Reading Logs and Goal-Setting for Middle School Readers

This 25-page Reading Logs and Goal-Setting for Middle School Readers resource is, part of the 95-page unit Creating Independent Readers in your Middle School Classroom.

Reading Log and Goal-Setting for Middle School Readers is a how-to lesson to help teachers center the importance of reading (and independent reading) in their 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Language Arts classrooms by having students be accountable for their reading. Students establish goals for their reading: the number of pages, minutes, and books they would like to read over the course of a grading period (quarter, trimester, or semester). They initially reflect on their feelings about reading, then establish goals for the first marking period. (The resource offers a step-by-step instruction for teachers to help students set reasonable and realistic goals for how much they want to read.) Each grading period, they review their goals to see if they achieved, surpassed, or fell short of achieving them. They reflect on their successes and challenges, and then. establish new goals.

This resource offers teachers the following:

• a detailed lesson plan that includes how students can determine their reading goals

• a sample Reading Requirements handout for a typical classroom which is easily editable to fit your needs

• a self-reflection as readers, before they establish goals the first time

• Reading Goals for each marking period which includes self-reflections for students to complete in which they celebrate their successes, identify their challenges, offer solutions for these challenges, and set new goals for the next grading period.

• Reading Logs for students to complete

• Reflections for each marking period

• End-of-Year Reflection with guiding questions for them to think about their goals, their successes, their challenges, what they learned about themselves as readers, favorite books or authors, etc.

• 6 Sample Student End-of-Year Reflections

Most students don't read enough and many of our students read below grade level. As English teachers, we struggle with providing our students enough in-class time for reading, whether it's through SSR (Sustained Silent Reading) or DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) or some other carved out time for reading. Many teachers will tell you that they have tried reading logs, and students often cheat on them or don't turn them in. My experience has been different. By building in student accountability by having them establish reading goals, in addition to giving them 10-15 minutes of silent reading in class twice a week (or however much time you have dedicated to it), and by checking in with them regularly on their reading practice, students turn in their reading logs. Of course there has to be follow-through on the teacher's part by contacting parents, discussing with students how to choose the just-right book, making sure books are available, talking about reading, doing book talks, or having them do book talks, etc.

My 95-page unit, Creating Independent Readers in your Middle School Classroom. Each part is available as a stand-alone resource.

• Part 1: What We Do When We Read: When we read, our brain is engaging in subconscious activities related to what we are reading. In this lesson, students complete a reading survey, write a personal reading history, and through the poem, "The Voice You Hear When You Read Silently," by Thomas Lux, identify reading strategies we use subconsciously.

• Part 2: Reading Logs and Goal Setting for Middle School Readers, in this how-to lesson, teachers introduce what they expect from their students in terms of their accountability for their reading. Students have handouts to help them establish goals for their reading for each grading period: how many books they want to finish and how many pages they want to read, and a self-reflection on their accomplishments. 

• Part 4: Summary Writing for Short Stories: A step-by-step lesson to teach students write a summary of a short story by completing a graphic organizer. Includes links to several stories.  Also includes an optional group summary project In addition, using Chris Van Allsburg picture books.

• Part 5: Metacognitive Logs: Reading Response: Provides teachers with detailed lessons to teach students how to respond to literature by analyzing and interpreting their thoughts while reading. This process trains students to focus on their reading. There are many student examples and opportunities for interactive activities.

I also offer a number of book reports that help students stay accountable to their reading.

• Character Analysis Essay, Gift for a Character Book Report, and Oral Presentation

• Book into Movie Project: Comparing and Contrasting

• Poetry Book Report

• Mini-Reviews Book Report

• Mystery, Thriller, Horror, and Suspense Book Report

• Book Jacket Book Report

• Historical Fiction Book Report

• Historical Fiction Literature Circle Project