eBook Resources
Types of eBooks
Unlimited Simultaneous eBook – eBooks that can be checked out by an unlimited amount of people at the same time. If you want all of your students to be able to access an eBook simultaneously you would need to use this type of eBook.
Interactive eBook – eBooks that feature animations, sounds, or touch. Online activities may accompany the digital text. Only one person can check out an interactive eBook at one time unless it is a simultaneous interactive eBook.
eBook – A digital book that can be accessed on an eReader, smart phone, or a computer with Internet access. Only one person can check out a regular eBook at one time.
Ways to Use eBooks in the Classroom
1. Teachers can project eBooks onto their SMARTBoard or projection screen. Text can be manipulated and highlighted (digital big book).
2. Students can use the iPads as an eReader .
3. Use eBooks individually or as a group to develop students’ reading and research abilities. Take advantage of the highlighting, note-taking and searching tools to demonstrate good research practices. Read along with students, looking up unfamiliar words and highlighting key sections to exercise their reading skills.
4. Working individually or in pairs, have students highlight opinions vs. facts in a historical novel.
5. Differentiate activities for students - students can manipulate the font size and page orientation to suit their individual needs and preferences, highlight text to mark key passages, insert notes in response to the text, access a built-in dictionary to develop new vocabulary and word consciousness, and use a text-to-speech feature to practice reading fluency.
6. Have Language Arts students copy and paste five key passages that describe the main character in a novel.
7. Introduce a topic by reading an interactive eBook to your students from your SMARTBoard.
8. Have your students research information from an eBook.
9. Copy and paste sections from an eBook and create customized worksheets for your students to reinforce classroom lessons. Have students complete an assignment by searching an eBook for specific facts or passages, and then copying and pasting them into a digital worksheet.
10. Students can use the iPads to read an eBook as a class. They can also read an eBook from a smart phone or on a computer that has Internet access.
11. eBook Literature circles - Students organize into small-group, peer-led book discussions. Each student chooses (or is given) a role that corresponds to a specific task in the reading process--researcher, vocabulary enricher, illustrator, ect. As they read, students gather information to bring back to the group to help each other understand the story. An iPad or a computer can be used to read the eBook. Don’t understand a word in the text? A single tap on the screen pulls up a dictionary that gives the definition, and another tap returns the reader to the page on which the word appears. If a student doesn’t understand a concept they can use the web browser to research more about the concept in order to get a better understanding.
Follett eBook Lesson Plans
Selective Highlighting
Students learn to organize what they are reading and identify what is important by considering main ideas and their supporting details. This activity can be used across the curriculum to help students organize what they are reading and identify what is important. Students will consider main ideas and their supporting details. The activity comes with a student worksheet you can copy and distribute.
Character Traits
Helps students discriminate between traits the author tells the reader directly and those the reader infers from the author's writing. When students describe characters in books, they do so in terms of character traits, usually descriptive adjectives that tell the character. This activity helps students learn to discriminate between traits the author tells the reader directly and those the reader infers from the author's writing. The activity includes a student worksheet "What Evidence Is There of the Character's Traits?"
Make Predictions
Students practice skills in predicting what will happen next in a story, and also allows them to answer the essential Who? What? When? Where? How? and Why? questions. The included worksheet gives students an easy-to-use format for recording answers.
Scientific Inquiry
Integrate the Language Arts curriculum with other disciplines as students use the first steps in scientific inquiry to analyze and make observations. Reinforce good reading strategies while reinforcing scientific concepts. The included worksheet encourages students to organize their thoughts and answers.
Alternate Ending
Students become authors and use their imaginations to create an alternate ending for a story. This activity helps puts parameters on that imagination by focusing students' creativity to align with the context of the original story.
Students learn to organize what they are reading and identify what is important by considering main ideas and their supporting details. This activity can be used across the curriculum to help students organize what they are reading and identify what is important. Students will consider main ideas and their supporting details. The activity comes with a student worksheet you can copy and distribute.
Character Traits
Helps students discriminate between traits the author tells the reader directly and those the reader infers from the author's writing. When students describe characters in books, they do so in terms of character traits, usually descriptive adjectives that tell the character. This activity helps students learn to discriminate between traits the author tells the reader directly and those the reader infers from the author's writing. The activity includes a student worksheet "What Evidence Is There of the Character's Traits?"
Make Predictions
Students practice skills in predicting what will happen next in a story, and also allows them to answer the essential Who? What? When? Where? How? and Why? questions. The included worksheet gives students an easy-to-use format for recording answers.
Scientific Inquiry
Integrate the Language Arts curriculum with other disciplines as students use the first steps in scientific inquiry to analyze and make observations. Reinforce good reading strategies while reinforcing scientific concepts. The included worksheet encourages students to organize their thoughts and answers.
Alternate Ending
Students become authors and use their imaginations to create an alternate ending for a story. This activity helps puts parameters on that imagination by focusing students' creativity to align with the context of the original story.
Advantages to using eBooks
-The use of digital books can help teachers avoid wasted instruction time due to the distribution of books or due to students not bringing their books to class. The convenience of the online format means that the book is always available.
-Digital books enable differentiation.
-Interactive books are more engaging for students.
-eBooks are available to be downloaded 24/7. Staff and students do not have to physically visit the library to check out an eBook or to return it.
-Students can’t lose an eBook therefore the materials will always be available for use.
-Digital books enable differentiation.
-Interactive books are more engaging for students.
-eBooks are available to be downloaded 24/7. Staff and students do not have to physically visit the library to check out an eBook or to return it.
-Students can’t lose an eBook therefore the materials will always be available for use.