Teachers would assign students to read a classic like Tom Sawyer and instead of being enamored with this classic tale, students were often less than thrilled.

What was once known as a rite of passage for students, is now leaving educators to believe that for students to be engaged in what they are reading, you must give them choices.

Giving students a say in their reading journey isn’t just a fun experiment, it’s a game-changer for fostering a love of literature and lifelong learning. Here’s why it works and how to make it happen in your classroom.

The Power of Choice

Think about the last time you read a book you loved. Chances are, you chose it because it intrigued you, aligned with your interests, or came highly recommended.

The same principle applies to students. When they get to select their own books, they take ownership of their reading experience, which naturally increases their investment in it.

Choice also empowers students. It sends a message that their preferences, interests, and opinions matter.

Whether it’s graphic novels, fantasy series, or nonfiction about animals, every student has unique preferences, and embracing those helps build their confidence and sense of individuality.

Research also supports the power of choice. Students who select their own reading material are more likely to finish their books, retain information, and develop a habit of regular reading.

Research conducted at the University of Maryland found that when students are given limited choices from a collection of books, it helps improve their performance on standardized tests, particularly the reading comprehension section.

By giving them this freedom, you’re nurturing intrinsic motivations, something every educator strives for.

The Benefits of Independent Reading

Allowing students to select their own books is paired perfectly with independent reading, a practice packed with valuable benefits. Here’s how it can make a difference.

Boosts Reading Skills

The more students read the more they build their vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency skills. By reading books they enjoy every day, even if it’s only for a few minutes, they are continually building their skills.

Develops Critical Thinking Skills

Choosing books requires students to think about their preferences, what genres they enjoy reading, and what piques their interest.

Then they must evaluate their decisions to choose a book that aligns with these factors. This requires critical thinking skills that they will use far beyond the classroom.

May Reduce Anxiety

When you give a reluctant reader a choice of what they want to read you are taking the pressure off of them. This allows students to choose books that they feel are more manageable and enjoyable to read.

Builds Empathy and Understanding

Allowing students to explore topics and characters they relate to or want to learn about helps build empathy and understanding. When you give a child the choice to read what they desire, they will want to read more.

The best way to get students to read more is to help them find one book in a series that they love, then they will want to continue to read every book in the series.

Practical Tips for Implementing Student Choice

Giving students book choices doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are some strategies to make it work.

Create a Diverse Classroom Library

The first thing that you can do is to create a library that has a variety of genres, levels, and formats. Take a survey to see what your students enjoy reading.

Ask them what’s popular, what topics they are curious about, and what book series are their favorite. The more options you have the more likely every student will find something they enjoy reading.

Create a Space for Reading

Create a comfortable “book nook” in your classroom where students can unwind with a good book during free moments or after finishing their work early.

Add a soft rug, a beanbag chair, and natural light from a nearby window to make the space inviting and relaxing.

Dedicate Time for Reading

Dedicate a regular time in your schedule for independent reading to show students that reading is a priority. This uninterrupted time allows them to immerse themselves in their books, develop a habit of consistent reading, and build confidence in their literacy skills.

Whether it’s a few minutes daily or a longer session weekly, giving students this dedicated time encourages focus and fosters a love for reading.

Set Guidelines

While choice is the goal, some guidance is helpful. Teach students how to preview books, check the difficulty level, and decide if a book aligns with their interests.

This ensures they’re making informed choices while still feeling in control.

Celebrate Their Choices

Encourage students to share what they’re reading through book reviews, presentations, or casual discussions. When students see their peers excited about books, it creates a culture of reading in your classroom.

Letting students choose their own books is a proven way to boost engagement and foster a love of reading.

When you give students the freedom to explore books on their own terms, you’re not just building readers; you’re nurturing lifelong learners. So, let them browse, explore, and dive into the stories that speak to them. The results will be worth it.

Educators never stop learning; check out our available graduate degree programs  to hone your skills and promote lifelong learning and academic excellence.

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If you want to help a hesitant reader change from not liking the library to loving it, these tips can help.

Understanding the Reluctant Reader

What exactly makes a child a reluctant reader? These students aren’t “bad” readers—they’re just waiting for the right connection to click. Often, these students associate reading with frustration or boredom due to negative past experiences.

Some struggle because they are just not interested in the reading material. Imagine if someone told you what you had to read, would you like it? Others have no problem reading, they just have a hard time comprehending what they read, after they have read it. Lastly, they fear that their reading capabilities do not compare to their peers. This common fear is among the top reasons why students are reluctant to read.

Understanding the barriers they face is the first step. Take the time to observe their reading habits, listen to their concerns, and uncover their interests. Building rapport and empathy around their experience creates a foundation for meaningful progress.

Strategies for Hooking Reluctant Readers

By knowing what makes some readers hesitant, you can use these tips to catch their interest and boost their confidence.

Engaging with Diverse Genres

This simply means choosing the right books. Adolescents often get discouraged from reading because the books are disengaging, and they see no value in them.

Finding high-interest reading material is the key to hooking these types of students. The goal of using these types of books is to stimulate a reluctant reader’s interest in reading.

A great way to teach children to pick books of interest is to use the “I PICK” method.

I – I chose the book

P – Purpose: Why do I want to read this book?

I – Interest: Does this book interest me?

C – Comprehend: Do I understand what I am reading?

K – Know: Do I know most of the words that I am reading?

When using this method, make sure that students set a purpose for reading. When they have a purpose for reading, it will help them find a book that is right for them.

Utilizing Technology

Use technology as a tool to your advantage. There are so many ways to make books exciting when using technology. Students who usually do not like certain books might enjoy reading them on an iPad or a computer.

Audiobooks can ease the stress of decoding for students with reading challenges while still building comprehension skills. Apps that gamify reading or pair text with visuals can also be a powerful way to foster engagement.

Consider pairing tech tools with traditional books. For example, listening to an audiobook version of Wonder while following along in print can enhance understanding and keep the experience enjoyable.

Creating a Positive Reading Environment

The physical space where students read can either encourage or discourage readers. Consider creating a cozy corner in the classroom with comfy seating, soft lighting, and a variety of books. Creating a space like this will draw students in and make reading feel more like an escape than homework.

Equally important is cultivating a supportive atmosphere. Try not to make reading a punishment and assign it as extra work, this is when you will find students saying reading feels like a chore or a punishment. Instead, use reading as a time to escape and explore a new world.

Books for the Reluctant Reader: Personalized Reading Experiences

When it comes to reading there is not a one size fits all approach. Reading must be tailored to each individual’s interests and abilities. If you know someone in your class who loves dinosaurs, then hand them National Geographic Kids: Dinosaurs.

If a student in your class loves sports, then guide them to the sports section in the school library. Offer choice as often as possible. Let students pick from a selection of books, even if their choices aren’t what you’d consider “challenging.” Building a habit of enjoying reading comes first; complexity can follow later.

Encouraging a Love of Reading

To truly encourage a love of reading it needs to be less about obligation and more about joy. Make our read-alouds fun by reading with enthusiasm and bringing the characters to life by changing your tone of voice. Share your own love of reading by talking about the books you love.

Consider creating a reading challenge like the old “Book-it” program you may have done as a child. This is when you log the minutes you spent reading and win a pizza party for the class.

This can be an enjoyable challenge. It is not a competition where students compete against each other. Instead, it encourages students to work together towards a shared goal.

Be a Role Model

It’s no secret that children are influenced by their peers. Often, children are reluctant to read simply because they think it’s “uncool.” Peer approval is a very important attribute of an adolescent’s life.

If they deem reading as “uncool” and never see their peers doing it, then they will not want to do it. This is why all students must have a positive role model that can reinforce the importance of reading.

Show your students that reading is important for everyone. Athletes, doctors, musicians, and other role models all like to read. Reading can help them in their work and daily life. Find out who they look up to and show them that they too think reading is important.

Hooking a reluctant reader isn’t about forcing them to find a love for reading, but rather about helping them find their spark. You can help students enjoy reading by understanding their doubts, giving them chances to do well, and offering different fun activities.

To help motivate your reluctant readers, utilize these strategies that will help spark their interest, and boost their self-esteem. Finding books that your students are excited to read is the best way to get them to read.

Educators never stop learning; check out our available graduate degree programs  to hone your skills and promote lifelong learning and academic excellence.

The post Hooking the Reluctant Reader in Your Class appeared first on TeachHUB.

Online learning has been an educational option, especially in higher education, for more than two decades. Virtual learning for K-12 education, however, has become increasingly popular for elementary school students within the past five years. This year has forced teachers and students around the country to experience the teaching and learning process through a number of virtual platforms at home. From Google Classroom to Canva and Zoom to Google Chat, educators and families are connecting through a variety of online platforms to support communication and education.

These virtual platforms connect classmates and their teachers through conversation and interaction. The platforms also help teachers to organize and often simplify the use of direct instruction and assignments. Despite the convenience and the accessibility of these various online tools, the virtual learning experience has not been the best experience for our youngest learners, especially in reading, this school year. There are simple instructional practices that can be implemented online to engage young learners in reading on virtual platforms.

Effective Reading Instruction on Virtual Platforms

Reading is a developmental process, and while reading takes place in every subject at every grade level, the foundations of reading are primarily taught from kindergarten to third grade. Differentiated reading instruction is essential in helping children become successful, independent readers.

Whether in-person or online, effective reading instruction must incorporate the five pillars of reading to ensure literacy success for all readers. These components include phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. Each one can be implemented in whole group instruction, small group lessons, and offline experiences. How many experiences a day are you giving your students opportunities to work on these skills?

As educators, we must be flexible and innovative when implementing quality reading instruction for our youngest learners virtually. Incorporating at least one daily read aloud experience so that children can enjoy listening to books while increasing listening comprehension is one example of effective reading instruction.

A simple whole group lesson involving a developmentally appropriate text, questioning, graphic organizer, and writing is another way to provide effective reading instruction. When we understand that word work makes the biggest impact in reading development, we can focus on providing a variety of experiences designed around playing with and working with words. Activities may include decoding words in text, encoding or spelling words correctly in writing, sorting words based on patterns, and reading poems based on word families and rhyme schemes.

We also need to consider how we are differentiating reading instruction online for our students. The shift from traditional learning to virtual learning has unfortunately led to significant gaps in literacy rates, especially for our youngest learners. Just like in the classroom, we should try and provide as many one-on-one or small group reading groups as possible through virtual appointments or breakout rooms.

We can also consider providing differentiated offline instructional practices for students while we teach a virtual reading group with targeted students. Offline assignments may include activities like independent reading, phonics games, writing prompts, or completing a graphic organizer. As teachers, we need to remember the best practices in reading that lead to literacy growth and find a practical, engaging, and innovative way to present the same knowledge and instruction online.

Strategies to Engage Students in a Virtual World

In addition to reading research and the five pillars of reading, motivation and engagement are two additional and essential factors necessary to help students increase reading success. Even though students are not physically working together in the classroom, there is no reason that student engagement should not exist. We should be more innovative in creating an engaging classroom in a virtual world. Online tools including chat boxes, breakout rooms, Google Docs, and Google Slides were developed to increase collaboration and engagement online. Teachers can also be more creative in how to use the instructional time in the virtual world. Elementary school teachers can implement ideas like “Books for Breakfast” or a “Lunch and Learn” to use children’s books or literature to increase student engagement.

Virtual field trips can be used to take a trip to a setting of a book, a landmark in history, or a museum to explore a science objective. Virtual gallery walks can be used to introduce book genres or a unit on explorers. Including online games like Kahoot, movement, and music can also increase enthusiasm and engagement. Creating slides for children to play popular games to support reading skills like Bingo, Reado, Boggle, and Scrabble are also options to implement throughout the instructional day to engage students in virtual learning.

Communicating with parents to provide suggestions and feedback to make the remote learning experience at home both beneficial and enjoyable is key, especially as parents have instantly become teachers for children around the country. Implementing virtual incentives and a virtual reward system to increase engagement are also helpful in keeping children excited about staying on task and focused while learning at home. When we teach parents how to engage children both online and offline, we are increasing student motivation and literacy success.

While opinions around the virtual teaching and learning process differ, we as educators should have the flexibility and innovation needed to provide engaging literacy instruction for every single child in our class.

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