What are your thoughts on read aloud in middle school? I know of a teacher who used to work in my district who did it, and I'm all for it. Now I will be teaching 8th grade English (with one reading class) this year, and I kind of want to incorporate it. Any thoughts? If you're a fan, does anyone have any books they'd suggest using for a read aloud with 8th graders? I'm more familiar with the upper elementary kids.
My grade 8 students loved to be read to last year. Some of their favourite books from last year that I read all or part of aloud: The Hunger Games, We All Fall Down, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, The Outsiders, Stormbreaker
My teacher read Lois Duncan books aloud to us in middle school. I remember being really sad when it was time to stop reading.
Of course you'll probably always have one or two who will be less than thrilled, but my middle school students enjoy being read to. Just for what it's worth, I've been told more than once by students that they appreciate how I seamlessly insert synonyms for words they may not understand...I don't break the flow of the read. I say this only because they mention they've never had a teacher do that. I second The Outsiders...middle school students love that book! As do I. Oh, and I even read to them children's books. Sometimes it's to introduce a topic or unit of study, and sometimes it's just for fun...like when the math teacher calls and asks for three more minutes. They still adore Dr. Seuss.
Absolutely read aloud to them! There's even research out there that shows the benefits of read aloud thru college. I'd add to the list the novels of Jordan Sonnenblick (Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie especially), Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper, Knuckleheads by Jon Sczieska, and Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix.
Thank you for asking this question! I am switching from a 6th grade homeroom to an 8th grade homeroom this year and I was thinking about finding chapter books to read aloud to them a couple days a week. The Percy Jackson & the Olympians series was a success with my 6th graders, but I wasn't sure what to read to the 8th graders!
Give them a choice and let them vote. My 7th graders enjoyed The Outsiders, Compound, Hunger Games, Flipped, The Giver, Once Upon a Marigold, and Unwind. In my 3rd period class, we have 20 minutes of homeroom time so I would read to them during that time before lunch. They chose the books. I did book talks on several novels and allowed them to vote. I read Compound, Hunger Games, (read the others with all classes) and we made it half way through Unwind by the end of the year. They would get so into the books that when I was absent, someone would volunteer to read from the book that day. This was my best teaching moment of the year. The discussion was amazing because it was more relaxed I guess. The students basically did literature circles on their own. I would sit back and let them prove their point. They would even continue to talk about the book on the way to lunch. It was so wonderful that I had students from my other classes ask if they could come in and listen to the read aloud, or they would look for another copy of the book because someone from my 3rd period had told them about the book.
Another great book for read aloud in intermediate that I did for three years in a row is Toughing Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen
I am a 8th grade math teacher and I'll be reading to my math students. The first day of school I'll read Math Curse (LOVE LOVE this book). Then when I come across concepts that have children's book that relate to that concept- I will read another book. I just purchased the whole Sir Cumference series and will read this to them too--
My eighth grade English teacher read "Ender's Game" to us. I LOVED the book and ended up reading the rest of the series on my own.
Absolutely read to them!!! My recommendation is Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life. Just be careful, I was trying no to choke on tears when I read the end haha. It's great and my kids all loved it. (7th grade)
My seventh graders love read aloud time! I always choose a book that correlates with the genre we're studying that month.
My middle school students loved read-aloud so much that I actually used it as a reward at the end of our math class. They loved the book called "Magic Moments" by Olga Loya. This book is a collection of popular tales that most of the hispanic students have heard from their parents. Since most of my students are hispanic, this was a great book to read. There is the English version and the Spanish version. If you work with mostly hispanic students, this would be a great book to read. Even students who have never heard these tales before found them very enjoyable.
My 8th graders LOVE being read to! I highly recommend Touching Spirit Bear. I read it to my class every year. In addition to showing great use of foreshadowing and flashback, there are so many deep lessons and discussion points, that I'm never bored reading it each year. I've also read Found by Margaret Haddix - they really got into that and several immediately checked out the sequel. A Long Way From Chicago and A Year Down Yonder are also fun reads. Sometimes I let the majority pick out a book and other times I select the book.
Two more questions: When do you fit it in? How much time do you use? I only have 43 minutes classes. Also, I'd love any other book suggestions! Thanks for all the input so far.
Absolutely! I'm all for read-alouds for pretty much any grade level.:thumb: Even if you just read interesting magazine articles, excerpts from popular books, or a few pages of a book before the bell rings, read-alouds are great.
Last year was my first year and my mentor gave me "The Math Curse"...sadly, I just put it on my desk b/c I thought...these are 6th graders, they don't want to be read to. Starting my second year, I'll not only be reading "The Math Curse" the 1st or 2nd day of school, but I'll also have "math" books as one of the early finisher centers. We have the Sir Cumference series...does anyone have any other suggestions for math books???
Yes, yes, yes, read aloud to them! The Outsiders is a favorite, and there are countless others, such as Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. I have a few CDs of books, too, so that when I get tired of reading, I can play a piece each day. Lois Lowry is always a hit. Call of the Wild is also an 8th grade book in my district.
My classes love the read aloud! The last couple of years I've done: The Name of this Book is Secret, Norman Tuttle on the Last Frontier, The Mysterious Benedict Society, Percy Jackson (but I don't know that I'll do that one now that the terrible movie is out).
