INDEPENDENT READING assignment
This semester, you will be
completing at least three or four independent reading assignments. The purposes of this ongoing assignment are:
·
to
be become a better reader by reading more often
·
to
explore a larger range of literature than can be covered in
class
·
to
be able to engage more intensely with a certain piece of literature
The structure
of this assignment is very simple. Every
Fabulous Friday you will have around half of the class period to read silently
(about 30 minutes) and fill out your reading log (about 15 minutes). When you finish your book, you will choose
from several project options to complete, and then you will begin a new book.
Choosing your independent reading book
You may
choose your book from the bookshelf in Ms. Burchfield’s class, bring your own
book from home, check out a book from the public library, or ask for a list of
books Ms. Burchfield has at home. The
book you choose must be at least 100 pages long. All independent reading books must be left in
Ms. Burchfield’s classroom at all times.
Reading Logs
Your reading
logs will be kept in a section of your class binder. After you read on Fabulous Fridays, you will
be given 15 minutes to record the date, the title and author of your book, the page
number you are on, a 2-3 sentence summary of what you have read for the day,
and one question (or more if you have them) you have at this point in the
book. See example below:
January 9,
2004
The Year of the Leopard Song, Eric Campbell
p. 23
So
far in the book I have met the main character, Alan Edwards. He is traveling home to his father’s east
African coffee plantation. I wonder how
he will feel when he sees his father?
How long has it been since they have seen each other?
I will check
and grade reading logs each Friday. They
will count as a homework/classwork grade.
End-of-Book Projects
When you
finish a book, see me and I will give you a list of possible projects you can
complete. You will have two Fabulous
Fridays to complete your project. The
project is due at the end of the second Fabulous Friday.
Why do I want to read these books, anyway?
Well, there’s
a bit of a competition happening. I
teach three classes. Whichever one of
you reads the most books this semester, is in for a big SURPRISE! Really, I promise this is going to be good J
(Note: While
you need to read as many books as you can, you only need to complete 3 book
projects [4 book projects for honors].)
INDEPENDENT READING ASSIGNMENT
PROJECT RUBRIC
Book Review Project
*Research book review writing (20 points)
In order to show that you have researched how to write a
book review, you must provide documentation that you have looked at at least
two actual book reviews as examples for your own writing. You can find book reviews in newspapers,
magazines, and online. For each
review you look at, write one paragraph that describes your own reaction to the
review and that lists at least 3 writing strategies the author used to persuade
his/her audience of his/her opinion of the book being reviewed. You must do this for each book review you
look at. You will have two paragraphs
total, each worth 10 points.
____ 1-paragraph response to book review #1 (10 points)
____ 1-paragraph response to book review #2 (10 points)
*Book review of your Independent Reading Book (40
points)
Now it’s time to use your understanding of how book reviews
are written with your own ideas regarding your independent reading book. Using some of the writing strategies you
noted in the above research, begin crafting your own review: what did you think
of the book? Why do you feel the way you
do about it? Make sure you don’t just
give a list of opinions about the book, but provide evidence from the book
explaining your opinions. Should someone
else read this book? Why or why
not? These are just some of the ways you
can choose to approach your review.
Reviews must be at least 2 pages (500 words) long.
____ Student demonstrates knowledge and understanding of
independent reading book
(10 points).
____ Review is clear and well-written, providing evidence
from the text to support
opinions (10
points).
____ Review is persuasive, convincing me to either read or
not read the book (10 points).
____ There are few to no grammar and spelling mistakes in
the review—it is clear that
the student
has put time and thought into his/her project (5 points).
____ Review is at least 2 pages (500 words) long (5 points).
Comments for student:
Grade: ____ /60
INDEPENDENT READING ASSIGNMENT
PROJECT RUBRIC
Collage/Montage Project
*Collage/Montage (40 points)
Create your own collage or montage about your book using
your artistic skills. Your collage can
illustrate characters, settings, events, or themes from your independent reading
book. You may use magazine pictures,
your own drawings, or any other materials you choose to complete this
project. Collage or montage must be
created on something other than a piece of notebook paper, for example on
posterboard or construction paper.
____ Collage/Montage is colorful, and neatly and carefully
constructed (10 points).
____ Collage/Montage clearly uses the student’s independent
reading book by showing
representations of characters,
settings, events, and/or themes from the novel (15 points).
____ Student uses creativity to construct a thoughtful
visualization of the book (15
points).
*Reflection or summary of project (20 points)
After you complete your collage/montage, write a ½ page
reflection or summary of your project. Describe
what you were trying to represent in your collage/montage and why you chose to
create the project you created. What
were some of the challenges in making a visual representation of your book? What was fun or enjoyable about completing
the project? Reflection must be written
in complete sentences.
____ Reflection is clearly written and well organized (10
points).
____ Reflection thoughtfully explains the student’s purpose
in creating the
collage/montage and exhibits an
understanding of the student’s independent reading book (10 points).
Comments for student:
Grade: ____ /60
INDEPENDENT READING ASSIGNMENT
PROJECT RUBRIC
Character Diary Project
*Diary (60 points)
Pretend you are one of the major characters from your
book. To complete this project, you will
pretend you are a character and write his/her diary describing important events
that have happened to you, how you feel about these things, and any other
reflections you think your character might have regarding his/her experiences. For this project, you must write at least 2
pages (500 words), and have at least 3 diary entries. It is important in this project to work on
writing as if you were your character.
Pretend you are a character in your book and write like you think s/he
would write. The diary you write should
have your character’s “voice”—when I read this project, I should hear your
character talking.
____ Character diary has at least three entries and is at
least 2 pages or 500 words (5
points).
____ It is clear which character from the book is writing
the diary—student uses that
character’s
voice effectively (15 points).
____ Character diary addresses issues or events that are
central or important to the book.
It is clear from the diary
project that student has read and understood their independent reading book (20
points).
____ Diary is creative and neatly presented (10 points).
____ There are few to none grammar or spelling mistakes and
it is evident the project
was
thoughtfully and carefully completed (10 points).
Comments for student:
Grade: ____ /60
INDEPENDENT READING ASSIGNMENT
PROJECT RUBRIC
Act-Out-A-Scene Project
*Script (30 points)
Your script should be as long as it needs to be in order to
cover a 3-minute performance. To begin
this project, pick one scene from your independent book to act out. This could be an important moment for the
main character, it could be a conversation between two characters, it could be
what a character is thinking to him/herself.
For your script, you should NOT simply copy sections from your book and
then read it to me. Based on what is
written on the book, how would you act out the scene? What is your character thinking or
feeling? SHOW me through your script and
your actions why the scene you chose is important to the book. For more help with writing a script, please
see Ms. Burchfield—it can be tricky to write!
____ Script accurately captures the feeling or meaning from
the scene the student is
choosing to
act out (15 points).
____ Script is creative and is NOT simply a copy of passages
from the book (10 points).
____ Script is neatly presented and has few to none
grammatical and spelling errors (5
points).
* Presentation of scene (10 points)
Your presentation must be at least 3 minutes long and follow
your script (you may use your script during your presentation if you would
like). You may use any props you need to
(please prepare or bring them in ahead of time). Feel free to act as many characters as you
need to for your scene, and make sure you practice!
____ It is clear that student has practiced his/her
presentation before acting out the scene
for the class
(5 points).
____ Student is confident and clear while presenting his/her
scene from the book (5
points).
* Reflection (10 points)
Your reflection must be at least ½ of a page and describe or
explain why you chose to act out the scene you did. What makes this particular scene stand out or
important?
____ Reflection is neat and there are few to no grammar or
spelling errors (5 points).
____ Reflection demonstrates student thoughtfulness in
choosing his/her scene from the
book (5
points).
Comments for student:
Grade: ____ /60
INDEPENDENT READING ASSIGNMENT
PROJECT RUBRIC
Write a Song/Rap/Poem Project
*Song/Rap/Poem (40 points)
This project involves
exactly what it sounds like. Pick a
certain event, character, or theme from your independent reading book and
compose a song, rap, or poem about your subject. You must then present your song/rap/poem
orally to the class and explain what you are trying to get across to or
describe for your audience.
____ Song/rap/poem deals with an important event, character,
or theme from the
student’s book. It is clear the subject matter was carefully
chosen and demonstrates an understanding of the book read (15 points).
____ Song/rap/poem is creative and neatly presented (10
points).
____ Song/rap/poem is clearly and effectively presented to
class (5 points).
____ Student clearly and effectively explains the meaning of
his/her project to the class,
and discusses how the project
represents a particular aspect of the student’s independent reading book (5
points).
In your reflection, describe why you chose the subject you
did and why your subject reveals or expresses an important aspect of your
independent reading book.
____ Reflection is at least one page long and neatly written
(5 points).
____ Reflection is thoughtful and well organized. There are few to no grammar or
spelling
mistakes (5 points).
____ Reflection successfully explains why the student chose
to write about the subject
s/he chose, and how that subject
relates to an important aspect of the student’s book (10 points).
Comments for student:
Grade: ____ /60
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