book reports

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Home : 2004 : August : 25

book reports
By Linda

I teach Grades 5 and 6 and marking a class set of book reports many times a year is too much. We do read many novels over the year and I've found some quick and easy book reports that give good information and are easy to
mark.
My favourite is the paper bag book report and the kids love it too. On a paper lunch bag, they put the author and title on the front, and on the back a picture and sentence of their favourite scene. (They can do it on paper and glue it to the bag or just do it on the bag)
Inside the bag they are to place 6-10 objects that are significant to the book. (e.g. in Frindle, a pen

would be one object, or in Holes, a peach and/or onion)
They then present the objects to the class, explaining the significance of each object.
It takes a bit of time for the presentations, but the kids love it, and you can mark while they present. It really gives you a good idea of how well they understand the novel.
I often add other things - like the class gets to ask three questions of the presenter, or they must give a rating of the book.
It also exposes other students to new books that they might like.