Book Buddies

Today was the first day of a new tradition between the Grade 8 students and the Grade 3 students. We met this morning in the PYP library and spent an hour reading to one another. Students chose many different books, from illustrated books to graphic novels to chapter books. The grade 8 students really took initiative in leading my students and helping them pronounce difficult words. My kids loved that students from higher grades actually took the time to hang out with them and just read.

This will become a monthly happening between the two grades, although I know that my students persistently asked for it to happen more often. It was nice for me as a teacher to hear them read and be able to evaluate their fluency and accuracy when reading, but also to see the interaction of different kids in different classrooms.

To finish our reading session, we read a Big Book called "Rock-a-Doodle-Doo." It was super cute and quite entertaining. Despite the fact that the illustrations and story was childish and simplistic, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and the store (I heard Grade 8 kids laugh more than my kids - perhaps because there's more comprehension in terms of making inferences).

I'm so glad that my kids enjoyed that. It was a nice change of pace for them, but also for me.