Ban the Book Report: Promoting Frequent and Enthusiastic Reading. Graham Foster. Markham, ON: Pembroke, 2012. 112 pp., trade pbk., $24.95. ISBN 978-1-55138-264-7. Subject Heading: Reading. Professional: Grades 5-9. Review by Betty Klassen. ***½ /4

excerpt:

Reading research has long emphasized the importance of frequent independent reading by students, not only for reading comprehension but also for enrichment of students' lives. For years we have recognized that without encouragement many young people would not voluntarily read longer texts, such as novels. The digital age intensifies the challenge, since online reading is often characterized by skimming, scanning, and shuffling around multiple texts rather than extended reflective reading of longer texts. Despite the challenges, educators must clearly and enthusiastically advocate frequent independent reading. The independent reading habit is a gift that yields lifetime enjoyment and opportunity.

Teachers and parents should remember frequent independent reading leads to writing. Published writers frequently report that their reading led them to their writing and that without their reading habit they never would have become writers. Even if one's writing is never published or even shared with others, it represents a highly significant form of personal exploration and self-understanding.

In writing Ban the Book Report, Graham Foster has created a helpful resource for teachers to support students' critical thinking of texts they are reading. He has built on his experiences as a consultant, writer and workshop leader to create a practical book of reading response options complete with student exemplars, completion forms and student-friendly rubrics. This well-structured book also includes a short list of suggestions for further reading, locating additional resources and an index.

      Chapter 1 introduces readers to his approach and reasoning for developing these assignments which have all been tested by teachers in various classrooms. His advice to encourage students to read frequently and independently includes: a diverse collection of texts in school and classroom libraries; opportunities for readers of all ages to hear books read aloud; class time for reading self-selected texts, and time for students to talk and write about their personal and emotional responses.

      A side-note on page 8 states, "Response to independent reading must value meaning-making that includes emotional response and personal connections as well as thematic meaning and stylistic analysis." This reviewer and teacher would like to suggest changing that to state "all reading must value meaning-making . . . "

      A definite strength of the book is the thoughtful advice given at the start of each chapter in terms of when assignments work best for student responsiveness and what students have preferred in the past use of these assignments. The introduction to each chapter also includes suggestions for pre-teaching that may be needed to ensure students have the prior knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in completing the assignment. The handout page for each assignment describes the assignment, includes a three level rubric and a reflective space to self-assess and set a new reading goal. Two examples of student writing are provided with each assignment. These are of varying length and writing level, which is where the recommendation for grades 5-9 is derived from. Other exemplars for these assignment ideas could be created and thus expand the applicable grade level use.

      The collection of 20 reading response assignments include reading logs; oral and written responses; illustration and graphic representations; making connections to self, other texts and events; and responses to informational texts. While these assignments are promoted as useful for encouraging and reporting on independent student reading, they are valuable and appropriate to use to engage students in exploring mandatory or teacher chosen texts as well.

      The final chapter includes a collection of eight suggested assignments that can serve as a professional development activity for teachers to co-plan and complete. While this is an excellent idea, they can also be an opportunity for classroom teachers to write exemplars in front of and with their students (a la Regie Routman). Teachers could use these and other ideas to model responses to books they, themselves, have been reading independently.

      We can also celebrate reading by encouraging students to talk about the "good bits" (p. 11) in their books and to not require an assignment of any kind for some of their reading, a point not made in the book.

Highly Recommended.

Betty Klassen teaches in the Middle Years B. Ed. Program in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, MB.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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