One of the nicest gifts anyone can give me is the title of a great book. This page is for you. The downloadable lists are for your students.
LOOKING FOR GOOD BOOKS?
"Booktalks Quick and Simple" provides blurb recommendations for THOUSANDS of books appropriate for K-12.
http://nancykeane.com/booktalks/default.htm
"Lexile Framework for Reading" will help you find books that are matched to your students' reading levels (Lexiles measure the difficulty of syntax and vocabulary).
http://www.lexile.com/EntrancePageHtml.aspx?1
Worldcat.org will help you search both libraries and bookstores. It even provides price comparisons among the booksellers!
http://www.worldcat.org/
Another hint: On Barnes & Noble.com or Amazon.com, find a book you've already enjoyed, then read the sidebar list for "People who bought this book also bought..."
LOOKING FOR A COOL PROJECT IDEA?
The Book Talk Project requires students to read a nonfiction book, describe it briefly, then answer the audience’s questions about it. This project includes an overview of the assignment, the audience’s questions, a scoring checklist, and a list of recommended nonfiction books. This assignment has worked very well with HS students and can be modified for MS students or for a different genre of reading.
RECOMMENDED READING FOR TEACHERS:
ON READING/VOCABULARY:
Appleman, Deborah. Critical Encounters in High School English: Teaching Literary Theory to Adolescents. New York: Teachers College Press, 2000.
Beck, Isabel L., and Margaret G. McKeown. Improving Comprehension with Questioning the Author. New York: Scholastic, 2006.
Beck, Isabel L., Margaret G. McKeown, and Linda Kucan. Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction. New York: The Guilford Press, 2002.
---. Creating Robust Vocabulary: Frequently Asked Questions & Extended Examples. New York: The Guilford Press, 2008.
Gallagher, Kelly. Deeper Comprehension: Comprehending Challenging Texts, 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 2004.
Harvey, Stephanie, and Anne Goudvis. Strategies That Work: Teaching Comprehension for Understanding and Engagement (2nd ed.). Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 2007.
Lattimer, Heather. Thinking Through Genre: Units of Study in Reading and Writing Workshops 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 2003.
Robb, Laura. Teaching Reading in Social Studies, Science, and Math. New York: Scholastic, 2003.
ON WRITING:
Bernays, Anne, and Pamela Painter. What If?: Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1990.
Buckner, Aimee. Notebook Know-How: Strategies for the Writer's Notebook. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 2005.
Caine, Karen. Writing to Persuade: Minilessons to Help Students Plan, Draft, Revise, Grades 3-8. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2008.
Ehrenworth, Mary, and Vicki Vinton. The Power of Grammar: Unconventional Approaches to the Conventions of Language. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2005.
Elbow, Peter. Embracing Contraries: Explorations in Learning and Teaching. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986.
---. Writing With Power: Techniques for Mastering the Writing Process. New York: Oxford University Press, 1981.
---. Writing Without Teachers. New York: Oxford University Press, 1973.
Fletcher, Ralph. What a Writer Needs. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1993.
Goldberg, Natalie. Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1986.
Lattimer, Heather. Thinking Through Genre: Units of Study in Reading and Writing Workshops 4-12. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers, 2003.
Robb, Laura. Nonfiction Writing From the Inside Out. New York: Scholastic, 2004.
Tsjimoto, Joseph I. Teaching Poetry Writing to Adolescents. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 1988.
ON HOW WE THINK ABOUT TEACHING AND LEARNING:
Dweck, Carol S. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. New York: Random House, 2007.
Hirsch, E.D., Jr. The Knowledge Deficit: Closing the Shocking Education Gap for American Children. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2006.
Pink, Daniel. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. New York: Riverhead Books, 2009.
Thernstrom, Abigail, and Stephan Thernstrom. No Excuses: Closing the Racial Gap in Learning. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004.
IN THE DOWNLOAD ZONE for Recommended Reading:
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