There are a lot of things that we do as teachers to help turn our students on to reading.  

We hope that the books we read aloud to them or expose them to in our classroom libraries will help them to find a life-long love for reading early in life.

One of my favorite ways to get students excited about reading is to have them participate in an author study.  Author studies are a great way to get your students reading, talking, and ENJOYING new books in your classroom --  all by the same author.

Putting an author study together, however, can be overwhelming.  That's why here on the podcast I'm doing a mini-series to help walk you through step-by-step how to create your own author study in your classroom.  From choosing an amazing author, to selecting the best books to share, to formatting and differentiating your author study to meet the needs of your students, to crafting awesome lesson - this mini-series has got you covered!

Highlights from the Episode:

• Why I love doing author studies with my students (2:49)

• What is an author study? (4:20)

• The three components of an author study: Connecting to the author, book exploration, responding to the books (4:45)

• Why you need to know your students as readers well BEFORE doing an author study in your classroom (7:53)

• 4 things to consider when choosing an author for your study (8:29)

• Choosing to do a picture book author study vs. a chapter book author study (14:21)

Resources & Links mentioned in the episode

Miss. Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind by Kevin O’Malley (affiliate link)

Chris Van Allsburg Author Study

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Transcript