Help For Students Who Abandon Books

Rarely does a year go by without us having at least one of these students in class. First off, we find it vital to meet with these students daily, keeping thorough notes as we do. Each time we meet, we jot down the title of the book and page they are on in our Conferring Notebook. Meeting this way helps us gather the data we need to support the child. It soon becomes clear if they are abandoning books regularly, or just not making adequate progress in their book of choice. Once we gather our data, it makes it easy to be non-emotional when conferring with a child about this topic, which can be a hot button, especially for reluctant readers.

If the data we have gathered points to a child having the 'Abandon Book Syndrome' we move into focusing all of our efforts into finding a book the student may be interested in. One of our best secrets is to hook them on a series that is at their independent reading level. After getting to know the child, we can match them with a non-fiction, fiction, or graphic novel series that will keep them engaged for a long time. Here is the real trick; we read the first chapter or two of the first book aloud to them! The reason for doing this is that many of our book abandoners just can't get into a book. They find it hard to connect with the characters or the setting. If we read aloud to them, modeling our comprehension, talking them through the first part, they are much more likely to find picking up the book less daunting and more like visiting a friend.

Once the first of the series is completed, students are willing patrons of the classroom and school libraries, even begging us to get the next in a series if they find it unavailable. In no particular order, here are some of our favorites:

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
• The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling
• The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dave Pilkey
• Bunnicula by Deborah Howe
• Into the Wild by Erin Hunter
• Goosebumps by R.L. Stine
• Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
• The Maze of Bones (The 39 Clues) Rick Riordan
• Queen of the World (Babymouse) by Jennifer L. Holm
• The Fairy-Tale Detectives (The Sisters Grimm) by Michael Buckley
• Miss Daisy is Crazy (My Weird School) by Dan Gutman
• Among the Hidden (Shadow Children) by Margaret Peterson Haddix
• Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
• My Teacher is an Alien by Bruce Colville
• NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society by Michael Buckley
• Mercy Watson to the Rescue by Kate DiCamillo
• The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events) by Lemony Snickett
• Elephant and Piggie by Mo Willems
• Fox in Love by Edward Marshall
• You Wouldn't Want to Be an Egyptian Mummy!: Disgusting Things You'd Rather Not Know by David Stewart
• Mr. Putter and Tabby Pick the Pears by Cynthia Rylant
• Dinosaurs Before Dark (Magic Tree House) by Mary Pope Osborne
• Lost Treasure of the Emerald Eye by Geronimo Stilton