Psy williams

BOYS AND BOOKS CLUBMichael Williams, Central Dauphin School District

Jack Clemente, and Jacob Hoffman, Assistant Presenters

Why?

Study how boys select and come to books Motivation to read…what drives them? Provide an opportunity for boys to gather

together in a nontraditional setting to read Increase reading achievement Create life-long reading habits Reading is for everyone! Positive experiences with literacy will lead

to success in school for boys.

Reading Rockets: Boys and Books

Thoughts from Jon Scieszka

William Brozo

Best Books for Boys?

Matthew D. Zbaracki

What?

Author Study Series Study Genre Study Individual Books Boys’ Picks Graphic Novels

Author Study

Dav Pilkey http://www.pilkey.com

Jon Scieszka http://www.jsworldwide.com

Dan Gutman http://www.dangutman.com

Series Study

Weird School Series by Dan Gutman Captain Underpants Series by Dav Pilkey Stink Series by Megan McDonald

Genre Study

Newspapers Scavenger Hunt Comics

Magazines Sports Illustrated for Kids National Geographic for Kids

Historical Fiction Civil War – Create Your Own Adventure Magic Tree House

Individual Read Aloud

Boys’ Picks

Adventures in Cartooning

Pilot and Huxley

Graphic Novels

How would you use this book? Select a book

from the table Imagine that you

were reading this book with a group of boys

Complete the 3-2-1 about the book

Share

3 things you think boys would like about the book

2 activities you could try with the boys using this book

1 concern you may have about using the book

How?

Classroom Research Grant Boys and Books Club began in an After

School Club setting (January 2010) Continued during lunch time for a half

hour Shared books while we ate lunch Most recently we have been reading

sections of the Boys Book of Adventure.

Classroom Research Grant

Action research in the classroom Collect data and make observations to

support current practices or make instructional changes

Grant up to $500 (half to start research, second half at conclusion of research)

Deadline to apply is December 15th

Must be KSRA member to apply

Findings

Boys were much more willing to share their thoughts about books in an “exclusive” setting as opposed to whole classroom setting

Book talks or recommendations from a male role model helped to get them interested in new books or books they may not have considered

Help to build friendships among boys that centered around the basis of books

Motivation to read increased

Survey Results

Reading a book is something that I like to do…

Never

Not v

ery

ofte

n

Som

etim

es

Often

00.5

11.5

22.5

33.5

Jan-10Oct-10

Survey Results

I tell my friends about books I read…

Never do that

Almost never

do that

Do that some of the time

Do that a lot

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

Jan-10Oct-10

Survey Results

Reading is…

Very easy for

me

Kind of easy for

me

Kind of hard for

me

Very hard for

me

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Jan-10Oct-10

Survey Results

What types of books do you like to read?

Fiction Nonfiction Both0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Jan-10Oct-10

Survey Results

Do you have a favorite author? January 2010

Yes – 4 (Mary Pope Osburne – 2, Dr. Seuss, and Tedd Arnold)

No – 1 October 2010

Yes – 4 (Dr. Seuss, Dan Gutman, Roald Dahl, and Dav Pilkey)

No – 1

Survey Results

Do you know of any books that you would like to read right now? January 2010

Yes – 3 (Fly Guy books, History books, Civil War books, Magic Tree House books.)

No – 2 October 2010

Yes – 5 (Diary of a Wimpy Kid – 3, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Hardy Boys, Star Wars, and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs)

Survey Results

What are some things that really get you excited about reading books? January 2010

“It sounds real,” after school clubs, going to the book fair, going to the library, getting comfy in bed, and “the funny stuff.”

October 2010 Summaries on the back of books, learning

books, “when they do something funny,” “the cool things in them,” and Mr. Williams

Survey Results

Who gets you excited about reading books? January 2010

Mom – 3, Dad – 2, Teachers – 1, Friend – 1 October 2010

Mr. Williams – 4, The people in it (the book club) – 1

Next Steps

Use a magazine to “blog” thoughts and feelings using a wikispace.

Examine achievement gains in reading from the start of the book club until now.

Boys, Books, and Breakfast

How can you start a book club?

Consider the following factors that would be necessary in order to start a boys books club Time – When will you meet? Books – Do you have the books that boys like? Money – Can you purchase books that you

may need? Boys – How will you get the boys involved? Parents & Principal – Will they support you?

Think-Pair-Share

Other Books to Consider

George Brown, Class Clown Series by Nancy Krulik

Horrid Henry Series by Francesca Simon The Curse of the Campfire Weenies and Other

Warped and Creepy Tales by David Lubar The Boys’ Book of Greatness and The Boys’ Book

of Survival Bailey School Kids Series by Debbie Dadey Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series by Jeff Kinney Nonfiction books – topics related to the boy What other books can you add to the list?

Take a moment and list three important points about boys and books and then write what you feel is the most important thing that you have learned today.

The most important thing is…

Internet Resources

www.guysread.com http://www.booksforboys.com http://booksandboys.blogspot.com

Thank you!

Michael [email protected]

Questions?