My 40 for 2014-2015

As blogged about earlier, I set a challenge for myself that I would read 40 books throughout this 2014-2015 school. The challenge and specific amount stemmed from reading The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller. Besides my personal challenge, I also made this a requirement in my classroom.

Miller proposes the only way to become a better reader is to read more. By requiring 40 books to be read in the school year, children must read all year long. If you have read The Book Whisperer, you know that Miller doesn't give a grade or a consequence for not reaching the 40. If a child has read 20 books this year as opposed to the couple that were completely read last year, that's an accomplishment. Celebrate the accomplishments.

Miller suggests dividing the 40 books into different genres to encourage children to read across all the genres and to build a wide interest in a variety of books. I encouraged my students to read across the genres, but if they chose to read in one or two genres only, I didn't push it too much. For my class and myself, the requirements were:

• 5 Traditional Literature
• 5 Realistic Fiction
• 4 Historical Fiction
• 2 Poetry Anthologies 
• 4 Fantasy
• 2 Science Fiction
• 3 Mystery
• 2 Biography, Autobiography, Memoir
• 4 Informational
• 9 Chapter Book Choice 

Tonight, I finished my 40th book for the school year. A mixture of kids books, young adult, and adult literature make up this 40. I've never read so much non-fiction in my life and enjoyed it so much. I read some books because they were recommended to me, some were read to stretch me as a reader, I read others for school book clubs, and some I read for pure pleasure. Here are my 40 for the 2014-2015 school year.

Traditional Literature 

1. The Emperor's New Clothes by Hans Christian Anderson

2. The Wedding of Mistress Fox by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm

3. Ouch! by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm retold by Natalie Babbit

4. Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm retold by Paul Fleischman

5. Sally Ann, Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett by Steven Kellogg 

Realistic Fiction

1. Each Little Bird that Sings by Deborah Wiles

2. There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom by Louis Sachar

3. Landry News by Andrew Clement  

4. The Strange Case of Orgiami Yoda by Tom Angleberger

5. Bloom by Elizabeth Scott

Historical Fiction

1. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

2. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyle

3. I Survived the Bombing of Pearl Harbor by Lauren Tarshis

4. I Survived the Nazi Invasion by Lauren Tarshsis

Poetry Anthologies

1. Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman

2. Poetry for Young People: Emily Dickinson by Emily Dickinson edited by France Schoonmaker Bolin. 

Fantasy

1. Savvy by Ingrid Law

2. Scramble by Ingrid Law

3. The Flames of Olympus by Kate O'Hearn 

4. Lulu and the Brontosaurus by Judith Viorst

Science Fiction

1. Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

2. V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd 

Mystery

1. Who Could that be at This Hour? by Lemony Snicket

2. The Bride Wore a Size 12 by Meg Cabot

3. The Sign of the Four by Arthur Conan Doyle 

Biography, Autobiography, Memoir

1. Knots in my Yo-Yo String by Jerry Spinelli 

2. A Promise Kept by Robert McQuilkin

Informational 

1. Personality Plus by Florence Littauer

2. Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth

3. The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman

4. I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai 

Chapter Book Choice

1. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

2. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

3. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

4. Shakespeare Saved My Life by Lauren Bates

5. The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

6. Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham

7. Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth 

8. Farewell to the East End by Jennifer Worth 

9. The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne