[NIUTeach]

I am doing a genre study this year and I am making my own signs like Beth Newinghams for each genre (more geared towards 2nd grade and bilingual)...I was wondering what everyone thinks on this... Should I have them up in the library at the beginning of the year or wait until I introduce each genre?

TIA

[rebeccav]

I have the GATE cluster in my room and we use icons to teach depth and complexity. For me, I like to have them all up and as I teach them/use them I put the particular icon on the white board. I have doubles so I don't have to take it off the BB.

[patschmidt]

wait until you introduce each of them...

[kali]

I would put them all up....

It will allow them to activate some prior knowledge and get excited about when that genre is shared.

Who knows what order you will go in as you will discover a must read book and want to share it regardless of the genre.

Students can have the opportunity to talk about the genres, inquire about unknown terms, and make request throughout, if all the genre posters are put up.

Beth's site is a true gem. She has inspired me for sure!! So organized and creative.

[Love3rdGrade]

You might want to introduce the whole idea of genres to your students as a lesson near the beggining of the year. I printed out her posters and laminated them for my room. Our reading series does genre focus throughout the year but in the beginning of the year I talk about how books are categorized. Then I show the posters one by one and discuss them and the kids chime in saying "I know that book." or we brainstorm books or stories that fit the genre. Then I challenge them to read different genres from our library. You could post them in your room near your own library for them to use as a reference and make sure that you as the kids about what genres they are reading.

How do you introduce the icons?