{"id":1124,"date":"2018-10-16T16:47:02","date_gmt":"2018-10-16T16:47:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.focusontap.com\/?p=1124"},"modified":"2019-05-13T11:24:08","modified_gmt":"2019-05-13T11:24:08","slug":"decodable-books-for-older-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.focusontap.com\/decodable-books-for-older-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Decodable books for older students: phonics readers for tweens and teens"},"content":{"rendered":"

Decodable books for older students must\u00a0support systematic phonics instruction<\/a>\u00a0while at the same time<\/em> engaging older students\u2019 interests. In this post, I\u2019ll get into what makes an engaging book for middle school and high school students. We\u2019ll look at some of the \u201chooks\u201d Victoria has used in writing the decodable texts in our app for iOS and Android<\/a>. Lastly, I\u2019ve included some information about decodable books for older students if you mean \u201colder than 6 or 7\u201d.<\/p>\n

Pacing, Puberty, Poking Fun<\/h2>\n

As Elizabeth Babin, M.Ed., points out in her post \u201c9 Great Books for Reluctant Readers in Middle School\u201d<\/a>\u00a0on Understood.org, motivating older students to read is easier if we can \u201cfind books with themes they can relate to at a time when they\u2019re trying to figure out who they are.<\/strong>\u201d Or as Regan McMahon puts in \u201cHow to Motivate a Middle School Reader<\/a>\u201d:<\/p>\n

At this age they’re social, curious, beginning to pull [away] from their parents to forge their own identity, and fine-tuning their sense of humor. Thus, books that expand their view of the world or poke fun at the world they know (family, friends, puberty, school social dynamics) hold a lot of appeal, as do imagined worlds of science fiction and fantasy.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the introduction to her list of 20 YA (young adult) books for older teen reluctant readers<\/a>\u00a0over at BookRiot.com, Kelly Jensen says that teen reluctant readers will like books that \u201chave a good pace, a solid hook to \u201csell\u201d to the reader<\/strong> (i.e., you can give them the book\u2019s description in a sentence), compelling characters, straightforward writing, and easy to imagine\u201d. These characteristics are even more important in decodable books for older readers because these readers have often had a lot of negative experiences with books and reading.<\/p>\n

Hooks in TAP decodable books for older students<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re not familiar with our decodable texts and have an iPhone or iPad, the Teen and Adult Phonics Library app is free to download from the App Store<\/a> and includes a sample of every story.\u00a0(Also available without in-app purchases for iOS<\/a> and Android\/Chromebook<\/a>.) Here are examples of stories you\u2019ll find in our growing collection:<\/p>\n