Independent Reading Book List for Parents (Perfect for Back to School Night!)

THIS is what your need for your Open House or your Back to School Night. You will instantly impress your parents as well as put a tool in their hands that will help their children to thrive in your classroom.

It can be so difficult to encourage middle and high schoolers to read independently. Once of the most commonly asked questions in parent-teacher conferences as well as at Open House nights is "My child used to love to read, but now, with homework, activities, friends, technology, etc...they no longer seem to make the time to read.

This question (and the frequency with which I hear it) is the reason why I put this list together. First of all, everyone loves a good take-away, even from Open House night. So while we all have wonderful PowerPoint and Google Slide presentations that will WOW our parents, nothing will make you look like the true star that you are like an informative take away. Second of all, the first line of defense to "reading drop-off" is a really appealing stack of books. Whether students are reading or listening to books on tape, the first thing they need (if they are not already avid readers, and we wouldn't be having this conversation if they were) is guidance toward some titles they will love. Third of all, as ELA teachers, we all examine books that we want to get our kids reading, and it is usually easy enough to rattle off a brief list to parents when asked, but it would be so much more helpful to have an organized list that represents as much diversity in authors and in books as possible.

As a department head, I keep this list handy, add to it each year, and give it to the teachers in my department to distribute along with their syllabus on Back to School night. Teachers in grades 6-12 distribute this list to parents so that parents can continue to grow with their reader, use the list for multiple children, etc...AND since this year's Back to School night might be in-person for some, virtual for others, you can feel free to distribute it digitally or in person.

What is included in this product:

* A letter to the teacher explaining how to use these lists

* A letter to parents

* One "Bridging the Gap" list of well-researched books of suggested independent reading books to carry readers from middle school to high school

* One list of well-researched high school or YA books for students who are in high school and beyond

Please feel free to message me with any questions/concerns.

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