Thursday, September 16, 2010

How to Find a Reading Counts Book


Finding a book that is on your  reading level can be a challenge. 

Here are some video tips about how to spot a book that is TOO HARD or TOO EASY.

The students will also show you how to tell if the book is a Reading Counts book.

Enjoy!




Here is a link to some Reading Counts information!


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Please leave a comment about reading!


Advanced students:  When leaving a comment, if you want to put your book title in italics, use the italics  HTML code!

For example:




Will look like this when you click publish:
The Lost and Found is one of my favorite stories.


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Have you ever learned a new word from a book? Teach us the new word!

What genre do you like and why?
Mystery? Fantasy? Adventure? Realistic Fiction? Nonfiction?


21 comments:

  1. Dear Mrs. Yollis' class,

    I love Junie B. Jones and Ramona the Brave. These two books are in the genre called realistic fiction.

    Mrs. Yollis, what is your favorite genre? Did you have Reading Counts when you were little? If so, did you like it?


    Sincerely,
    Ileanna, Miriam, Adia, Grace, Amitai and Ryan

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Mrs. Y♥llis,

    My favorite series of books are Amber Brown books.
    All of the Amber Brown books are in the genre of realistic fiction.

    Now I have a question for you.
    Do you like the Reading Counts program? If so, why?

    Warmly,

    Grace

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dear Mrs.Yollis,

    My favorite book is Diary Of A Wimpy Kid.It is realistic fiction.Have you ever read it.If not you should read it.It is a really good book.
    From,
    Jaden

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dear Mrs Yollis,
    I like Nate the Great books which are realistic fiction. Does anybody know any other good fiction books?
    From Ben

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Mrs. Yollis' Class,

    Thanks for sharing those great tips on how to find a just right book. we have been focusing on that in our class also.

    I knew about the tip that if a page has five new words it is probably too hard (we call it the "five finger rule"), but I didn't know about the tip for knowing a book is too easy. I like that one! I'll be sharing it with my students tomorrow. Or, better yet, we'll watch the video and you can share it with them.

    I mostly read realistic fiction and nonfiction now, but when I was young I really liked fantasy. I liked to imagine that I was the character in the fantasy books.

    From,
    Mr. Salsich

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dear Mrs. Y♥llis,

    My favorite genre is realistic fiction. One my favorite series in that genre is The Puppy Place books. I love dogs and these books are about foster care and adoption of dogs.

    What is your favorite genre? Do you have a favorite book or series of books?

    Warmly,
    Hannah

    ReplyDelete
  7. @ Ileanna, Miriam, Adia, Grace, Amitai and Ryan,

    Thanks for a wonderful comment complete with some HTML code! Wow!

    You asked about my favorite genre. I would say that I love to read historical fiction. That kind of fiction is set in a real historic setting, but the characters are made up.

    No, I did not have Reading Counts when I was in school. In fact, there were no computers when I was in school!

    Keep on blogging!

    Sincerely,
    Mrs. Y♥llis

    ReplyDelete
  8. @ Grace,

    Fabulous comment! I ♥ how you have learned the html for the ♥!

    I do like the Reading Counts program. First of all, there is a wide variety of books to choose from. Second, it is important for me to know if students are making progress as readers. It is a great program for that type of individualized reading. Finally, I like that students get immediate feedback about their own progress. Students like to know how well they are doing. True?

    Did you read many books last year?

    Your pal,
    Mrs. Y♥llis

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear class,

    My favorite series are Magic Tree house! Magic Tree House books are fantasy.

    Here is a question.
    Do you like Reading Counts?
    Why?

    From,
    Ryan

    ReplyDelete
  10. Dear Mrs. Y♥llis,

    Thank you very much for commenting back.
    I did read a lot of books last year.
    Some of the books were Amber Brown,
    Junie B. Jones, and Ramona the Brave.


    I hope you are having fun with the parents.

    Warmly,

    Grace

    ReplyDelete
  11. Dear Mrs Yollis,

    Thankyou for this wonderful post.
    I really l♥ved how you showed us on your video what you need to look for to find a book that is right for you.

    When I was at school like you we really had no system in place on how to find a book which was right for us to read. As a matter of fact at my school we had a section just for your age group and that was it.

    I do however have two all time books which I love to read over and over. The first been To Kill a Mocking Bird and the other Mackbeth.
    Keep up the great work.
    From your friend down under AA.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Dear Mrs. Yollis,

    My favorite genre is realistic fiction. One of my favorite books from that genre is Amber Brown is Green with Envy. My brother Stefan's favorite genre is fiction. His favorite book from that genre is Elmo. I have a question: Do you have a favorite book? If so, what is the title and why do you like that book in particular?


    Warmly,
    Adia

    ReplyDelete
  13. @ Jaden,

    Diary Of A Wimpy Kid is so popular! What is it about? Why do you think kids love the series so much? I have not read any of them, perhaps I will!

    @ Ben,

    Nate the Great books are realistic fiction. I thought they were. What makes Nate...the great? Can you tell me a little bit about him?

    @ Mr. Salsich,

    Thanks for your comment about our new video. Yes, we call it the "five finger rule" as well! It is very helpful. Choosing a book that is too easy is also something to consider when finding the right level.

    Glad that you'll be sharing our video with your class. They love to learn from one another, don't they! :-)

    @ Hannah,

    I am not familiar with The Puppy Place books. Thanks for recommending them! Because you love dogs so much, I'm wondering if you have one as a pet?

    You asked about my favorite genre or series. I really enjoyed reading all of the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. They are historical fiction about life on the prairie during the 1870s - 1890s. The first book in the series is called Little House in the Big Woods. You might enjoy reading them!

    Sincerely,
    Mrs. Y♥llis

    ReplyDelete
  14. @ Ryan,

    I like The Magic Treehouse books too. They are a mix of fantasy and historical fiction. Do you know what I mean by that? How could that be?

    You asked if I like Reading Counts. Yes, I do. I think it is a good way to know how well students are reading. I also like that students get immediate feedback about their reading. They know if they are understanding what they are reading or if they need to choose an easier book.

    @ Grace,

    Yes, I had a fun time with the parents tonight!

    @ AA,

    Thanks for your lovely comment! :-) Yes, it is important to be able to find a book that is just right...not too hard and not too easy. To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorite books too! What a story!

    Have a wonderful holiday down there in Australia!

    @ Adia,

    Thanks for a terrific comment! I like the Amber Brown series as well. One thing I like about that series is how the author uses colors in the titles. Have you noticed that?

    One of my favorite books is The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Edwards. I am going to read it to all of you this year!

    Sincerely,
    Mrs. Y♥llis

    ReplyDelete
  15. Dear Mrs Yollis,
    Yes it is important to find the right book to read.
    When you find the right book to read you don`t want to put it down.
    But if you find a book thats difficult you really don`t want to read it.

    My favourite book is Dear Dumb Diary. I like these books because Jamie talks about her day at school and everywhere she goes.

    I am on Holidays now for two weeks :) and hopefully you will hear a lot more from me.

    Warmly,
    Bianca. (bb)

    ReplyDelete
  16. @ Jaden,
    I also like the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. I read all the books in the series except for one. Aren't they funny? My favorite one was Dog Days . It's too bad that it's not a reading counts book.

    Miriam

    ReplyDelete
  17. @ Miriam,

    I think they should make Diary of A Wimpy Kid into a reading counts book. I like Magic Tree House. Do you like Magic Tree House?
    From,
    Jaden

    ReplyDelete
  18. @ Mrs. Yollis,

    Thank you for the video of how to pick the right Reading Counts, book it was a great help. My favorite book is Magic Tree House I have a question for you.

    Do you have a favorite series?

    Your student,
    Iman

    ReplyDelete
  19. Dear Mrs. Yollis and class,

    I loved watching the video on how to find a reading counts book. It would be very helpful for anyone trying to find a reading counts book on their level.

    Warmly,

    Mrs. Madnick

    ReplyDelete
  20. Dear Mrs. Y♥llis,

    I think the Reading Counts video was very helpful.
    The Box Car Children is one of my favorite series.
    All of the Box Car Children books are realistic ficton.


    Here are some questions for you:
    What is your favorite book?
    Do you think Reading Counts needs to be upgraded? If so why?

    From,

    Ryan

    ReplyDelete
  21. @ Bianca,

    I hope you are enjoying your lovely holiday! I love having time off to do whatever you want!

    I've never heard of the Dear Dumb Diary books. I'll have to see if our library has them.

    @ Iman,

    You asked if I had a favorite book series. Yes, I do. The Little House on the Prairie books are a series I love. They are all about a family that lives in the 1860s and 1870s. Reading about what life was like back then is really interesting to me!

    @ Ryan,

    I like the Boxcar Children series as well. How many of them have you read? They are realistic fiction, yes, but they are also in the mystery genre.


    You asked about my favorite book. It is a fantasy book called The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles

    Yes, I think we should upgrade the Reading Counts program. For one, it is a faster system. Second, every Scholastic book title will be available! What do you think...should we upgrade?

    Sincerely,
    Mrs. Y♥llis

    ReplyDelete

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:-) Mrs. Yollis