After many years of reading books and taking multiple choice tests to show understanding, the students at Riverside Intermediate School are no longer using the Accelerated Reader (AR) program.  A wide variety of emotional reactions to the absence of the AR program has been shared by students, parents, and teachers- both positive and negative.  Whether you were a fan of AR or not, the staff of Riverside Intermediate School has made it a priority to create a “culture of reading.”  We want students and parents to understand the importance of reading and its role in their education and their future careers.  
     A committee of teachers and administrators developed a program called Riverside Reads.  Each nine weeks, students are given a grid.  The grid is a matrix of different book genres.  Students choose a book based on their lexile, genre, and interest- no more looking at how many points the book is worth which was common in the era of the AR program.  Through the course of the grading period, students should create a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal on their Riverside Reads grid by reading various types of books. After reading each book, the students record the book on the Riverside Reads grid.  Students must also then write a review of each book. This review is a simple summary (retell) of the book along with a few sentences about whether or not they would recommend the book to a peer and why.
    Many teachers are taking Riverside Reads to the next level by giving students an authentic audience for their book reviews.  The students in Mrs. Tanner’s 5th grade Language Arts classes are using Kidblog to post one book review per grading period.  That book review can be in the form of a written review, a persuasive commercial, or a letter to the author.  Mrs. Tanner hopes that students sharing about books will engage students in reading more books, discussing those books, and connecting with others globally about what they are reading.  She hopes to share some of their book review posts in the near future!