If you’re looking for a way to shake up your independent reading time, try using a choice board! Independent reading choice boards offer students a variety of engaging activities to do during their reading time, and they’re a great way to differentiate instruction. Keep reading to find out how choice boards can enhance your reading block!
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It’s important to hold students accountable for their independent reading time. However, this becomes difficult when students aren’t sure how to communicate their understanding of what they read through writing. That’s where choice boards come in! Your students will be excited to choose the activity they are most interested in, and will stay engaged by having a clearly outlined task.
Here are some tips for using a choice board in your classroom:
Make Sure All Students Have Access to the Choice Board
Make “I don’t know what to do” a thing of the past by having students keep a copy of the choice board in their reading folder (put it in a plastic sleeve for extra protection), or create a designated area in your classroom where students will work on the choice board activities.
Choose Developmentally Appropriate Activities
This is going to change class by class and year by year, or even student by student! Your class may be ready to produce written responses about reading without prompting, or they may need graphic organizers for scaffolding. Make sure the activities on the choice board meet the needs of your current learners.
Give Students Time to Complete the Activities on the Choice Board
My preferred method was to have everything due at the end of the week. If the choice board tasks were more response-based, students might have 4 responses to turn in before Friday. For a project-based choice board, students might have to complete one Must Do and one May Do activity within the alotted time.
Allow Students to Share Their Activities
It is incredibly beneficial for students to share their choice board activities with their peers. This might look like two or three students displaying their work using a document camera, a few students reading their responses before heading to lunch, or simply displaying 3D projects around the room for students to peruse when they get a chance. Sharing helps students build confidence in their work. In addition, many students need examples when they begin new tasks, and what better place to get examples than from their own classmates?
A Choice Board System Done for You
Looking for a way to keep students engaged and on task during independent reading all year long? Check out my Reading Response Menus! Save your valuable time and energy with a done-for-you differentiated system for independent reading work that can be used in a variety of different ways. Your class will love choosing their own activities to demonstrate their reading comprehension!
What are your favorite independent reading activities?
Happy Teaching!
Marianna