4th grade genres

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4th grade genres
By sharon in CA

I also teach 4th graders who do a tremendous amount of independent reading - more so since we started using Accelerated Reader. I try to guide their choice of genres by setting an example with what I read aloud. I discuss
each book I read, talk about the genre and what it is, then give them possible suggestions for other books they can try. It's not very structured, but it seems to work for most. Here are some I encourage - fantasy (pretty easy with Harry Potter being so popular), historical fiction (Sadako, By the Great Horn Spoon, Patty Reed's Doll, Hiroshima), biography (and autobiography), "real"

fiction (books with story lines not completely out of the realm of possibility, such as Shiloh, Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing). Since we have a large selection of Great Illustrated Classics in our school and classroom library, we also discuss this group of books. You can't believe the number of students (especially boys) who are reading Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, Tale of Two Cities, etc. - books many wouldn't pick up for several years to come - and then only because it is required reading. I hope this has been of some help - not just an "old" teacher rambling!