Bronze Medalists

Yesterday was the day that I asked my students to calculate their independent reading for the year. Each week they turn in a log that tracks their pages and books, and one of the final tasks of the term is for them to crunch those numbers and look at their accomplishments.

This year...

drum roll, please...

my students read...

676,701 pages and 3337 books!

That's an average of 9,531 pages and 47 books per student, which is more than double the minimum requirement of 4000 pages.

Looking at the stats for this year, the thing that stands out to me is that there were very few students who did not make the minimum. This is different than in the past, and it might be due to the increased popularity of graphic novels. Many, many students choose to read those, and by their nature as quick reads, graphic books increase the page counts.

The prevailing wisdom among teachers is that the genre is not relevant, and that as reading fluency is a skill that improves with exercise, we simply want students to read. Perhaps, but I personally encourage my students to alternate graphic novels with traditional texts.

Here's how this group stacks up to their peers from the past:

2016: pages: 9,531; books: 47
2015: pages: 7,342; books: 33
2014: pages: 5,200; books: 26
2013: pages: 9,835; books: 47
2012: pages: 5,356
2011: pages: 10, 788; books: 49
2010: pages: 8,488; books: 40

(Click on the label below to review the posts from past years!)

Page Turners

As I do every year, I had my students calculate how many pages they read and books they finished for the year. This year was a pretty good one-- my kids read over a half-million pages combined and together they finished 2,387 books. That's an average of 7,342 pages per person and 33 books.

Impressive! 

Worth Counting

Before they packed up all their pencils and binders for good, last week I asked my students to calculate how many pages and books they had read since September. It's an annual tradition, and sixth graders almost always find their numbers amazing; it's as if they had no idea they were capable of such achievement.

This year students in my classes read an average of exactly 5,200 pages each, with a high of 19,456 and a low of 1,001. On average they finished 26 books a piece. Compared to the past, it was not a stellar year, but the requirement is only 3,800 pages, and they surpassed that by 37%. In addition, I would say the figures show that these kids as a group were workers: very few failed to meet or surpass the minimum expectation.

As an interesting frame of reference, I had one student who read nothing but the Harry Potter series. Her numbers? 4,194 pages, and 7 books, of course.

The Biggest Room in the House

A couple days ago, my students calculated their independent reading for the year. Based on the weekly reading log they keep, the numbers this year were quite an improvement over last year.

They read an average of 47 books per person for an average of 9,835 pages each since September. That adds up to over 800,000 pages and 3,856 books-- pretty impressive figures.

The point of this activity is to encourage students by showing them how much they have accomplished over time. It can be a powerful lesson, and I ask them to write a brief reflection after looking at their totals and those of the group.

This year, though, the overall sentiment was different than in the past. Several students said something similar to this one, "I'm proud of myself, but I think I could've read more."

I hope they make good on that next year.

Crunching the Numbers

Teachers always talk about the nature of one group of students compared to another. One year they are sweet, another sharp, still another short and stupid (not really-- but you get the idea). It's not the individuals we are characterizing, but rather how they interact: it's the group dynamic that shapes the collective personality.

This year? The kids on our sixth grade team have been... challenging. Sure, there are a lot of variables, but the exact same teachers teaching the exact same subjects have all come to the consensus that, communally, these kids do less work and get in more trouble than the sixth graders in the two years past.

Well, that's been our impression, but today I was faced with some sobering evidence. As I do each year, I had the students add up the total number of pages they have logged for their independent reading since September. Last year, my students read an average of 10,788 pages per person for a total of over three quarters of a million pages. The figures today were very disappointing. These kids averaged 5,356 pages, less than half of their counterparts.

 Not surprisingly, many weren't too keen on the recommended summer reading list I offered. A lot weren't even willing to commit to choosing their own books to read. "We just want to chill," one student said, "especially after all the crud of school." There were nods of agreement all around.

"That may be," I shrugged, "but you can bet there are some kids who are going to read this summer, and you know what? They are the ones you are going to be competing with to get into college and probably for the jobs you want."

Was it my hopeful imagination or did their eyes grow slightly wider?

"Well... I might read something," the student answered, and fortunately there were several nods from his peers.

But Who's Counting?

Today was the day when my students totaled up their independent reading for the year, and as usual, there were some pretty impressive figures.

Average pages per student: 10,788
(That's over three quarters of a million total pages.)
Average number of books completed per student: 49
Most avid reader: 73,286 pages and 190 books
Reader most in need of acceleration and encouragement: 904 pages and 10 books

Every one of those numbers is up from last year. I had my doubts about these kiddos in the beginning of the year, but, both in terms of writing and reading, they have finished strong.

Best of all is the improvement they see in themselves. "I can't believe it," one student said when she saw that she had read 33 books and almost 6000 pages. "I used to hate reading! Now," and here she picked up her copy of The Divide and literally hugged it, "I looooove it!"

Reckoning

Today was the day when my students added up the pages and counted all the books that they had read this year. It's always pretty impressive-- even the minimum hundred pages a week for thirty-six weeks translates to 20-25 books on the average. They do a little reflection on their accomplishment, and one girl wrote, This is ridiculous-- I read more this year than in third, fourth, and fifth grade combined! Those who hadn't read as consistently as they should have showed some remorse and vowed to do better next year. A couple of kids recognized that this was a break-through year for them: I didn't use to like it, but now I'm a reader, one wrote.

Here are the numbers:

Average pages per student: 8,488
(That's over half a million total pages.)
Average number of books completed per student: 40
Most avid reader: 41,104 pages and 136 books
Reader most in need of acceleration and encouragement: 723 pages and 8 books

I also asked them to pick their top three books of the year. Most popular? The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Other favorites were the Maximum Ride series and the first two books in The Hunger Games trilogy, and of course, many vampire books were mentioned as well.

No Binder Left Behind

Today my students took their English binders home. Every class period was super-chaotic: I was handing back some assignments I'd graded at the last minute and some that I'd held on to because they were so good. In the meantime, kids were adding up how many pages and books they'd read this year (a new individual record was set: 40,241 pages-- that's over 1000 pages per week, higher than any student I've ever taught) and organizing for that final binder check. Those who finished early willingly helped their classmates put their notebooks in order. There was a lot of chatter in the room as kids revisited a school year's worth of work. One girl brought me her two-inch binder stuffed with poems, reading logs, ideas and writing pieces, "Look how full this is," she told me. "I can't believe it was totally empty in September-- wait 'til I show my parents!

I was proud of my students and proud of my class, too. We start from nil and build knowledge, understanding and skills day by day and page by page, and at the end of the year, each binder represents a significant achievement. In so many ways, it is hard to let them all go, but I felt a strong sense of satisfaction today when the last student left (late, with a pass, because he just couldn't get it all put together without a little extra time) and I pulled each storage drawer open, one by one, and found them empty of the jumbled stacks of binders and loose papers that they usually contain. All set for next year, I thought.