Ten Books for Starting Your Reading and Writing Workshops

Ten Books for Starting Your Reading and Writing Workshops

Hey y'all! When we start to talk back to school, we begin planning for our reading and writing workshop launch. Setting the tone from the beginning can make or break your workshop time. These ten books are my go-tos for a successful launch. I hope you find some new favorites, too.
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1. Shoes for Me
At the beginning of each year, we talk about "just right" books. Not too hard, not too easy. Not too fancy, not too baby. Just right. Shoes for Me does an excellent job of illustrating this idea by comparing it to finding "just right" shoes. Bonus points for bringing in shoes to illustrate this in real life!

2. How to Read a Story
Some kids just don't know. Teacher kids know. Kids with parents that read them bedtime stories know. But not all kids know how to read a story. This is another book I read to set the expectation of what real reading actually looks like. (Hint: if the book is closed, you're not reading it!)

3. Just Read
You really can read anything anywhere, and new readers will love this encouraging book about reading what you want where you want it. I love reading this one at the beginning of reading workshop to get them excited about building stamina and finding new favorites.

4. The Book of Gold
Reluctant readers? The Book of Gold helps answer the question of why we read and entices students to find their own Book of Gold that speaks to them.

5. The Plot Chickens
This hilarious book is a great introduction about plot and how to add more details. Most new writers make list stories (you know, where they list everything they did yesterday but without any real story line). The Plot Chickens helps readers put a story to their story and encourage them to make it interesting for their reader.

6. More Bears!
Peer editing can get a little out of hand. Before introducing this concept, we read More Bears! to let students know that their story is THEIR story, and just because their friend thinks it needs a bear, doesn't necessarily mean that it really dose need a bear.

7. Idea Jar
Not sure what to write about? The Idea Jar will get your littles' imaginations running with ideas. This book pairs well with heart maps, but you could also give your students a printout of a Mason jar to fill in with all their writing ideas.

8. This is a Good Story
Good stories have "rules" for structure and sequence. Your little writers will love putting story structure together with this fun and inventive book. This is one of the first books I read when introducing writing workshop.

9. Word Collector
Not all words are created equal. When you're encouraging your students to use more creative language, this is the book to start with. It's a great introduction to synonyms and adjectives, too.

10. Ralph Tells a Story
This is another great book for finding ideas to write about, and even includes tips from Ralph himself on how to write a story. Ralph is stuck at first and doesn't know where to begin, but by the end, he's on a roll.

I hope you found some new to you titles that are just right for your class this year. Thanks for stopping by and stay tuned for more great ideas and resources coming soon. Have a fabulous week.

Stay cozy,