How it works
These reading logs for 3rd graders open on 15 rows: Date, Title, Author, Pages, Minutes and Parent initials. A second sheet adds a narrow Genre column that takes a letter, with the key printed under the table.
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The genre letters
On the genre sheet the reader writes a letter in the Genre column: RF for realistic fiction, F for fantasy, M for mystery, FT for folktale, B for biography, I for informational and P for poetry. The key is printed under the table, so nobody has to remember it.
A sentence, a chapter, a finished list
The weekly sheet has one line under each night headed One sentence about what I read. One chapter book gives each chapter a row with its pages and the date it was finished. Books I finished is a numbered list with five stars to shade.
- A column of the same letter is a nudge to try another genre.
- Not sure of the author? The name is on the cover and again on the title page.
Questions and answers
What goes on a 3rd grade reading log?
The date, the title, the author, the pages read, the minutes and a parent's initials. The author and the page numbers are the columns a log for younger readers leaves out.
What do the genre letters stand for?
RF realistic fiction, F fantasy, M mystery, FT folktale, B biography, I informational and P poetry. The same key is printed under the table on the genre sheet.
Which books belong on the log?
Any book counts. The sheet Books to try in 3rd grade lists kinds to tick off, such as a mystery, a biography, a myth and a graphic novel. The grade is our suggestion: any reader can use any sheet.