, the utilize of subheadings, the ways by which new vocabulary and terminology is presented, and how text features such as charts, graphs, illustrations, diagrams supplement text and aid learning. In doing so, readers are activating metacognition and analyzing their ain learning styles, what works for them, and why or why not. This also is true when readers review articles and other nonfiction texts.

Book/Text Talks

Less comprehensive than book reviews, volume talks are valuable as not only post-reading reflections but as advertisements for a text, persuading others to read the text (once again, a form of argumentation). With guidelines (see effigy 3), book talks will crave returning to texts, preparation, and analysis and evaluation of the text—both critical thinking skills. An added advantage is that students will learn and do public speaking proficiencies.

Figure iii
Volume Talk Guideline

Content & Organization: ane. ___Attention Step – begin with an Audience Hook 2. ___ Introduction: set purpose – relate information to your audition 3. ___Essential Content (title, writer, date published, setting, characters, conflict, theme) iv. ___Supporting Evidence: read a significant excerpt and explain why you chose 5. ___Author'due south writing fashion or format 6. ___Short evaluation of book – what was/was not done well vii. ___What type of reader would enjoy this book 8. ___Closing – a memorable final, concluding statement or quote Commitment: ix. ___Eye contact with unabridged audience 10. __Volume, charge per unit, pronunciation, and enunciation 11. __Practiced: three–5 minutes 12. __Visuals, such equally the book itself

Presentations

While whatever response can be written by a collaboration of pocket-sized groups of readers who have read the same text, the responses detailed above are customarily individual response types, illustrating individual reader'south reflections on their reading and synthesis of their learning. Some other type of response is collaborating on presentations for others who have non read the text. These more active response types employ writing scripts or designing storyboards and encourage the engagement of students' multiple intelligences: linguistic, mathematical, musical, spatial, kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and environmental.

Described in greater detail inThe Write to Read: Response Journals that Increment Comprehension (Roessing, 2009) andTalking Texts: A Teachers' Guide to Book Clubs across the Curriculum (Roessing, 2019b), some options are listed beneath, although students volition create their own possibilities when permitted pick.

• Book Trailers, which are much like the traditional movie trailers
• Skits or Puppet Shows of 4-five key scenes connected by a narrator
• Plot or Character Book Bag Presentations retelling the story through objects
• Talk Shows in which a moderator interviews characters and/or experts in the topic
• Newscasts or Newspapers based on the globe of the text
• Trials of characters in novels or people in the field of study area of a text or article
• Cartoon Strips/Graphic Books, which outline the story or text
• Songs or Musicals based on the texts

Conclusion

After-reading reader response can be individual, collaborative, or even interactive as response invites readers to render to texts for deeper learning and agreement.

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References

Roessing, L. (2009).The write to read: Response journals that increase comprehension. Grand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Roessing, Fifty. (2019a). After-reading response: "I Am" verse for synthesizing text.AMLE Magazine, vii(ii), pp. 40-44.

Roessing, L. (2019b).Talking texts: A teachers' guide to book clubs across the curriculum. Lantham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield.

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Source: https://www.amle.org/after-reading-response-taking-readers-back-to-the-book-sharing-what-we-read/

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