The Class Novel: Designing engaging activities linked to class books (Part 1..maybe?)
I grew up on Eric Walters, Kit Pearson, Lois Lowry, Deborah Ellis, and Jean Little. As I got older, I fell into the worlds created by Robert J. Sawyer and Rick Riordan. I still love reading physical books and have expanded to include audiobooks.
Why do I love reading so much? I was allowed to explore many different books. I was allowed to abandon books when I didn’t love them. I visited the library. My parents read to me. I was surrounded by language, books, and opportunities to find books I might like. And so, I read…and read…and read some more. Novels are easy to find in a school and can be powerful sources of hands-on cross curricular lessons.
What do I mean by the class novel?
When I am talking about the class novel, I am not talking about a every student reading the same book at the same time…and answers the same questions…with the same spelling tests for each chapter…The type of novel, where kids sign up to cold read parts of the book and some stumble terrified over words. The type of novel study that turns reading into a search and find. That is not the way we explore novels in my class.
In classrooms, sometimes I read a novel to my kids for joy and to model language. I read the book 2-3 times before I read it out loud so that I can nail the language and design hands-on lessons linked to topics or themes in the book. If I do it right, the class novel begets additional novels.
Why is making the class novel a search and find with spelling tests a problem?
I always ask my students if they like to read and what their favourite books are. Many students do not see themselves as readers. They start the year not liking books or reading or being able to identify a single author they enjoy. This is terrifying. When novels are turned into search and find questions or spelling tests, we teach kids that reading is about memorizing details. Reading should be about exploring connections, emotions, and the human condition. Through literature, our students can talk about hard truths, and it is through these powerful discussions or activities related to the discussions that students grow.
I want my students to love reading. They don’t have to love every genre or every author, but I want them to have at least one genre they love. I want them to know how to read and recognize when they might need support understanding text. I want them to identify as readers.
How do I choose a class novel?
To choose a class novel I usually:
Ask the librarian for a few suggestions based on a topic I want to explore…or what they think would be a good read aloud and read through them
I look at lists like The Surrey School Book of the Year Nominees
I choose authors that are prolific (so if my kids like the author…they will have more books to read)
I often choose the first book in a series (same reason as above)
I choose books I like…they may not be happy…in fact, they are usually hard—but I must like and connect to them to help my students also connect to them
How do I use class novels?
I use novels in my classroom throughout the year. When I am reading a novel to my class, I think about several questions to help me design hands-on mini lessons. I don’t know every lesson before I start reading, or all of the connections the kids will make, but I usually have four to five in mind based on my initial read of the novel. I also usually have a final activity sketched out, though this might change as we read the book based on student suggestions.
Out of My Mind Case Study
Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper is about a girl named Melody who has cerebral palsy. She cannot communicate except with her communication board. Through the book, Melody struggles with communication, discrimination, and friendship. She eventually gets a device that helps her communicate, which changes her life, and leads to further discrimination . I have read this book for year because it creates powerful discussions and connections. My student love it so much, one year they voted for an hour of reading instead of a Christmas party to finish the book.
So what questions do I ask myself when planning lessons? The questions I think about are in yellow and some of my plans for Out of My Mind are in orange. I try to keep a very narrow focus at first so I can really help the students explore the ideas in depth.
Focus Activity: What concepts do I want to explore?
I like to focus on communication as a privilege, universal design, and inclusion in the classroom when I read Out of My Mind. Early in the book, Melody describes her talking board. My students always want to build one and try it. I designed a communication board simulation a few years ago and it is a powerful experience. If I have an amazing EA in my class, I have them also talk about students they have supported with communication boards and give a few suggestions at important words.
During the communication board simulation emotions run high as students quickly become frustrated with their limited language and having to spell everything out. The class internalized the privilege of communication.
You can download the lesson plan HERE.
This year, we paused after three questions to add the red X for delete AND the green rectangle for space. These two symbols made a HUGE difference in the frustration level. The students also noticed how people would start guessing their words, and asking easier questions to make life easier on the person communicating. They started to think about how this probably happens in real life and how frustrating it would be.
This was just one activity linked to the book. It created powerful discussions about privilege, communication, and inclusion. It was a great springboard from a fantastic book.
Final Thoughts
Reading out loud a class novel is a powerful way to model language and create lifelong readers. The novel can also be the basis for mini lessons linked to language arts, art, science, math, Core Competencies, and more depending on the topic.
If you would like me to make this a series and share more of what I have done with Out of My Mind and other class novels I read, please let me know here or on Instagram @cre8tolearn.