Sixth Graders Record Summer Reading Trailers

To help make their summer reading book selections more memorable, Shorecrest sixth graders made book trailers on iMovie to advertise the books. The interdisciplinary mini projects combined literacy with technology.

Over the summer, students chose from a list of 11 books, and started the school year ready to discuss their top pick. Instead of a traditional book report, they first practiced persuasive writing by creating a pitch about a movie of the book - as though they were contacting a production company.

Then the Chargers recorded a book trailer (like a movie trailer, but a commercial about a book), highlighting key literary devices that they felt made the book interesting to read (suspense, plot twist, cliffhanger, internal conflict, external conflict, characterization, etc.)

Students can view their classmates’ trailers to pick a book for their monthly independent reading throughout the year. Next year's sixth graders will also be able to watch the trailers before choosing their summer book from a similar list.