A teacher in Vermont shared this idea with me. This is a read-aloud ritual that she uses the week before starting a new chapter book read-aloud with her students. Each day for 5 days she reads aloud the first chapter from 5 different books. At the end of the week the class votes on the next read-aloud which begins the following Monday. I see so many benefits to this ritual:
- It builds community by creating a book buzz as students try to sway their classmates to vote for their favorite book.
- It provides a sense of agency and gives students choice, which research shows is linked to reading motivation.
- It introduces students to an additional 4 books that they may choose to read on their own!