Reader Responses

Most students have finished their first novel and have started writing a reader response. A reader response is different from a book report. When they are writing their responses, I have asked students to imagine that they are having a conversation with me about the book that they are reading. They have a number of paragraph starters to choose from and we have modelled a number of these paragraphs with the class. Some paragraphs could discuss their favourite part of the novel, compare the novel with something else they have read, discuss one of the characters from the novel or what a particular part reminds them of, just to name a few choices. Students need to remember to support their ideas with examples from the text, when they write their response.