Middle School Language Arts, Middle School Reading

Why Reading Workshop in Middle School is Right for You

Linda Asaro
September 2, 2023

This is the first in a blog post in a mini series on reading workshop in middle school.

So you are wondering if reading workshop in middle school is right for you. Maybe it’s your first job, or maybe you are a veteran teacher who has been told to teach with this model. It can feel overwhelming if you have never used this style of teaching.

This is the first of a blog post mini-series. I hope it will help guide and inspire you to either get started with a reading workshop model of teaching or to hone your skills further.

blog post on why reading workshop is the perfect model for teaching reading in middle school — Read here on why reading workshop is a great model of instruction in middle school.

Is Reading Workshop for All Readers?

I’d like to mention here that some might feel that reading workshop is not for them. They see it as something too vague or only for students who are at grade level with their reading.

Please know that I have used units of study by Lucy Calkins, but I modified them completely to be more skills-based and practical. So I hear you, but please know that what I am going to be referring to is something that can be used for all levels of kids. This is not just a series of fabulous lessons to engage high-level readers in some nebulous manner.

Teaching Reading to Middle Schoolers – It’s Difficult

Teaching reading at the middle school level is challenging. You have to teach multiple classes with multiple levels. Some kids love reading, but some do not. Perhaps they don’t enjoy reading because they don’t see themselves as “good” at it. Maybe they lack skills. Or worse, no one has ever really shown them how enjoyable reading can be.

On your end, you have to plan units, grade them, and keep kids on task. You are responsible for their state testing scores. And you need to do all of this while keeping your students motivated. It really is a monumental task.

If you’ve been struggling, you are not alone. I struggled greatly at the beginning. I truly understand firsthand what you are experiencing.

Reading Workshop in Middle School is the Way to Go

You will absolutely find that reading workshop in middle school is the way to go. Kids are much more active. You will assume the role of a coach rather than teaching tedious and meaningless lessons. Some methods have you teaching reading in isolation with only a series of skills and short text. Kids do not apply what they learn in these disjointed lessons. Worse, they don’t buy into it because they don’t see how it concerns them.

Waaaaayyyyyy Too Many Pedagogies

Being a teacher for over 3 decades, I have seen many different methods and pedagogies come and go. I haven’t loved them all. In fact, I haven’t loved most of them if I’m being honest.

For those of you who have been teaching for a long time, you know the drill. You get a new administrator, and you have to shift gears and try out a new program. They usually add a whole new major item to your curriculum. It’s up to you to try to fit it in with what you are doing. Sometimes, you are being asked to throw away what you have been doing previously after investing so much time and energy. It can be very, very frustrating.

The most disturbing thing that I see is that many middle school teachers are not actually teaching reading skills. They are assigning reading, giving a list of questions, giving tests, and that’s it. There is some assumption that kids know how to read now, so they just have to do it. That can’t be further from the truth.

If you are in this category, no judgment. This has probably happened because your district has guided you to do it this way, or you just don’t have the training.

Take heart: You can change this. And I promise, you will be so much happier teaching reading with the workshop model.

Reading Workshop in Middle School is Solid

I can honestly say that the one method that has stayed with me throughout my entire career is the workshop framework for teaching reading and writing. It is an absolutely solid way of teaching that will never go out of style. It is based on teaching small, specific skills via a mini-lesson, giving kids time to read and read, and conferencing with them to see how you can help.

I honestly love it. Once you set it up, it is such a streamlined and easy way to run your class. It does, however, take some time upfront and that is what we will get into in this blog series. For now, here are a few actionable items so that you can start teaching reading workshop in middle school now.

What is Reading Workshop?

I don’t want to assume that you know what reading workshop is. In case you need clarification, here are a few main points:

Reading workshop is a framework for students to work on the process of reading.
The purpose is to read books that are usually selected from a curated classroom library. Students will usually work in a book club to read and deeply understand the book while enjoying it.
Reading workshop in middle school applies to any type of reading (realistic fiction, historical fiction, biographies, informational, etc.).
The main components of a reading workshop are mini-lessons, time for reading, creating reading entries to show connection, discussion, and assessment.
The difference between reading workshop in middle school and say, assigning reading, is that you take your students through all the steps as a process. You will teach explicitly and assist along the way.

I have created a free mini-lesson that would be perfect for you to start with. It is about literary terms and plot structure, so it is a perfect start to any reading or writing workshop as it has skills and terms that students will need throughout the year. Grab your free mini lesson here.

free literary terms and plot structure lesson for middle school — This is a paid product, but is free to my subscribers.

What Can Your Students Expect from Reading Workshop in Middle School?

With reading workshop, your students will:

have a clear understanding of the skills taught within a unit
have time to read in class
have time to practice different skills within their reading without a formal grade
feel free to take risks so that they can grow as readers
work with a partner throughout a unit so they have someone with whom they can bounce ideas
have time to ask questions and get input via one-on-one conferencing
understand the grading process ahead of time so that they can do their absolute best
enjoy books more because they have a big part in the selection process

As you can see, reading workshop is a process that takes kids where they are and guides them to truly understand skills and become better readers. Plus, it’s so much more fun for you because you can enjoy helping them along in a way that is not overwhelming to you.

In a workshop model, you won’t be grading nonsensical and disconnected assignments. You will be able to engage with your students in a meaningful way. I have to assume that you are a reader yourself. When you teach in this way, you get to share that love of reading with your kids by discussing books and getting excited about what they are reading. It’s infectious!

OK, so that’s it. I sincerely hope that you will consider giving reading workshop a try. If this feels overwhelming and/or you just want to get started but don’t have time, I have lots of full reading units and reading workshop products available on my TPT store. They are very skill-oriented and clear and because like you, I teach a wide variety of students including ICR classes. All of my students can follow along, and I have luckily been very successful in teaching this way.