This summer I had the pleasure (and time!) to read a lot of blogs by other teachers with really fabulous ideas. The term FVR – Free Voluntary Reading – kept popping up everywhere I looked. I decided to do more research and implement it into my classroom.
The theory states that best way for students to acquire language is through reading. Rather than force them to read class novels, they should have a choice to read something they enjoy. At first, I was only going to use this with my Heritage class. I thought it would be more successful with native speakers. Eventually, though I decided, to give it a try with everyone.
A big shout out to Mike Peto and his blog that I personally visit about once a week as a resource. This article about Building a Class Library for Heritage Speakers was extremely helpful! He has tons of research and suggestions, so check out his blog!
How it works in my classroom:
1. I only do FVR with my 8th graders and my Heritage students.
2. On Mondays and Tuesdays, they come in and get their book. I set a timer and they read for 10 minutes while I take attendance and check- in homework.
3. When the timer goes off, they return their books to the designated spot, and we move on to the daily lesson.
(Note: For about the first month I just wanted them to get in the habit and enjoy reading. This past week, however, I started using a reading log from Mike Peto’s site to hold them accountable. )
This looks amazing!! You have SO MANY books! So jealous! Keep up the great work and thank you for sharing these pics. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your ideas with photos. This is so helpful to world language teachers embracing the idea that voluntary reading leads to proficiency.