Divide and conquer

In our library lessons we have been learning about tackling a chapter book. Some of the kids have said that the book they checked out is too long and they can't read it. We talked about a few key tips when choosing an appropriate book.

• Look at the cover
• Read the blurb
• Flip through some pages and make sure it doesn't look too intimidating or too easy
• Read a page and use the 5 finger rule to make sure it is just right.

You can get some information about the level of the book and how long it should take to read the book by looking at the AR label on the spine.

RL stands for reading level. It is an approximation of a grade level that the book would be appropriate for if the student is reading on grade level. 4.2 means 4th grade, 2nd month. It is pretty accurate, but not perfect. The student still needs to open the book and give it the 5-finger test to make sure it is a just right book.

PTS stands for points. This is the number of points the book is worth after taking an AR test. The points can also tell us how long it should take to read the book. A good rule of thumb is to double the points to determine the number of days you should read a book. This 8 point book should take no more than 16 days to read.

Divide and Conquer is a strategy meant to break a long chapter book into smaller, more manageable pieces. To find the number of pages you should read every day, use the following formula:

Total pages in book / number of days to read the book (points doubled) = pages per day

For this example, the book has 289 pages and it should take 16 days to read.

289 / 16 = 18 pages per day

Then we break the book into 18 page sections and mark them with sticky notes. Sometimes the 18th page will fall in the middle of a chapter. You may have to go forward or backward a few pages to find the beginning of a chapter or you may be able to find a natural break in the middle of a chapter (extra space between two paragraphs, or a dividing line or symbol between two paragraphs). Do this until you reach the end of the book and you have divided your book into daily reading assignments. Now you can conquer the reading.