Running Head: READING MOTIVATION
Using Book Talks and Choice to Increase Reading Motivation
Jessica Homan (Suter)
A Master’s Paper
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of
the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Science in Education - Reading
______________________
Advisor
______________________
Date
University of Wisconsin – River Falls
2015
READING MOTIVATION
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Using Book Talks and Choice to Increase Reading Motivation
Jessica Homan (Suter)
University of Wisconsin – River Falls
READING MOTIVATION
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Abstract
The purpose of this action research was to show how book talks and student choice can
have an impact on students’ motivation to read. A book talk is when a teacher or student tells the
class a little bit about the book in order to get them interested to read it on their own. Analysis of
the qualitative and quantitative data revealed that eight of the eleven students who participated in
this study increased their reading motivation, while the other three remained the same.
Furthermore, all of the students enjoyed having one day per week designated for book talks and
choice reading and recommended that it continue as a part of the intervention block. In order for
students to sustain a lifelong love of reading, they need to be intrinsically motivated to read.
This study demonstrated that intrinsic motivation can be developed through book talks and
allowing students to select their reading materials. For teachers to motivate students, they must
be responsive to the different literacy personalities that each student brings to the classroom. In
addition, teachers can contribute to reading engagement when they share their passions and
struggles about reading with students.
Keywords: reading motivation, engagement, book talks, choice
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Introduction
During the 2013-2014 school year, I noticed minimal excitement in my 2nd second grade
classroom during “Read-to-self” time, one of the components of The Daily Five, a strategy I use
to organize my reading instruction. It made me sad to observe kids asking, “Is silent reading over
yet?” I wanted my students to be so engaged in their books that the time flew and they groaned
when I told them it was time to switch to a new activity. This was also concerning to me because
researchers have shown that students who enjoy reading the most are more proficient readers
(Gambrell, 2011). In addition, they have pointed out that students who are intrinsically motivated
to read will have better reading comprehension. I hypothesized that one of the reasons students
were getting bored was because they didn’t realize all of the good books that were in our library.
Another reason could have been that they were picking books that didn’t excite them or that they
didn’t connect with. As I reflected on the cause of these problems, I identified two possible
reasons: 1) I had not taught students how to discuss and share books; and 2) I did not do enough
book talks to get kids excited about the different kinds of books in our classroom library.
These concerns led me to implement a pilot action research study on this topic in my
classroom. My action research question was:

What effect do teacher and student “book talks” have on student motivation to
read?
The results of my study showed that the “book talks” I gave helped increase student
engagement and also helped increase their excitement about reading.
During the 2014-2015 school year my job description changed and I no longer had “readto-self” time. I was working primarily as a Title I reading and math teacher. Title I is a federally
funded program that provides interventions for students who are below grade level in reading or
READING MOTIVATION
math. In our school district Title I teachers work with these students for 30 minutes each day.
The group sizes vary from one to four children. In Title I reading, we primarily use a program
called Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) with our students. LLI is a research based program
that provides new books for students daily and has teaching points for teachers to follow. In
addition, the students take home a copy of the book daily to practice reading at home.
As the year went on and I talked with my students, I noticed that they were rarely rereading these books at home. Furthermore, they admitted that they were not usually reading for
enjoyment at all. As I tried to identify why this was happening, I hypothesized that: 1) Students
did not want to re-read books we had already read in class; 2) Students had not found or been
shown books that truly excited them. This led me to want to continue my action research about
book talks and student motivation, but this time I wanted to research how these factors affected
their choice reading at home.
Some of the related sub-questions that I explored were:

What motivates students to read?

What does a good book talk include?

How does student choice affect motivation to read?

How do book talks influence the variety of books that students choose?

What are the best books for boys who are reluctant readers?

What ways can students share their opinions about books they’ve read with their
classmates?

How does student collaboration about books affect their motivation to read?
The purpose of this study was to increase what Csikszentmihalyi (1991) noted as ‘flow’
in my students’ reading (as cited in Cole, 2002, p.329). This means that I want students to be so
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involved in their reading that they lose track of time and can only think about the book they’re
reading. They are “in the flow.” I think that when students experience flow in reading, they
become more motivated to read again; thus their intrinsic motivation for reading will increase.
Findings from this study are important to all teachers, especially those who teach reading,
because they lend insight into possible strategies for increasing students’ reading motivation and
engagement.
Review of Related Literature
Reading Motivation
A student’s motivation to read is arguably one of the most important factors in their
reading success. According to Gambrell (2011), “Highly motivated students who see reading as a
desirable activity will initiate and sustain their engagement in reading and thus become better
readers” (p. 172). Research by Allington (2001) supports this by verifying that students need to
spend a lot of time reading in order to improve their skills (as cited in Jones, 2006, p. 576). If
students are not engaged, we cannot expect them to become better readers. In addition, children
are motivated to read by a variety of factors. Thus, it is important for teachers to recognize how
they can increase student’s reading motivation (Metsala, 1996).
Metsala (1996) notes the importance of distinguishing between intrinsic and extrinsic
motivation. Intrinsic motivation is when students are motivated by something within themselves.
Intrinsic motivation typically falls into one of four categories: curiosity, involvement, challenge,
and/or social interaction. Extrinsic motivation frequently stems from teachers or parents. Some
reasons that students might be extrinsically motivated are for recognition, compliance, or getting
good grades. Metsala also found that in order for students to experience lifelong, voluntary
reading, they need to be intrinsically motivated. Gambrell’s research supports this conclusion
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(2011). In her article, Seven Rules of Engagement, she concluded that students are more
motivated to read when:
1.
the reading tasks and activities are relevant to their lives;
2. they have access to a wide range of reading materials;
3. they have ample opportunities to engage in sustained reading;
4. they have opportunities to make choices about what they read and how they engage in
and complete literacy tasks;
5. they have opportunities to socially interact with others about the text they are reading;
6. they have opportunities to be successful with challenging texts; and
7. classroom incentives reflect the value and importance of reading (p 173).
Looking deeper into Gambrell’s seven motivators, it is clear that the tasks teachers assign
to students are extremely important in influencing a student’s reading motivation. In fact, in a
study of how literacy tasks influence children’s motivation for literacy, Turner (1995) found that
the daily tasks teachers do with students, not the type of reading program, are the most reliable
indicators of student’s motivation. The tasks in Turner’s study were separated into two different
categories, open or closed. Open tasks were ones that students had more control over. They
provided more choice, challenge and opportunities for collaboration through reading and writing.
For example, if students were writing, they decided what interested them, how to organize it to
create a theme, and what they wanted the final message to be.
Closed tasks were described as
ones where the process or product had one correct answer. An example of a closed task is
completing a worksheet with cloze sentences in which students had to fill in the blanks with
selected vocabulary words. The study showed that open tasks were more likely to develop
learners who had intrinsic motivation.
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Reading motivation is multifaceted and complex. In a study about motivation for reading
Cole (2003) identified four case study students; findings showed that nineteen different aspects
of motivation were present, and that none of the motivators were common to all four case study
students. The case study by Cole relates to the theoretical model of engagement shown below
from Guthrie (2004). This model is centered around a box of the desired student outcomes,
which are achievement, knowledge, and reading practices. On the outside of the box, the four
processes of reading engagement are posted: social interactions, motivations, conceptual
knowledge, and strategy use. The outer ring of this figure consists of ovals which represent the
characteristics of classrooms that show high levels of reading engagement in students. Guthrie
concluded that all of the characteristics in the outer ring are necessary for high reading
engagement.
Cole (2003) and Guthrie (2004) agree that one of a teacher’s greatest challenges is to
meet the needs of all the different literacy personalities in their classroom and motivate them to
be lifelong learners. They emphasize that since there are so many diverse personalities, teachers
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should stay focused on encouraging intrinsic motivation instead of trying to teach all children in
the same way.
Teacher Book Talks and Student Choice
Gambrell (2011) notes the importance of teacher book talks. A book talk is when the
teacher shares a small number (10-12) of books with a goal of piquing children’s interest and
curiosity about the books, thus motivating them to read the books that are introduced.
Gambrell’s second rule of engagement is directly related to this idea. She shares the importance
of not only having the books available to children, but also making students aware of all the
types of books in the classroom and library so they can find some that truly interest them.
Gambrell (2011) also suggests that doing book talks will increase the amount of books that
students know about, which gives them a better chance of finding something they are interested
in. A book talk may also include a short read-aloud from a few of the selected books. When
students hear part of a book they will often be more interested in reading the rest or finding
another book by the same author or in the same series (Miller, 2012).
Teacher book talks are an effective strategy to model a love and appreciation for reading.
Pecjak and Kosir (2008) found that when teachers share their love of reading and become
reading models, it enhances their student’s reading motivation. Schunk and Zimmerman (1997)
found that teachers who incorporate their purpose for reading, along with their beliefs about its
importance, can improve students’ self-efficacies and intrinsic motivation.
Book talks are important because they lead to student choice. Donalyn Miller’s (2012)
article “Creating a Classroom Where Reader’s Flourish” cited many small things teachers can do
to increase the volume that students read. She noted that there wasn’t a single other practice that
inspired her students to read as much as the opportunity to choose their own books. She also
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discovered that when she gave book talks about certain books to her students, selection of these
books would spread like wildfire. However, if she assigned the same book as part of class, her
students were less likely to want to read it. When she asked students about this, they responded
by saying, “When teachers tell us we have to read a book, we hate it.” (Miller, 2012, p.91) Her
study revealed that the most important factor for her students was whether they could choose to
read the book or not. Another thing that Miller found was the importance of asking students
what book they will be reading today instead of telling them what to read. When you give
students the power to choose what they’re reading, then it removes the opportunity for them to
refuse to read at all.
In relation to student choice, a study by Reynolds and Symons (2001) also suggests that
self-determination, control over the learning situation, and autonomy are critical aspects of
student choice.
Student and Teacher Collaboration
When students have the opportunity to socially interact with their peers and teachers
about the text they are reading, they are more motivated to read. Social interaction within
literacy can be looked at as any type of communication with others, such as; writing, discussing,
talking, and/or sharing. In terms of reading motivation, peer comments can make students more
interested in books. In addition, when a child sees another child’s progress, their own confidence
may improve. Finally, when students work together it promotes both interest and engagement
(Gambrell, 2011).
In a study of literacy tasks in 12 first grade classrooms, Turner (1995) discussed the
importance of students being able to select their own books and discuss them with classmates.
She stated that as students share their evaluations of books with their peers, they frequently
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discover new books. All of the new books that students are exposed to build on the positive
experiences they have with literacy. Turner notes that it is important for teachers to encourage
collaboration. One of the qualities of teachers who foster students’ reading motivation is that
they make sure to choose activities in which students have a lot of opportunities to work with a
variety of other students. Guthrie (2004) described the importance of teachers making sure
students know how to collaborate effectively. He noted that when collaboration between students
is successful, students are socially immersed which will increase intrinsic motivation.
An important aspect of collaborating is that it gives students the opportunity for selfexpression. Cole (2003) cites Guthrie and McCann’s definition of self expression as “when
students relate personal experiences to their responses and allow their own viewpoints to be
heard” (p. 329). When students talk about the books they’ve read with their classmates, this
provides them the chance to express their thoughts. Student collaboration and expression can
also happen through response sheets or opinion graphs (Cole, 2003). Although some students
can learn effectively on their own, many children need the support of their peers in order to
achieve their highest potential as readers.
The collaboration and relationships between teachers and students can also impact
student motivation. In Miller’s (2012) study she recognized the importance of celebrating any
reading that her students do. She doesn’t judge what types of books they choose, as long as they
are reading. By her showing her support for their reading choices, students start to trust
themselves in selecting books and in listening to the books she suggests. She really tries to send
the message to her students that any reading they do is much better than not reading at all.
Amanda Gulla’s (2012) research of a 9th grade literacy class at a Bronx Vocational High
School revealed many important factors relating teacher-student relationships and student
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motivation to read. The teacher Gulla worked with was honest with her students about where
they were as readers and what they needed to do to improve. She built trust with the students,
and they realized that she had their best interests at heart. She taught the importance of reading
stamina and worked to change the students’ perceptions of themselves as readers. The teacher’s
classroom was one that acted as a “readers’ club” where students could interact around books
with their peers and supportive adults. One of this teacher’s many success stories was of a
student coming back to her classroom three years later to acknowledge the impact that her class
had on him as a reader and a student.
Methodology
Introduction
After reviewing this related literature, I wanted to study children’s motivation and
engagement in reading; specifically what effect teacher and student book talks can have on
students’ motivation to read. Research shows that students who are motivated to read often read
more and become better readers. One focus of my study is on intrinsic motivation which is said
to have the greatest effect on student motivation. Book talks and choice should encourage
students to become intrinsically motivated to read more. Furthermore, the relationships that I
have with my students and that I encourage with their peers are also factors that contribute to
their motivation. This study is based on the premise that when teachers and students participate
in book talks they will be more motivated to read because their interest will have been piqued by
hearing about the book from a teacher or classmate.
Participants and Setting
This study was conducted in a small rural community in a northwestern Wisconsin. The
participants in this study attend a K-5 elementary school with approximately 140 students.
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Furthermore, the eleven students that were part of this study are all in the Title I reading
program. They qualify for this program if they have test scores that are below benchmark
and/or teacher observations and classroom data show that they could benefit from additional
small group instruction. In this study, there were four boys in third grade, three boys in fourth
grade, and four girls in fifth grade. They were with me in a 1:3 or 1:4 teacher/student ratio for 30
minutes, five days per week. Before we started the study, I was using the Leveled Literacy
Intervention (LLI) every day with students.
Materials
All parent/guardians of students participating in the research signed a letter of consent,
which can be found in Appendix A. In addition, the parents filled out a Reading Interest Survey
(Appendix B). Each student then filled out a Student Reading Interest Survey (Appendix C).
Furthermore, I (the researcher) took daily or weekly anecdotal notes recording important
comments and discoveries throughout the process. The students also had to fill out a Weekly
Reading Log (Appendix D). Finally, the bulk of additional materials during this study came
from the interests and comments the students made about the types of books they want to read. I
used my personal library, school library, and public library system to gather the most appropriate
and potentially exciting reading materials for students.
Procedures
This study was conducted over a six week period. The first week I surveyed the parents
and students and began gathering books that I felt would meet the interests and achievement
levels of the children. The first Monday following the surveys, I did book talks on eight to
twelve books per grade level group. I spent about ten minutes briefly talking about the books. I
allowed the students to quickly look them over and choose from the ones I talked about or the
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other ones in my classroom library. After ten minutes, I did a shortened LLI lesson. Throughout
the week I engaged in small conversations with the students about how their choice reading was
going. If I saw students in the hallway before or after school I would be sure to casually check in
with them on their reading. I took notes on student comments.
During the following five weeks the students continued to fill out weekly reading logs
and engage in conversations with me about reading. On the second week, I adapted my Monday
book talk session so it included more read-aloud time from me in order to get the students
hooked on the stories. In addition, I allowed the remaining class time on Mondays to be spent
quietly reading the books they chose in order to see if they truly were interested in them.
At the end of the six weeks, the students were surveyed again (Appendix E) to see if any of
their opinions about reading had changed. In addition, they were asked about their opinion of
having one day per week designed to book talks and/or free choice reading.
Findings/Results
Through this research project I found that book talks have a positive effect on students’
motivation to read. After the first week, I saw some increase in student excitement, but it wasn’t
quite where I wanted it to be. After the initial ten minute book talk and book choosing time, I
realized that if I was truly going to get kids invested in the books then I needed to give them
some free choice reading time with the books I showed in order to get them “hooked.” In
addition, I wanted to see if reading aloud more of the actual book instead of just the back cover
got them more interested in the stories. I noticed that students were much more likely to finish a
book if they had already heard part of the story and had time to see if it was a “good fit” for
them.
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My second week of book talks was very successful and it began the true excitement about
reading with each of my three groups. I pointed out to the students that if they didn’t read at
home that must be because they had not found the right book yet. I told the students stories
about how when I love books I want to read them at any chance I get. I also admitted that
sometimes I forget about books I’m reading and I don’t finish them. I explained that this usually
means that the books are not a good fit for enjoyment reading for me. I believe that by admitting
this to students, they realized it was okay to keep searching for “perfect books” for themselves.
During this second week, there were some major breakthroughs with my students. One that I
was very excited about was my fifth grade student, Erika. She is the daughter of one of the
teachers in my school and struggles with being motivated to read on her own. I received a text
message from her dad that she wanted to tell me she finished her book. In the images below you
can see our text conversation about Erika’s reading and that it had been a long time since she had
finished and/or read a book that she really enjoyed.
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I had another exciting breakthrough during the second week when I went to a parent
meeting and the mom of Danny came up to talk to me right when she saw me. She said, "I don't
know where you found these new books for Danny, but they actually have him reading at home.”
In the third week of my study, I began encouraging and prompting for more student-tostudent book recommendations. My favorite one came from Hailey. When she was talking to
her group, she said, “Seriously, this book is better than a TV show. Are you sure you don’t want
to try it?” Jessica ended up agreeing to give it a shot and read the book within a week. It was so
gratifying to hear their exchanges about all of the drama that happened in the chapter book, since
three of the girls had read it. Then, I was also very impressed because without being prompted
Kaylee went to the public library and ordered the next book in the series since I didn’t have it in
my classroom. I explained to the group that her taking the initiative to find her next book on her
own was exactly what a good reader does. I then shared this story with my other Title I reading
groups hoping that it would encourage some of them to show the same initiative.
During the third week I had a great conversation with the fourth grade classroom teacher.
As we were passing in the hallway, he commented that the students from Title I have had so
much fun sharing all of the cool facts they are learning from the books they borrowed from my
room. When I explained my research study to him, he commented, “Well their engagement in
my classroom silent reading time has definitely increased over the past few weeks since they
have had these books from your room.” Another thing that I noted from the fourth grade during
this week was that one of my students, Chris, came to my room to ask me if he could lend my
book to another student in his class who isn’t in Title I. I was completely thrilled about this, as I
felt it meant he had read the book and was so excited about it he wanted to talk to his classmate
about it.
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Four weeks into my study, Danny’s mom approached me to ask if I could tutor her sixth
grade son in reading this summer. She said that she thinks if I could get Danny to enjoy reading,
then maybe there is a possibility that I could also get her older son to enjoy it as well. I believe
that this shows that the book talks had a very positive impact on Danny.
During the fifth week of my study I surveyed students to get their opinions about the
book talks and free choice reading time that had been offered every Monday. All eleven students
agreed that I should continue doing them. The third grade boys stated that they liked the book
talks because then they knew what books were about before they began reading them. They also
liked that I showed them books they had never heard of before. The fourth grade boys liked that
I let them borrow my “expensive non-fiction books like Amazing Animal Facts and 101 Animal
Babies.” Furthermore, one of the fourth grade boys commented that he enjoyed the book talks
and choice reading, but really he wanted more of the free reading time because the LLI books are
not his favorite. The fifth grade girls liked that they had time to talk about books that they chose
on Mondays, instead of books that their teacher or I assigned. The fourth and fifth grade
students both commented that they liked how I would find books for them that fit their interests
so they didn’t just have to keep searching and guessing which ones they might like.
The other student survey question that changed quite a bit from beginning to end was the
average amount of time that the students’ said they spend reading (for fun) each day. While
giving the surveys, I had to clarify that this question meant outside of school. As a group, it went
from the majority of them reading zero to ten minutes a day to the majority reading ten to twenty
minutes each day. This data is displayed on charts below. The numbers on the pie graph
represent the number of students who read that amount of time each day.
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On average, how much time do you spend reading (for fun) each day?
3
1
1
1
0-10 minutes
0 Minutes
0-10 minutes
7
10-20 minutes
3
10-20 minutes
6
20-30 minutes
40-50 minutes
3/9/15
4/17/15
The statistic was the most exciting to me
was that every student’s rating of how much they
liked reading on a scale of zero to ten either stayed
the same or increased. The scores that stayed the
same were all at a six or above before the study.
Additionally, every students’ rating was now at a
five or higher.
Conclusions
After reading a variety of articles on
reading motivation and reflecting on my own
classroom practices, I am intrigued by the impact
If you had to rate how much
you like reading, you would
say it’s a:
Student 3/9/2015 4/17/2015
Adam
3
8
George
6
6
Danny
5
7
Seth
10
10
Erik
4.5
8
Chris
6
8
Luke
7
7
Jessica
3
5
Kaylee
3
5
Hailey
4
5
Erika
5
7
that teachers’ actions can have on students’ reading motivation. Book talks are a great way for
teachers to get students motivated to choose appropriate and exciting books. Furthermore, I
believe that as the students got more excited about books and reading, I was motivated to be the
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best teacher I could be. It was so rewarding getting positive comments about students’ reading
from their parents and classroom teachers that I was even more motivated to find the “perfect”
books for the students.
For teachers, this means that we cannot just depend on one or two strategies to motivate
our students, but rather we must be more responsive to the different literacy personalities that
each of our students brings to our classrooms. We should constantly be sharing our passion for
books with students, as well as the struggles we’ve experienced. In addition, we should give
students choice in what they read.
Implications for Further Research
I have learned a lot about student motivation to read, and I will continue to do book talks
one day per week in my Title I intervention groups. As I continue to work on getting all students
motivated to read independently, I will focus more on where the books can be found and how I
selected the books I shared with them. If I want my students to truly become lifelong readers,
they need to not only read books that their teachers find for them, but they also need to use their
own skills and the school and public library systems to find the books. One strategy I am
considering to reinforce the importance of self-selection is to actually teach my Monday “book
talk and choice reading” classes in the school or public library.
Another issue I would like to explore is how I can keep students reading over the
summer. Children often lose reading skills over the summer, and a focus on self-selected
summer reading could help them to retain the skills and attitudes that are developed during the
school year. I think if I could help them to be more comfortable with the public library system
and build confidence in their ability to find themselves good books, then maybe they would read
more.
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References
Allington, R.L. (2001). What really matters for struggling readers: Designing research-based
programs. New York: Addison Wesley Longman.
Allyn, P. (2011). Best books for boys: How to engage boys in reading in ways that will change
their lives. New York, NY: Scholastic.
Cole, J. E. (2002). What motivates students to read? Four literacy personalities. The Reading
Teacher, 56(4), 326-336.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1991). Literacy and intrinsic motivation. In S.R. Graubard (Ed.), Literacy:
An overview by fourteen experts (pp.115-140). New York: Hill & Wang.
De Naeghel, J., & Van Keer, H. (2013). The relation of student and class‐level characteristics to
primary school students' autonomous reading motivation: A multi‐level
approach. Journal of Research in Reading, 36(4), 351-370.
Gambrell, L. B. (2011). Seven rules of engagement: What's most important to know about
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Gulla, A. N. (2012). Putting the “shop” in reading workshop. Building reading stamina in a
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Metsala, J. L. (1996). How children's motivations relate to literacy. Reading Teacher, 49(8), 660.
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Reynolds, P. L. & Symons, S. (2001). Motivational variables and children’s text search. Journal
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Appendix A
Letter of Consent
March 6th, 2015
Dear Parent/Guardian(s),
As an educator, I am constantly evaluating the way I do things to figure out if there is a better way they could be
done. One of my big interests is in students’ motivation to read. As part of the Reading Master’s program in which
I am currently enrolled at UW-River Falls, I have chosen to do an action research study on reading motivation. The
goal of this study is to help me collect evidence in teaching techniques that will increase motivation.
This project will focus on the effect that book talks can have on a child’s reading motivation. A book talk is when
someone tells you enough about a book to get you excited about it, but doesn’t give away the whole story. I am
interviewing all of the parents and students I work with on their thoughts and feelings about reading. In addition, I
will have students keep a log of their independent reading. Then, I will be presenting my findings to other teachers
in an educational setting and it will be included in my final thesis paper. Furthermore, I would be happy to share it
with you, if you are interested. I will only use logs and interview questions in the presentation if I have your
permission. I will use pseudonyms to protect all children’s privacy. Keep in mind that this is voluntary and if you
choose not to grant permission, it will in no way affect your child’s relationship with me or their standing in class.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call or email me.
Sincerely,
Jessica Homan (Suter)
Title I Teacher/Coordinator
2nd & 3rd Grade SAGE Teacher
suterj@elmwood.k12.wi.us
715-239-2711
______________________________________________________________________
I give Jessica Homan permission to use my child’s reading log and survey/interview answers in her action research
project for UWRF.
I do not give Jessica Homan permission to use my child’s reading log and survey/interview answers in her action
research project for UWRF.
Child’s Name: _______________________________________
Parent’s Name: ______________________________________
Parent’s Signature: ___________________________________ Date __________
READING MOTIVATION
23
Appendix B
Parent Reading Interest Survey
Name: _________________________
Date: ___________
Reading Interest Survey
I’d like to learn more about your child’s interest in reading so I can make
appropriate book recommendations to them. Thank you for your help!
~Mrs. Homan
1.
0
If you had to rate how much your child likes reading, you would say it is a:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
(Doesn’t like it)
10
(LOVES IT!)
2. On average, how much time does your child spend reading at home each day?
0 minutes
0-10 minutes
40-50 minutes 50-60 minutes
3.
10-20 minutes
20-30 minutes
30-40 minutes
60+ minutes
When I am thinking of books to recommend to your child, what should I keep in mind? (You
can share anything you’d like below or use this list to help give you some ideas.)
-Genre: adventure, mystery, biography, fantasy, informational, sports, humorous,
realistic fiction
-Type: picture books, chapter books, series, graphic novels, comics, magazines
-Child’s interests/hobbies
-Books they’ve liked in the past
READING MOTIVATION
24
Appendix C
Student Reading Interest Survey
Name: _________________________
Date: ___________
Student Reading Interest Survey
1. What kinds of books do you like to read? Circle all that apply
Adventure
Mystery
Biography
Historical
Science
Informational
Sports
Humorous
Realistic Fiction
Other __________________
2. What do you read most of the time?
Books
Magazines
Graphic Novels
Text books
Comic Books
Websites
Fantasy
Newspapers
3. Where do you find/get most of your “choice” or “fun” reading materials?
Public Library
School Library
Classroom Library
LLI Books
Mrs. Homan’s Library Home Library
4. Who do you get book recommendations from?
Librarian(s)
Classroom Teacher
Mrs. Homan
Friends
Family
5.
Who do you recommend good books to?
6.
On average, how much time do you spend reading (for fun) each day?
0 minutes
0-10 minutes
10-20 minutes
40-50 minutes 50-60 minutes
20-30 minutes
30-40 minutes
60+ minutes
7.
If I’m looking for good books for you to read, what should I keep in mind? (picture books,
chapter books, series….) What would you be interested in reading right now?
8.
If you had to rate how much you like reading, you would say it is a:
0
1
(Don’t like it)
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
(LOVE IT!)
READING MOTIVATION
25
Appendix D
Weekly Reading Log
Week of ________
Book(s) Read
Minutes
Child
read
alone
Child read
to
someone
Parent
read to
child
Mark all that apply
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Comments:
Parent and
child read
together
READING MOTIVATION
26
Appendix E
Final Student Survey
Student Survey
1. Where do you find/get most of your “choice” or “fun” reading materials?
Public Library
School Library
Classroom Library
LLI Books
Mrs. Homan’s Library Home Library
2. Who do you get book recommendations from?
Librarian(s)
Classroom Teacher
Mrs. Homan
Friends
Family
3.
Who do you recommend good books to?
4.
On average, how much time do you spend reading (for fun) each day?
0 minutes
0-10 minutes
10-20 minutes
40-50 minutes 50-60 minutes
20-30 minutes
30-40 minutes
60+ minutes
5.
In the future, should Mrs. Homan continue to do book talks and allow for choice reading one
day per week? Why or why not?
6.
If you had to rate how much you like reading, you would say it is a:
0
1
(Don’t like it)
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
(LOVE IT!)