Have you ever experienced the joy of reading a wonderful story from a brand new book? That new book smell and feel are just the best!
Our student body is increasing and our novels are wearing out!
Our students are highly motivated and want to be at school. They take their education seriously. Many of our students have chosen to attend our school via open enrollment. Their expectations are that they will receive a top-notch education full of high expectations and outcomes.
My Project
As a proponent of choice reading, I am always looking for ways to get books into the hands of my students and have them build their reading list and what better way to celebrate Valentine's week than having students speed date books? Inspired by the speed dating scene where single people met potential dates over a brief, timed conversation and ranked them, speed dating books is a way for students to quickly put their hands on several books in order to find one of interest.
Here is how it works:
First, I set up 7 different stations in the library. Each station contains 15 - 20 books divided by genre. The categories include - Sci-Fi, Mystery, Better than the Movie, Romance, Action-Adventure, Nonfiction Knock-outs, and Blind Dates (in this category we cover the book and display a teaser on the outside - good for students who are willing to take a chance...). The stations are decorated with table cloths, a battery-operated candle and a vase with flowers for just the right amount of ambiance.
Students spend about 4 minutes at each station looking at the books (picking them up, browsing through the pages, and reading the dust jacket). An online timer is displayed on a large screen to let students know how much time they have. With 30 seconds remaining, the student will jot down titles of the books they perused and rate their dates on the score sheet they use for each dating session. If at any time they find a book they want to check out, they can hold on to that book. All other books get left on the table. Students rotate to the next station and repeat this activity until they make it through all stations.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Sloan and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
