Since the 2019-2020 school year marks the 10th
Anniversary of this blog, on Fridays, I’m resurrecting and updating old posts
that sparked a lot of conversation or that still have a lot to offer people
teaching or writing nonfiction. Today’s essay originally appeared on March 4,
2016.
Inspired
by the annual March Madness basketball tournament, in 2016, literacy coach Shelley
Moody worked with instructional coach Valerie Glueck at Williams Elementary School in Oakland, Maine, to develop a month-long,
whole-school activity in which students read sixteen nonfiction picture books (some
narrative, some expository) and select their favorite.
During
Week 1, half the classes read the 8 books on the right-hand side of the board,
and the other half of the school reads the 8 books on the left-hand side of the
board. Classrooms discuss the content and structure of the books as well as their
favorite features. Then students vote on pairs of books to determine which
titles will move on to The Elite Eight.
During Week
2, each class reads the 4 winning books on the opposite side of the board. Then
students participate in rich classroom discussions and vote to select The Final
Four.
During
Week 3, classes spend time reviewing the four finalists and then vote for the March
Madness Nonfiction Champion.
During the
final week, students gather for a whole-school assembly. Following a parade of
books that includes one child from each classroom, the winning book is announced.
And the crowd goes wild!
Here’s what Shelly and Valerie had to say about the experience:
“The goal of this event is to inspire curiosity,
to build background knowledge, and to put outstanding nonfiction books in the
hands of our students. It’s hard to capture in words the energy and excitement
about books that March Madness has created in our school community.”
—Shelley
Moody, Literacy Coach
“March Madness
is a springboard for discussions of text features and structures, vocabulary,
and author’s purpose.”
—Valerie Glueck, Instructional Coach
If you decide to try this activity at your school this
year, you could ask older students to fill out a worksheet like the one
below developed by Judi Paradis, the teacher-librarian at Plympton School
in Waltham, MA.
When
students are done, they can share their responses with classmates. Or the
worksheets can be posted, so that other students can use the information to
help them make book choices.
This fun combination of activities will get kids reading and thinking and sharing.
Note: You can find a more
printable version of the Nonfiction Smackdown!
worksheet
on my pinterest Reading Nonfiction Board: https://www.pinterest.com/mstewartscience/