For the first time last year (2011) I set a reading goal for myself. I set the goal to 100 books, but never really set any parameters on what constitutes a book. (Does it need to be a certain number of pages? Does a longer book count as two books? Etc.) Not to make excuses for myself, but be prepared for a few because I did not reach my goal, by TWO, count them ONE, TWO, books. That’s pure frustration for me. I was so close!
Looking back, it really doesn’t matter all too much (And I’m not so much saying that because I didn’t make it). I set a reading goal for the sole purpose of pushing myself to stay more current with YA books in particular. I found it hard to communicate with my students about the books they were enjoying and reading because I had not read so many of them. I read far more books this past school year, summer, and the beginning of this school year than I have in a long while. So to sum it up, the goal worked, even if I did not meet or surpass it. I read 98 books which is far more than I may have read otherwise. So I plan to set that goal for 2012 as well, to read 100 books (for real this time).
This November through December my reading picked up quite a bit. Not enough to make up for September and October, obviously, but not bad.
The Scorch Trials by James Dashner
Addie on the Inside by James Howe
Now You See It by Cathy N. Davidson
Scrawl by Mark Shulman
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney
Writing Magic: Creating Stories that Fly by Gail Carson Levine
I AM NUMBER FOUR: The Lost Files: Six’s Legacy by Pitticus Lore
Trash by Andy Mulligan
Radiance by Alyson Noel
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
The Truth About Truman School by Dori Hillestad Butler
Middle School, the Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson
The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois
The Mysterious Matter of I.M. Fine by Diane Stanley
Bio-Pirate by Michele Martin Bossley