Reading Partnerships

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While typical "buddy reading" involves students reading to younger children or reading aloud the same book in unison, I take an alternative approach to reading buddies in my classroom.  In fact, it is so different that I call it them "Reading Partnerships."

In this unit, students will be paired with similar readers in their class to engage in meaningful reading partnerships. All readers will be given strategies to help them compose open-ended questions and will then meet regularly to discuss a common text that they have chosen to read. Reading partners each have their own copy of the agreed upon chapter book, and they set-up times to meet and discuss the text throughout their reading of the book.

When finished with a text, reading partners will work together to complete a reading project and share their common reading experience with their classmates.

OBJECTIVE
Students will:

1. Reflect on their reading interests and strengths
2. Choose a "just right" book to read with a partner
3. Plan and organize reading meetings with a partner in the class
4. Review story elements by retelling the stories they are reading
5. Make text-to-self and text-to-text connections as they read
6. Compose "thick" questions about a text that encourage higher-level thinking
7. Discuss and evaluate literature with a partner
8. Make predictions about what they are reading based on evidence from the text
9. Plan and present a book project to their classmates

LESSONS FOR THIS UNIT
Lesson 1: How Do Reading Partnerships Work?
Lesson 2: Book Discussions in a Reading Partnership
Lesson 3: Reading Partnership Book Projects

REPRODUCIBLES
Reading Survey (PDF)
Reading Partnership Planning Sheet (PDF)
Reading Partnership Bookmarks (PDF)
Reading Partnership Questioning Form (PDF)
Sample Thick and Thin Questions (PDF)
How to Advertise a Good Book (PDF)

CULMINATING ACTIVITY

The Final Book Project in Lesson 3 is the culminating activity for this project.

SUPPORTING BOOKS

Books to Support Reading Partnerships in Your Classroom

In Beth Newingham's classroom reading, writing, and math workshops are at the heart of the learning that takes place every day. You can find her best ideas on Teaching Matters. She strives to weave technology into her curriculum and works hard to make lessons applicable to the real world. Making learning both engaging and purposeful is her ultimate goal with her students.

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LESSON PLAN	How Do Reading Partnerships Work? Students will complete a survey that the teacher can use to compare similar reading interests and reading abilities before assigning reading...