ReadWriteThink: October 18, 2009: Read a Book! The third week of October is Teen Read Week.

October 18, 2009

		During the third week of October, teens will be reading for the fun of it, as hundreds of libraries, schools, and bookstores celebrate Teen Read Week. This year’s theme, “Read Beyond Reality @ your library,” which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it. The week-long event is sponsored by the American Library Association. image © American Library Association

Read a Book! The third week of October is Teen Read Week.

CLASSROOM ACTIVITY

Celebrate this year’s Teen Read Week by encouraging your middle or high school students to:

Join a book discussion group at their school or public library
Read biographies of their favorite musicians, comedians, politicians, or sports figures
Read books about a hobby that interests them
Read books that approach a subject through humor
Read what they want to read, just for the fun of it.

For more information on this week-long celebration, including ideas and tips, visit the Teen Read Week Wiki.

Lesson Plans

Developing Reading Plans to Support Independent Reading
In this lesson, middle school students analyze texts they have read, looking for patterns connecting those that they enjoyed the most. They then create a reading plan of books they hope to read in the future.

So What Do You Think? Writing a Review
This lesson gives high school students a chance to express their ideas while developing style and voice, through analyzing various reviews and writing one of their own.

Reader Response in Hypertext: Making Personal Connections to Literature
In this lesson plan, high school students choose four quotations to inspire personal responses to a novel that they have read.

Web Links

Teen Read Week 2009
The official website for Teen Read Week includes information on getting ready, registering, and celebrating the week-long event with young adults.

Choices Booklists: Young Adults’ Choices
Have students check out the Young Adults’ Choices list, a collection of books selected by teams of teenage reviewers.

Text Messages podcast
Learn about more books for teens through this ReadWriteThink.org podcast series. Review past episodes and subscribe so that you don’t miss future ones.

YALSA Blog
This blog includes information about books for young adults, including reviews and links to podcasts.

Texts

Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. 2007. You Gotta BE the Book: Teaching Engaged and Reflective Reading with Adolescents. NCTE and Teachers College Press.
This book uses case studies to examine what motivates adolescent readers and introduces strategies for engaging students in literature.

Reeves, Anne. 2004. Adolescents Talk About Reading IRA.
The author offers five case studies that highlight the findings from her study of what goes on in adolescents’ minds as they read.

Meyer, Stephenie. 2005. Twilight. Little, Brown Young Readers.
Meyer began her tale of a high school girl who falls in love with a reformed vampire in this novel. The tale unfolds in two subsequent novels and ends with Breaking Dawn, published in 2008.