In 2020 the International Literacy Association surveyed educators on the hot issues in literacy. From this, we learned that you value independent reading time for students but rarely get to leave enough time for it. You think that home and classroom libraries need more diversity, and those collections should be larger. You would also like more professional development for digital resources.
While we can’t make extra time in your day for independent reading, we have a few tips that might make finding that time easier. And we certainly provide some of those much-needed diverse titles.
One of the great things about independent reading; kids select their own books. Since most books share common themes, formats, and ideas, independent reading can be discussed in a broader context and tied to curriculum topics.
Book selection is a large portion of independent reading. Since Fathom’s library can be filtered through different curriculum topics, teachers can point students to a selection of books in different reading levels relating to the day’s topic. Quick access to filtered books can cut down on selection time and ensure the selection can be related to the topic.
Reading is done in all subjects! Every profession requires reading and writing; kids may not expect that to be true for some math and science careers. So, why not find independent reading time in these subjects too. This is a great way to introduce students to different genres as they explore books tied to subjects other than Language Arts.
We hope these simple ideas help teachers add more independent reading time to their day this year. If you would like to use Fathom Reads in your independent reading, sign up for a free trial, or browse the library to preview the titles.