Reader's Workshop Links: Book Talks

Book talks have really been taking off in my classroom over the last two weeks as students begin to finish their first books. We try to fit in three talks a day, most days of the week. So far talks have covered everything from The Hunger Games to Homecoming and The Graveyard Book.

Book talks are a wonderful way of promoting books, authors and reading in general, so I wasn't surprised to find some good links. I'm highlighting two of them here:

Nancy Keane's Booktalks Quick and Simple - has the biggest collection of short book talks I've ever seen. It would be a wonderful place to start looking for books. I particularly liked the subject list, where you could find book talks for books that deal with themes like adoption, immigration, music, survival and so much more. There's also book talking tips, review resources and reading lists. Don't forget to check out the blog, and the massive podcast list.

The Scholastic Book talk site is another resource I've used. Sometimes I find the videos a little stilted - they're scripted and not quite oozing with the enthusiasm I find in a good book talk. But I have been able to use them as examples of good book talks - helped the students realise how they should be sitting up and talking clearly, and there is a wide range of books covered.

Do you have a favourite book talking website? Comment and let me know.

Find more reader's workshop links here