Do you use Reading Logs with your students? They were common practice when I started teaching, and there wasn’t much discussion about them at the time. I have been rethinking them recently, however, particularly for beginning readers.
The year I used traditional reading logs
When I was a first grade teacher early in my career, I sent traditional reading logs home, but had mixed feelings about continuing with them after noticing the lack of enthusiasm from students and parents. A few of my students diligently filled them in and proudly showed them off to classmates, some did not use them at all and the rest fell somewhere in between. As the months went on, I shifted them to optional, and started playing with their format.
I was a new mother at that time, and although my son wasn’t yet a year old, I was starting to think about the parent perspective. I had three first grade classes when my own kids were little, and…
only a small number of my students were motivated by traditional reading logs
some of my students weren’t handing them in was because their parents were just learning English themselves, and did not understand what the paper meant and / or have access to books in their first language
traditional Reading Logs were meaningless to the kids; an inconvenient, ‘one-more-thing to do’ on the plates of loving, caring, well-intentioned and busy parents and caregivers
traditional reading logs can give parents / caregivers the impression they are being policed
What I changed:
I created alternative reading logs for kindergarten and first grade that focused on celebrating moments of reading for joy, favorite stories / books.
This reading journal / log has evolved over the years to include check boxes:
Do I find ways to fit reading into my life every day (or most days)?
Do I put my school reading materials in my backpack as soon as I am finished with them at home?
Do I look at, listen to or read books about things that interest me, make me laugh, or that I just really enjoy?
Do I get ready for bed quickly so I have time for a bedtime story?
The most important thing
We celebrate reading. My students bring in their Reading Logs monthly, whenever they have a new page to show off, and share it with their peers. They answer their friends questions about it, the page gets a special sticker, and at the end of the year, they have a journal of stories they enjoyed and who they shared them with. There is no pressure to get it done or bring it in. I do not track it. It is purely about reading for joy.
What are your thoughts about Reading Logs for beginning readers?
Best wishes to all of you as we embark on another school year!
Comments
Karisays
Ive been rethinking home reading too! After a full day of learning and exploring at school, do we really need them to be laboured with more work at home! I think that this is a great re-jig!!! Can’t wait to use it!
Thank you so much for your comment, Kari! I’m happy to hear you feel the same way! I still think the reading itself is important, but we’ve just got to bring back the joy!
Reply
Sarahsays
We are homeschooling Prek this year. I found myself wanting a log, but maybe not of one consisting of the hundredth time we randomly read a Dr Seuss book (sometimes twice in a row). This is easy to integrate. I can log extended chapter book readings, & also use this to keep all of us (daddy) on track with making sure reading for fun, regardless of the book or number of times it’s been read, is still a part of our routine. Great idea! Thank you!
Reply
thatfunreadingteachersays
Thanks so much for writing, Sarah! I’m so happy it works for your homeschooling! I love that you’re keeping reading fun! 😉
I rethought reading logs last year and ditched them all together in a trade for “status of the class” each morning as our morning routine. I DEFINITELY believe children still need to read each night. It needs to be a lifelong passion and for many kids, that comes from a passionate teacher who expected them to read good books every day and taught them how to make it important in their lives. We can have reading accountability without reading logs. I love your spin on it for the lower grades.
Reply
thatfunreadingteachersays
Thank you so much, Tammy. I love your status of the class idea!
Reading logs bring structure to independent reading
If a student is having a difficult time picking up a book, a reading log can give them that extra push to find time in their day to read. Many reading logs ask for 20 minutes of daily reading. Once they find that time, it's much easier to keep it up.
There are many benefits to using reading logs in schools. In primary grades, reading logs can help students practice rereading their books. Rereading improves fluency. Rereading with the use of a log strengthens comprehension, and it can be fun.
In the front of the diary the students keep a running to-be-read list where they jot down titles of books they are excited about reading. They can track their reading stamina development by periodically tracking the number of pages they read during workshop time.
Playing the imitation game is a great and fun way to teach reading that doesn't require any additional materials. If you want to give this activity a go, when you're reading with your child, change up your voice and then ask them to imitate you while reading the same sentence you just read.
Pressure to read: A reading log can create pressure to read more or faster, which may not be enjoyable for everyone. This pressure may turn reading into a chore rather than a pleasure. Putting too much pressure on a child can lead to student burnout.
Nonetheless, the research shows that reading logs often backfire, and Rues says that she's seen them firsthand turn reading into a “chore,” rather than something students feel motivated to do.
Main idea logs require you to synthesize information from dark-typed headings in the textbook and express it in one clear and concise sentence. This will strengthen your ability to develop a thesis statement for later essays and improve your reading comprehension skills.
Try hosting a book tasting where students sample books. Read exciting read alouds and point your students to similar titles. During morning work time read the first chapter of a book and “auction off” the chance to be the first to read it. Let your students know the books that you are reading.
They usually are in chart or calendar form and require the parent or child to record the book title, pages read, and/or minutes read, as well as requiring a parent signature. Sometimes they are counted toward a reading grade or homework grade.
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Kari says
