Book Rap
Course
For many teachers, Book Raps have been seen as something interesting and fun to do when there is some spare time. It has not been viewed seriously as an activity that has a permanent place in the curriculum as a value packed activity . For primary schools a book rap can be connected to different areas of the curriculum. For secondary schools it can be incorporated into the English curriculum as part of a unit of study of a set text in different year levels.
Literacy now invloves being able to communicate in many different ways rather than the usual traditional notions of reading and writing. It is being able to make sense of and navigate through several forms of information including images, sounds, animation and ongoing discussion groups. It is being able to integrate reading and writing, discriminate between important and unimportant information and respond to email. The role of teachers is not to impart their knowledge of universal truths about text but to foster an environment where students actively construct understanding of texts through interaction with others.
This allows students to become more emotionally involved in the book rap discussion with other 'rappers' than may be possible in the normal classroom setting. This can include writing longer and more detailed responses and a greater reaction when reading other students responses.
While providing a different context for a book discussion book raps still allow other literature techniques to be used like literature circles, critical literacy approach and for younger children story maps, semantic mapping and character maps.
Book raps can be treated just as seriously as any other work in the curriculum with assessment still included as for other units of work. Overall book raps provide powerful motivation for reading and writing by being part of a larger online community which values each other's contributions.
Book raps become part of the english curriculum. Participating in a book rap provides a real purpose for reading and writing activities. It allows discussion and the sharing of ideas with children outside of the classroom.The audience then becomes all the students on the list rather than just the teacher.
The Queensland English Syllabus has a holistic approach to the subject English with the functional aim that by the time students complete their compulsory years of schooling that they should have developed their ability to use English as active and informed citizens. While the operational goal is to develop and refine students' ability to compose and to comprehend spoken and written English.
Units of English are planned around central organisers called integrating devices. An integrating device generates a focus for the unit making learning activities purposeful so as to involve children in using and learning about English for genuine social purposes. Units of work involve real-life and lifelike activities and support students through all learning phases. Book raps can be the integrating device. They do provide real life activities. Discussing a book with other students by email is a real life activity. Thus students and teachers can build new educational environments which allow the learner to become literate in this new context of using computers for communication.
However old techniques for discussing the book during the rap are still valuable. These include story maps and plot profiles.
Depending on what themes are present in each particular book, other areas of the curriculum can be studied while participating in the book rap. This can include science, social studies, art, physical education and mathematics.
Visit Hillview's Page to see the Creative Curriculum Connections on Stellaluna and Verdi and additional activities made for Stellaluna.These have been reproduced with permission from the publishers of Jannel Cannon's books Harcourt and Brace. These activities include before reading the book, while reading the book and after reading the book then there are across the curriculum activities including science, language, literature, social studies, art and physical education.
Sometimes the coordinator will include the URL's to resources when sending me the information for their book rap. These are then incorporated into the web page for that book. Mostly teachers have to work out their particular curriculum connections for themselves.
Teachers can then mould the project to fit their curriculum goals and program. Sometimes the emphasis can be on learning to use email with the other links to the curriculum being less important.
Created by Cherrol McGhee Book Rap Manager
Updated 26 April 1999.
