Unique Reading Engagement Ideas with Katie from Mochas and Markbooks

Middle School Café - A Podcast for Secondary ELA Teachers

Imagine turning your classroom into a hip coffee shop or observing your students actively browsing through your classroom bookshelves to create poetry. This is exactly what we are talking about in this episode! Katie Saj from Mochas and Markbooks stops by for a fun interview about creative ideas she uses to engage her students in reading!

Katie shared her amazing classroom transformation inspired by the cozy vibes of Tim Horton's, the beloved Canadian coffee shop. She creatively turned her classroom into a unique coffee shop experience that entices students to immerse themselves in the world of books. By creating a warm and inviting atmosphere reminiscent of a coffee shop, students feel comfortable exploring new genres, selecting books for their personal reading pleasure, and above all, experiencing the sheer joy of reading without any pressure or judgment. Additionally, Katie introduced an engaging activity called Book Spine Poetry, where students arrange book spines to create poems. This activity not only allows students to connect with the class library but also encourages their creativity to soar and ignites their imaginations.

Episode Highlights

• A book tasting is a room transformation activity where students sample books from different genres in a themed environment.
• Book spine poetry involves arranging books' spines to create a poem.
• First Chapter Friday is an activity where teachers read or play the first chapter of a book to engage students.

Connect with Katie

• Mochas and Markbooks on Instagram
• Tim Bookends Book Tasting Kit
• Virtual Record Shop Slides

Don’t forget to play along in the Summer Series Challenge. You can find all the details on Instagram @middleschoolcafe -look for the highlight!

Be sure to join the Secondary ELA Facebook group where we will be continuing the conversation about fun, engaging activities to entice teens to read!

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