Engaging reluctant readers since 2012!
Is it possible to find Hi-Lo Books that inspire discussion? Yes, it is possible if the Hi-Lo books focus on plots and characters that reluctant readers buy into. However, finding books that struggling readers “buy into” may seem to some teachers a waste of time. Isn’t it more important to tackle the classics or required…
Read more
I focus on activating curiosity as I develop the plot so that predicting and inferring are natural outcomes. It can be a challenge to help struggling readers predict and infer based on what they have read. As a teacher I realized that my reluctant readers avoided predicting or inferring if they did not care about…
Read more
It is valuable when a Hi-Lo book series inspires journaling. As a teacher, journaling has always been a key tool for me to use to engage my students in writing. However, it was not always easy to find thought provoking starters that would inspire them to write meaningful entries. I remember when I presented my…
Read more
I’m excited to offer a Hi-Lo book series that reflects diversity. Teachers are challenged with providing their students with literature that not only reflects their students’ diverse backgrounds, but also exposes their students to other ways of thinking and other cultures. When I set out to write the Hi-Lo series, The Way I See It,…
Read more
It is often a challenge to find Hi-Lo books that offer appropriate and meaningful text for the High School grade level. What does it mean for a book to have “appropriate and meaningful text”? As a teacher, I encountered texts that drew plot lines around cliché themes for teens. Themes that seemed age appropriate, but…
Read more
Teachers of reluctant readers face many challenges. One of those challenges may seem minor to some, but it is still very important. Namely, they want to provide struggling readers with material around which they can build meaningful discussions. Teachers seek out Hi-Lo books that build on previous knowledge. For reluctant readers, this means the stories…
Read more
I write my books from this international perspective. We all bring something different to the table and we are all worthy of being heard. I believe my books will help ESL learners express their own unique perspectives. But what makes me qualified to know anything about ESL leaners? What do I know about differing perspectives?…
Read more
Hi-Lo readers are the toughest audience because they will often give up on a book after the first page. If it doesn’t grab them, they are done! Hi-Lo readers want a good story, but don’t want or need all the extra fluff. They want a story that gets to the point, but still doesn’t fall…
Read more
I focus on writing Hi-Lo Books for English Second Language Learners. Why is that? Although I was born in the USA, I grew up in Switzerland and learned to read and write in German first. It wasn’t until 3rd grade that I was introduced to reading and writing in English. By then, I was very…
Read more
In my last blog, I shared that I was introduced to adolescent literature in college as part of a class. Up until that point in my life I struggled with reading because I learned to read and write in German first. But once I was in college, something began to change. The transformation began in…
Read more