Our semester ended before Christmas, and I had to say good-bye to all of my students. Because my school operates on a block schedule with four 90-minute daily class periods, I am only allowed to keep students one semester. (I hate block schedules, but that’s a different blog topic for the future.) Next week I will meet 75-85 new students.
Because my seniors have finished their English requirements, they will complete little reading and writing next semester. To encourage them to keep reading, however, I have started a voluntary reading group for AP English students. We will read one book each month and then meet before school to discuss it – no quizzes, no tests, no papers – just reading and discussion.
I invited all of my 84 first-semester students to participate, and so far 26 of them have joined the group, not bad for seniors in their final semester of high school!
I want the group and reading to be fun and profitable for students; therefore, I need to select books of high interest that will “speak” to 17 and 18 year olds a few months away from college.
In January, we are reading John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany, a book that most teenagers enjoy and have fun discussing. For February, I’m considering Alan Paton’s Cry, the Beloved Country, a poignant book about racism in South Africa.
I’m looking for suggestions for other books that I can introduce to these students. They are all excellent readers and good students. Because they have volunteered to participate in a book group, they also obviously enjoy reading. I may suggest one book each month for the entire group or offer 3 suggestions and let them choose the book they want to read.
When you think back to your high school and college years, what books resonated powerfully with you? Can you remember a book that you could not put down or a book that you considered powerful because it opened your eyes to a new world or situation that you had not considered previously?
I would appreciate any advice or suggestions. Since I know senioritis will start nipping at these students in the next few weeks, I want to make our reading group as meaningful and engaging as possible.
Thanks!
