Today in class we finished
reading our read aloud, Nory Ryan’s Song. When I first started reading the
book, my kids didn’t seem like they were really enjoying the story all that much. I even had a student come up to me and say, “This
book is so not as good as Wonder.” Wonder was our first read aloud and my kids
absolutely loved it.
As we got further into
the book, though, they came around.
They started to become invested in the characters and worried about
what might happen to them. And today, as
I finished the last page and closed the book dramatically, all I heard was…Awwww,
no!!! It’s over!! What! Are you kidding me?
Does Nory make it to Brooklyn? What about Patch!? And Anna? Arrghhhh!
Listening to their
responses reminded me of this quote I read once that stuck with me:
“Finishing a good book is
like leaving a good friend.”
It was true— finishing
up our read aloud was sad, like we had lost a close friend that we’d gotten to
know for some time now. Maybe it had taken them a
little longer to get into the book, but they did, and now they were really upset that it
was over.
And then after school
I was in our library and I saw one of my students. I asked him what book he was getting and he said Maggie’s
Door. He had to find out what
happened to Nory and Sean and Patch and Maggie and what their life was like
in Brooklyn. It was such a great way to end the day! J
Sometimes as I am getting close to the end of the book, I slow down, only letting myself have a little bit each day. It is hard to leave that world. That's why a series can be so wonderful. It's also great that your kids are learning that sometimes you have to stick with a book that doesn't grab you right away.
ReplyDeleteYou know that the read aloud is a winner when students want the story to keep going and ask for the sequel. I hope your student found Maggie's Door!
ReplyDeleteWasn't in our library, but we called the town one! On reserve for him! :)
DeleteI love this! I made it my goal to make read aloud a permanent part of my schedule this year, and I really see a difference. We have a wait list going for each book that I finish, and a lot of kids are buying the books for themselves after I read it. And what a wonderful ending to your day!
ReplyDeleteLove that they were left wanting more. I am reading In Honor right now and am feeling the same way as I get close to the end.
ReplyDeleteYou know it's working when they want more! Wonder is a hard act to follow! That was my first read aloud to my 6th graders.
ReplyDeleteI am always glad when they want more. A friend of mine said when she buys books for group reading. She always buys the 2nd book for her group because she would do a read aloud with the first book. It would get the kids hooked and they had lots of buy-in to the second book.
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