Chapter 4: Responding to Reading

Photo by Susan Yin on Unsplash

In this chapter, Troy Hicks and Andy Schoenborn build on their stance of encouragement. They argue that scaffolding students into assigned and individual-choice reading creates confident writers by:

  • Connecting the reading and writing process in authentic ways;
  • Acknowledging student interests through choice of topic and response style;
  • Utilizing digital tools to maintain reading momentum as students capture noteworthy moments;
  • Continuing to welcome them into academic conversations with published authors and peers.

Here are the links presented in the chapter, in order:

4.1 BookSnaps

Building on the idea of Tara Martin’s #BookSnaps and employing the “book, head, heart” framework from Beers and Probst, these examples show how two of Andy’s students responded to key passages in Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give.

4.2: They Say/I Say Quick Writes

Students engage in a series of timed quick writes loosely based on the Gerald Graff’s and Cathy Birkenstein’s “They Say / I Say” academic writing moves, many of which are captured in this Google Doc, curated by Dave Stuart Jr.

4.3: Responding to Reading with Literary Lenses

Activity 4.4: Joining the Contemporary Conversation