Last year, I threw the first annual Book Bistro in our fifth grade classroom. As I prepare for this year's Bistro, I thought I'd share this idea since the students loved it so much last year.
I choose to do this event around the holidays as a fun way of reviewing literary elements taught in the first marking period (most specifically theme), evaluating author's craft, and speaking and listening in a group. Please note, you can easily modify this idea for ANY grade and narrow the focus for their discussion. Students were given a month to read a "quality" literature book at home and prepare the responses to a few predetermined questions. We discussed what made a book quality, and the students then chose their own literature book. This book needed to be approved in advance to ensure it was quality. This also allowed me to group students together by similar themes.
On the day of the Bistro, students bring in all the props needed to transform our classroom into a "real" bistro. I even have dinner music playing for them in the background! :) They eat snacks and discuss their book using the guidelines presented in our Book Bistro packet. During the discussion, they have discussion starters related to knowledge of the book and literary elements, theme, and evaluating author's craft. Each student is responsible for evaluating a peer using a rubric.
If you would like to make memorable literacy memories in your classroom, I have included the link below. This product includes directions on how to use, an invitation, questions, rubric, and discussion starters.
Happy Reading! :)
 |
| We used table cloths from the Dollar Tree, battery operated candles, and holiday centerpieces. |
 |
| Eating snacks |
 |
| Ready to talk about literature! |
 |
| Our notes helped guide our discussion. |
 |
| Actively engaged! |
 |
| We loved our books! |
 |
| Fun times! |
 |
| Great novels were shared and many connections were made! |
No comments:
Post a Comment