CALPRO NWPKI MSSR

Summary

2005-06-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

This project on using MSSR (Modified Sustained Silent Reading) allowed me to take my assumptions regarding reading and foreign language learning, and put them to the test. As a result, the students were the recipients of a wonderful opportunity to engage in an unconventional language learning approach, as the navigators of their own learning journey.

I chose a couple of different strategies for assessing how successful this new approach was in helping students.

First, I kept a log of the success or failure of different MSSR sessions, based on my observations. I “blogged” many of these observations on the www.calpronwpkimssr.blogspot.com website. I also noted the students’ personal reading logs. Part of the log included stating what the students liked or didn’t like about their books. This further helped me discern how students responded to the MSSR. Additionally, I noted the students’ language learning diaries. There were many opportunities for students to record what they were learning. How full or how empty the diaries were told me a lot about whether this process was helping them learn more.

Finally, I used the student surveys that I initially gave students back in January to cross check several key answers regarding reading. I did this individually. I met with each student and re-asked several questions off the survey, as well as their thoughts on the project as a whole. The overwhelming response was positive. What I found in students, was an acute awareness of their own learning gains throughout this “period of reading”. More than 95% of students involved with this intervention were able to specifically identify how Sustained Silent Reading contributed to their own language learning. Many students reported on the growth of their vocabulary. Many others reported that their reading speed had increased. Several others mentioned their lack of time at home to read. They also talked about being able to make a connection between the grammar and vocabulary learned in class, and the “written word” in a story. One student talked about being able to recognize and understand the grammar within the context of whatever she was reading. Some acknowledged that their interest and desire in reading had increased. A few students talked about how reading proved to be the means to learning more about U.S. history and important figures in American history. Along those same lines, others reported that reading increased their knowledge in the area of Science. One particular student mentioned the fact that she didn’t have access to these kinds of books that dealt with these particular subject matters, such as biographies and U.S. History. Across the board, all students who participated in this intervention said they enjoyed and welcomed the MSSR time in class and would like to continue incorporating this aspect of learning into our class curriculum.

The greatest challenge I had was a lack of time to devote to MSSR in the classroom. I was constantly trying to squeeze in MSSR or squeeze in the remainder of one of my mainstream lessons. When I allowed adequate MSSR time, I would often get behind in our main lesson. Conversely, to stay on track with the principal material would mean to significantly cut back on MSSR time, which makes the whole objective of Sustained Silent Reading null and void. This was and will continue to be a very difficult obstacle in bringing MSSR to the classroom. One way I reduced the barrier to this particular obstacle was to hold back all my students for another term. I had double the time I would normally have with a class. I was therefore able to continue to carve out significant time for MSSR, while addressing the level objectives pertinent to my class. Although this worked well, it is unlikely that I would be permitted to do this with future classes.

Now that I’ve completed my project in Modified Sustained Silent Reading, I’d encourage other practitioners, like myself to bring MSSR into their classrooms. Given the proper set-up and organization, MSSR in the classroom can be another successful practice used to foster learning in L2 students. Strong leadership from the teacher, continually explaining why reading is vital to their language learning and how they can make the most of the opportunity to read interesting and relevant material in class is also an important part of bringing MSSR into the adult ESL classroom.

I plan to continue to use the research done on SSR and Adult Second Language Learners to support use of SSR in the classroom. I will encourage other staff members in my organization to try it and provide support to them, as one who’s used this research in a practical way. This has been a very successful and rewarding project for me, and my class and I believe many other classes can benefit from it as well.

Library List

2005-05-31T14:44:00.000-07:00

Northwest Practitioner Knowledge Institute
Modified Sustained Silent Reading Project
Class Library List

Used with L2 learners with reading CASAS scores ranging between 213-232

New Readers Press (www.newreaderspress.com/store/)

Romance: Reading Level 3-5 and up
Carousel Magic
Riding High
The Healing Touch
Heaven Sent
The Lady and the Cowboy
The Magic of Love
A Friend in Need

Timeless Tales with read-along tapes: Reading Level 2-3
Adventures
Love Stories
Fables
Folktales
Legends
Myths
Tall Tales
Tales of Wonder

Westerns: Books 1-4 in a series
1. Jack Sloan in Tin Star Promise
2. Jack Sloan in Justice on Horseback
3. Jack Sloan in Shotgun Revenge
4. Jack Sloan in Mississippi Stranger

Life Stories (Life Times): Low Beginning, High Beginning, Low Intermediate
The Family from Vietnam
The Shoplifting Game
A Time to Choose
The Missing Piece
Take Away Three
Climbing Wall
So Long Snowman
In and Out the Windows

Globe Fearon (1-800-848-9500)

WorkTales

Handle with Care
Help When Needed
A Robot Instead
The Right Type
Fighting Words
The Road to Somewhere
Change Order
The Easy Way

Fearon/Janus/Quercus

Hopes and Dreams
Boat People: The Vietnamese
Fair Fields: The Filipinos
Here and There: The Puerto Ricans
The Magic Paper: The Mexicans
Many Miles: The Arabs
For Gold and Blood: The Chinese
Old Ways, New Ways: The Eastern European Jews
Who Is My Neighbor: The Salvadorians
A Different Home: The Cubans

Children’s Books

All books purchased at Half Priced Bookstore

Random House Press: Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, Step 4 books

Step 1 books have very large type and extremely simple vocabulary.
Step 2 books are both longer and slightly more difficult.
Step 3 books are written to mid-second-grade reading levels
Step 4 books are exciting nonfiction for the increasingly proficient reader

Step 2
The Nut Cracker Ballet
The Bravest Dog Ever: The True Story of Balto
Whales: the Gentle Giants
Abe Lincoln’s Hat

Step 3
The Titanic
Ice Mummy
Little Sure Shot: The Story of Annie Oakley

Step 4
Barry: The Bravest Saint Bernard
Moonwalk: The First Trip to the Moon
Basketball’s Greatest Players

Horror

Scholastic, Inc.
R.L. Stine’s Ghost of Fear Street
R.L. Stine’s The Nightmare Room

Science and Nature

http://www.kidsbooks.com/
Trivia Fun: Fantastic Questions and Answers

Troll BridgeWater
Baby Whale Rescue: The True Story of JJ

Holiday House N.Y.
The Planets

Miles Kelly Publishing
100 Things You Should Know About Science

History and Geography

Harper Collins Publishers
The 50 States

Raintree-Steck-Vaughn Publishers
Post Cards from Spain
Post Cards from Mexico
Post Cards from China
Post Cards from Laos

Scholastic, Inc.
In 1492
The Pledge of Allegiance

Aladdin Paperbacks
America The Beautiful

Innisbrook Wraps Inc.
Famous Presidents

Triumph Books
Tsunami: Hope, Heroes and Incredible Stories of Survival

American Literature

From Modern Publishing (www.modernpublishing.com)
Huckleberry Finn
Little Women
White Fang

Biographies

Holiday House NY (All by David A. Adler)
A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln
A Picture Book of Anne Frank
A Picture Book of George Washington
A Picture Book of Benjamin Franklin
A Picture Book of Robert E. Lee
A Picture Book of Martin Luther King Jr.

Scholastic, Inc.
Helen Keller
The Story of Thomas Alva Edison, Inventor

Troll Associates
Christopher Columbus

Puffin Books
Amelia Earhart

Longmeadow Press
What Was It Like? Harriet Tubman

Random House (www.randomhouse.com/kids)
Meet George Washington

Harper Collins Publishers

I’ve Seen the Promised Land: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The Language of Old Timers - New Comers Pairings

2005-04-19T09:32:00.000-07:00

Comment/Question: The old timers teaching the new comers is very exciting. (What language do they talk?) We had a similar experience at the labschool and it illustrates Lave and Wenger's community of learning to a T.
- Dominique B.

Response: I agree. The old timers showing the new comers the ropes was quite exciting.
In response to your question, Dominique, both L1 and L2 were used in the exchanges. The pairing was completely random on my part. Some were paired with old timers that spoke their same native language and some were not. It really depended on who was ready and available to help the new students. I also considered who could best explain the process. But really, it just “happened” and it was beautiful!

Week of April 11 - Fluid MSSR Time

2005-04-15T12:42:00.000-07:00

April 11-15

This week has been great for MSSR. Students took a test on Tuesday, and were instructed to choose a book or book/tape from the library when finished with the test. I love this application of MSSR. As teachers, I know we have all struggled with what to do with students who finish class work much more quickly than others. This is the perfect solution. Eventually the entire class ends up reading, which at that point, I officially declare it MSSR time. The test time flows right in to the MSSR time, as natural as can be. This teaches students to use their time wisely. It is also a natural way to introduce MSSR into the classroom. And finally, it provides a profitable solution as to what to do with those students who are always ahead of the rest of the class and to the teacher’s chagrin, often influence class pace.

Today I was also encouraged to see students go to the library, without being told. They finished their work early, and very enthusiastically grabbed books and began reading. They are even grabbing their folders to keep up their language learning diaries and vocabulary lists. Oh, a teacher’s bliss!

Week of April 4th - Continual Buy-In

2005-04-08T16:53:00.000-07:00

Week of April 4th

This has been a great week! We came back to class after a week off for Spring Break. This week was the start of a new term for us, here at Mt. Diablo adult Education, but I was given permission to retain my entire class for the sake of continuing this MSSR project. I have also been receiving new students, and the "old" students have brought them up to speed on our MSSR process. Basically, I asked some of my more competent students to pair up with a new student and help create a reading folder, with the reading log and language learning diary. The veteran students also explained how to fill out the sheets, how the books are organized, where the dictionaries are located, etc.
This worked out quite well. Pairing the veteran students with the new ones was definitely the way to go. The new students were immediately able to interact with an established student, giving them a sense of being welcomed, and the teacher wasn't running around with her head cut-off, trying to accommodate all the new students as they wandered in!
The students were very engaged again, this week, during our MSSR time. It takes them a couple of minutes to quiet down, but with only a few reminders from me that this is Sustained Silent Reading, they settle in quite well. The tapes with books continue to be a popular choice, although the biographies are a close second.
I continue to remind students of why we do this. I remind them of how they told me of their lack of time to read at home. I remind them how beneficial reading is to their language learning. I remind them of how much vocabulary they glean. Continual "buy-in" is paramount to the process.

Response to Question #1

2005-03-14T16:56:00.000-08:00

“Maybe I have missed it somewhere, but do you have a goal for how much time students spend on SSR? I am very excited to read this blog because I use SSR with my college-age ESL students. I have been very pleased with the way students have taken to it, but I haven't seen many other adult classes that use it. Please keep posting. I'm out here reading!”
- Posted by Nancy McKeand
(in Student Engagement and Finding a New SSR Time - Week of February 14, 2005)

The goal is to have students reading twice a week at 20-25 minutes per time. I believe this creates the consistency, without crowding out regular classroom instruction. In reality, 20 minutes doesn’t seem to be enough. By the time students gather around the bookcase, choose their books, or haggle over who’s going to use the new cassette players with accompanying books, they barely have enough time to really engage.
I am anxious to interview the students at the end of this project to really see if, and how their attitudes towards reading have changed.

The Books Arrive

2005-03-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

Week of Feb 28

I finally received the order of books and tapes that I ordered from New Readers Press, and the students absolutely love them! I ordered 8 books in a series called Timeless Tales. There are Adventures, Fables, Folktales, Legends, Love Stories, Myths, Tales of Wonder, and Tall Tales. Each title comes with a tape and has anywhere from 6 to 11 short stories. The beauty of this is that a student can read and use a tape out of a certain series but doesn’t have to be tied to that same book for the next MSSR time. This creates an opportunity for greater use among a greater number of students. The other books in our library are longer chapter books which the student ends up reading for several MSSR sessions in a row.

Again, the students have given me great feed back on the books with tapes. They are really enjoying this new addition to the library.

I purchased the mini-cassette players with headphones at K-Mart for the low, low price of $5.99. I was very specific when choosing the cassette players. The criteria was cheap and no radio. I definitely didn’t want students to have access to the radio, and I have to say, cassette players without radios are not easy to find. I had to go to 4 or 5 places. I ended up at K Mart and then getting a few at Rite Aide. I bought out both places, and I still need to find one more, for a total of 8. The bookcase with key that I bought out of a Lakeshore Learning catalogue works well for securing everything.

Student Engagement and Finding a New SSR Time

2005-02-18T15:30:00.000-08:00

Week of February 14, 2005

I think I mentioned this before, but in addition to our set aside MSSR time, the students are really getting the hang of going to get their SSR book when they finish an in-class assignment early. I rarely have to say anything or remind them. They do this as a matter of personal responsibility and it's great to see! In fact, this happened the other day and as more and more students went to get their books, I class became increasingly quiet until everyone was quiet and engaged, reading their books of choice. At that moment, I decided to make it an official SSR time. They continued to read silently for an additional 20 minutes and it worked out perfectly. So basically, I created a MSSR time out of what started to be a "use your time wisely in class" time.
I think it's good to "roll" with situations that present themselves like that. The students were so "in" to their books that it was only natural to let them continue for a prescribed time. I was really happy with the way this turned out.

Progress and Concerns

2005-02-11T11:37:00.000-08:00

Week of Jan 31

MSSR (M for Modified) went pretty well today. Students read for almost 40 minutes. I felt like this was too long. Students began to get restless at about the 30 minute mark. At the end of this period, I gave students the opportunity to practice reading their book aloud to me at my desk. I barely finished announcing this, when a student appeared at my side. We had time for 2 students to come up and they both enjoyed it tremendously.
It appeared as if they read aloud to me what they had already read to themselves during MSSR. I think was a good practice and I am glad both students automatically did this on their own without any prompting.

During this time, the other students were doing a post activity of predicting to each other what they thought would happen next in their story.

At the end of this time, I brought the class together for a class vote. Based on what we learned of different genres from our field trip to the bookstore, I asked students to list their favorite genres. We did this on the board. The list was as follows: mysteries, biographies, romance, poetry, literature, history, kid’s books, science, and geography. Then I told students they could vote for their 3 favorite genres, without voting more than 3 times!
The results were: 7 for mysteries, 16 for biographies, 10 for romance, 4 for poetry, 9 for literature, 14 for history, 11 for kid’s books, 4 for science and 3 for geography.

Based on those results, plus my own intuition, I am going to purchase used books from a local bookstore, Half Priced Books. This will supplement our class library. I am also going to purchase new books that are particularly designed for adult ESL students, through New Readers Press. I will choose books at a 2nd or 3rd grade reading level, as many students are struggling with the current adult readers, which are more like at a 3rd or 4th grade reading level. I have been given prior permission from my program director to purchase books.

*Side note: This SSR time also conveniently provided an opportunity for previously absent students to take Friday’s grammar test. This worked out well for the entire class.

Also, I’m having a hard time balancing SSR and the course curriculum. It is very hard to get through the material I am supposed to cover in this class, which includes a student assessment component, and make time for SSR. SSR seems to demand so much time, yet I see the benefit of it. Without true assessment built-in to SSR, it is hard to justify the practice. I’m enjoying it anyway, and I think the students are, too.

The bookcase I ordered came in today. I made labels for the different genres in our library and placed the books in the appropriate category. I think this will help students in the decision making process as they choose their SSR books. Instead of books being all lumped together, they will be able to make a conscience choice. I organized the bookcase according to students’ favorite genres that came out during the class poll.

Field Trip (Reposted)

2005-01-31T14:29:00.000-08:00

Field Trip-Week of Jan 18

I was nervous about turn out for this field trip. I could sense that some students saw it as a waste of their time. I sensed that they would rather come to school for an English lesson. The day before, I had students fill out the field trip permission forms required by our school. It seemed that the majority of the class would be going, although some students specifically told me they preferred not to go.
The day of the field trip, about half the class showed up. I was a little disappointed, but the students who showed up were happy to be going. Only 2 out of the fifteen had been to this popular bookstore.
The tour was great. The manager did a wonderful job and was just as enthusiastic as she was when she and I first met. At every section she showcased, we’d lose 3 to 4 students who were picking up books and browsing around. We’d have to get them back all together to continue the tour. This happened at every section we stopped at, and I have to say I was quite pleased to have this kind of problem! She showed students how to use the store computer and also told them to never be afraid to ask for help when they visited the bookstore.
The students asked questions, the manager served us goodies from the cafe and when the tour was over, I gave the students about 20 minutes to browse and shop. It wasn’t enough. They were really emersed in the hunt for books and exploration of the bookstore. Some students bought cookbooks on sale, others bought bilingual English dictionaries. Others bought books concerning their religion. A few students researched areas of their work, such as carpet cleaning. Still others looked at children’s books and books with tapes.
At the end of our time, as we boarded the bus, I asked the students what they thought. They asked if we could come back tomorrow! So, although a lowly attended day, it was productive and successful.

Learning Survey

2005-01-31T11:32:00.000-08:00

Here is the learning survey I gave each student at the beginning of the project. Spacing is adapted to fit in the posting format.

Learning Survey

1. What are the best ways for people to improve their English?
(How do people learn English) better way to phrase question

2. What helps you the most in improving your English?
Rank each item. 1 is for what helps you the most and 5 is for what helps you the least.

_____homework

_____tests

_____lessons in class

_____talking with other students

_____ extra reading or free-time reading

3. How much do you like to read? Circle one number.

1---------------------------2-------------------- 3-----------------4-------------5
(I don’t like to read) (I like to read a little) (I like to read) (I really like to read) (I love to read)

4. Do you have time to read?

5. Do you read “for fun” (in your free time) or only when you have to? Explain.

6. How many times a week do you read for fun?

7. How many times a month do you read for fun?

8. If you don’t read for fun, why don’t you?

9. What kinds of things do you read for fun? and in what language?

10. What kinds of things do you read because you have to and in what language?

11. How often do you talk to someone about something you have read? Circle one.

Every day
Every week
Once a month
Once in a while
Never

12. What kinds of things do you talk about? Example: An article in the newspaper.
(NOTE: Need to rephrase)

13. How does reading help you in your language learning?
(NOTE: I did rephrase this question for all new students: How does reading help you learn English?)

Week of January 10th (#2)

2005-01-25T15:37:00.000-08:00

SSR Day-week of Jan 10
Today I announced we would be having SSR. Students immediately knew what to do. They retrieved their file folders that contained their learning diaries and reading logs and they took new students under their wings and explained what to do, as I set up a folder for them. I told students we would be having another post-reading activity that would involve communicating to a partner about their book. They remembered this type of activity from the time before and I think they took the SSR time more seriously knowing they had to report afterwards. The students were quiet and focused. The class set of dictionaries was out, and students read for 20-25 minutes straight.
During the post-reading activity, students discussed their favorite characters.

I announced that we would be having a field trip to Borders Bookstore next week. The trip would include a bus ride, tour of the store and some free time to roam.

I also announced that during our next SSR day, I would let students come up to my desk and read out loud, if they wanted this kind of practice. They seemed very excited about this idea.

Week of January 10th, 2005

2005-01-25T15:36:00.000-08:00

Second SSR Day-Week of Jan 10
I handed out the manila folders and had students write their last name, first name. I also handed out the reading log, and went over it on the overhead projector. I used a reading log already created. As the students used it for the first time, I realized that it would have been handy to have them record the number of pages read each time. There was no place for this. I also realized that the space for recording their opinion of the book read for the day was too small.
I therefore went home and revised the log to remedy these two problems. I would hand out the new and improved logs to new students and then to the others upon filling up the old one, which won’t take long.
I explained to the students that the procedure of SSR days would be as follows: They would get a book each time, as well as their folder, so as to record the necessary information, along with anything else they wanted to write down in relation to what they had read/learned.
Students read for about 25 minutes. They were actually pretty “into” it. There was not too much talking or fidgeting. I handed out Longman Dictionaries for student use. At the end of the time, I had students get out their log if they had not already done so. As a post-reading activity, I asked students to get into partners and tell each other what was happening in his or her book so far. They really responded well to this. Any opportunity to engage in communication practice seems to be welcomed. I then asked some students to report on their partner’s book to the rest of the class. Finally, I asked for volunteers to tell the class of new vocabulary learned.
I felt like this time was well received and enjoyed and looked upon as productive.
(Although the next day I noticed that attendance was quite a bit lower. Was this due to the rainy weather or not???)

January 7th, 2005

2005-01-25T15:35:00.000-08:00

First Day of Class (Jan 7)

What to do first? I usually start the term by introducing myself and handing out my class letter which goes over classroom management as well as class curriculum. I couldn’t start like that this time around, as I wanted students to take my SSR Survey without any knowledge of the SSR we would be doing as part of our regular class curriculum.
So, I started with a mixer. I then briefly went over contents included in the class letter. I decided to explain the SSR library which I already had in place from previous terms. I explained it like I always have: as one choice out of 3 or 4 for “down” time in class when they finish with class work and are waiting for the next activity. I determined to go into the structured SSR plan I had designed as part of our class work at later time, after students had completed the survey.
Next was getting students to do the survey.
I wasn’t sure whether I should go over each question with them before they answered. This was my first thought. I had transparencies made of the survey pages. When the time came, though, I thought better of it. I had designed the survey to lead students in a certain direction, without them particularly realizing that I was focusing on reading. The questions were in a certain order for a reason and I didn’t necessarily want students reading certain questions before others. I therefore decided not to go through questions with students, but rather let the students tackle the survey and individually ask me questions as needed.
The survey was more difficult for students to understand than I anticipated. This is probably partly due to the fact that I acquired a split level class at the last minute and the majority of students were of a lower level than previously expected.
The question then arises: Would it have been better to go through the survey with students before hand and explain language and meaning in the survey, or let students bumble through on their own, without compromising the purposed design of the survey?
I still am not sure of the answer to this question.
In doing it again, I might have picked out key words and phrases from the survey to be put on the board and explained before hand, without students looking at the survey. Then hand out the survey and let students go for it.
On another note regarding the survey: I came to find that the last question on the survey was particularly hard for students to understand. I decided to rewrite the question and substitute it into the remaining surveys, which new and adding students would be taking as they joined the class. The question didn’t change in content, only in wording.
I also went back to the survey and made notes on other questions that seemed to pose some difficulty to students. I made suggestions to myself for rephrasing. This will be helpful for future use.

Back Engineering

2005-01-25T15:31:00.000-08:00

1. What do I need to do to set up SSR in my class before January?
I need books. I need permission to buy books. Which books? I need to look into different publishing houses for adult content books….New Readers Press seems to have adult readers that feel “right” to me. I’ve used them before with success, so why not start with something I’ve already used.
How about other “real source” books?
I’ll raid my cook books.
Any other real sources I can get? How about mechanic manuels or DMV manuels?
I need to pick those up. Students can also bring in what they have, something they are interested in or working on….have a goal towards learning. Ask staff if they have anything.
Anything I can use from Vocational Education? Who teaches that? Nick??
I also need to set up a filing system; probably a portable file box. I will put A-X tabs on hanging file folders. Then, as part of set up and explanation to be done with students, I will give each student a manila file. Students will write their last name comma first name. I will then hand out and explain the reading log and the Language Learning Diary and have students keep these in the folders and use them during SSR and then file them away when finished.
As a part of set up, I also need to create or find a reading log and language learning log. I took the language learning log from Collaborations and adapted it. I got rid of one section and expanded the section for “new words”
I had a reading log that the teachers at PSU used. I decided to use the same one, but modify it slightly.
Also as a part of set up, I needed to explain each log, using the overhead projector and tell students what to do with them and where to store them.
Where will I keep the books/How will I store and protect them?
I need to think about my room configuration and keep in mind my “roommate’s” space as well. None of the cabinets are deep enough or tall enough to house a full class set of books-plus there isn’t easy access to the books. I want students to be able to easily browse through books, see what’s there. I also need a way to lock these books up.
I guess I will need to buy something to house books in. I need permission for the purchase. Also, ask program director how to order….out of what catalogue…find out how long it will take to get here.
What do I want?
Probably something that rolls so it can be easily moved around the classroom and something that locks. It has to be big enough to house a class set of books and allow students to easily access and look through books.
I need to order a bookshelf or some kind of rolling card to house the books. I must order this in advance. I need to think about which system will work for my room, which one is the most user friendly. I want the books to very accessible. The students need to be able to pilfer through the books to look at different titles, before they choose. I also need to find out how much my director will let me spend on a bookshelf or rolling cart.

2. How will I assess students during this project?
How am I going to track input from students?
I need some kind of reading log. I should adapt one that already exists. I also remember using a “learning Log” from the Collaborations texts. I can also tweak that for this project. A vocabulary wall would be great too.
How would I do a vocabulary wall? Have each student pick 1 or 2 new words learned per week, share them with the rest of the class and add it to a class list?
I need to order an easel and paper.
Teacher observation during SSR will also work for assessment. I should keep another “observation” log, in addition to this log.
I think a pre and post survey of students’ behaviors on reading would give me a great basis of assessment. I must think of questions that will get to the bottom of students opinions of reading and attitudes towards it.

3. How am I going to get students to buy in to SSR in general and especially in the classroom?

I will talk about how important reading is for language development. It increases vocabulary, reading comprehension.
Perhaps a field trip to the local bookstore. Talk about different genres. (Sports, classics, romance, folklore (myths, folktales), daily life experiences.
Take a tour of the different sections. I therefore need to contact different bookstores; set up a tour; poll students on genre interest before trip. Set up a bus for a field trip. Get this approved
I therefore need to contact and make an appointment to meet manager of bookstore.

I thought that a class field trip to a local bookstore would be a good stepping stone to the project. I went to two local bookstores, one which was closer to our school campus. Unfortunately, the people at the closer bookstore were not very enthusiastic, nor helpful, when I inquired about a tour. The manager at the further bookstore, however, was very excited about the prospect of an ESL adult class coming in for a tour. The manager used to be a teacher herself and welcomed the idea of this kind of community collaboration. The manager and I exchanged email addresses and phone numbers and we decided that it would be best to poll students ahead of time to see what kind of questions they had, where their interests lied. I did this and emailed the students’ responses to her. I also needed to set up a bus through the program secretary and the school district in plenty of advance.

Is there anyone with second language experience who would be a good candidate for giving a tour and talking to L2 students?
Yes! The helpful, enthusiastic manager of the larger bookstore.

I should also let students participate in choosing books for the class library, based on favorite genres, including real materials. How should I do this? A Class vote on the board? A voting/ranking sheet of paper? Come up with genres and categories as a class, then put them on paper for voting. EX. Pick your top 4 choices for the library.

Ask students at the end…Have you made progress because of SSR? How do you know you’ve made the progress that’s important to you?

I will also lure them with conversation opportunities using post reading activities.

4. What kind of post activities can I use?
*Book reports-written and oral
*Summaries
*Retelling to a partner
*Using prompts: who? When? Why? Where? What?
*Share 3-4 new words or phrases with a partner and discuss what you think they mean…can consult a dictionary.
*Read out loud to the teacher-individually and privately at my desk, for 10 minutes
*Find 1 fact or opinion in the book
*Do you like it or dislike it and why
*Talk about one page in your story (or 1 paragraph)
*Talk about 1 character in your story
*What has happened so far? What happened in the last chapter?
*What do you think is going to happen next?
*Which character do you like in your story and why?
*What do you think about what your character did? Would you do the same?
*Name 3 actions in the past tense (or whichever tense)
*Connect to other learning in class. Do you see any of our class vocabulary words? Or other words you’ve learned?
*Did you learn something new? What?

5. What am I worried about as my students and I embark on this new area in the class?

I’m worried about buy in. Students come to class for teacher input, not to quietly read to themselves. This is more like independent study. Will students rebel? Will my attendance drop?
I am used to teaching in a certain way, which yields positive results that I can generally count on.
Will this yield positive results with students learning, retention, and persistence?
My administrator is concerned about truly assessing gains in students in this era of accountability. He’s concerned about the fact that SSR might not line up with students goals. How do we tie SSR to assessment that measures things clearly as related to progress towards students’ goals?

6. What am I hopeful about?
I am hopeful that student’s will really enjoy the opportunity to read for pleasure in class. I hope they will relish the opportunity to read in class, as their busy lives don’t. I hope they will see progress in their learning. I hope that they can tie some kind of learning to SSR. I want them to be able to attribute something they feel better about, more confident about to SSR. I want to see that the value reading as a practice more than they did before and that it becomes something they enjoy.

What about the students who add the class later and did not take the survey the first day of class along with the other students?
I decided to leave the surveys in the filing system I have that is in place for absent students to retrieve any papers they miss. New students can grab the surveys along with any other papers they have missed. I will ask each new student to take the survey home, do it, and bring it back to me. In this way, they won’t miss any of the in-class lesson, yet I can still get the information from them.