Cousino Seniors Sample Memoirs During Book Tasting
Research suggests that people make thousands of decisions each day. For seniors at Cousino High School, one of those decisions is to choose their next book.
On Sept. 18, teacher Lise Blades and media center specialist Tonya Coffin helped make that choice a little easier with a "book tasting" lesson.
Students entered the library and sat at tables stocked with multiple copies of a memoir, photos related to the book and its subject, and worksheets featuring QR codes linking to book trailers.
The seniors rotated through each table, reading the first chapter of each book, reflecting on its contents, and watching a video about the memoir. They also discussed the books with one another, sharing what they liked and disliked about each author's writing style.
Aside from helping them decide what book to read, Blades said exploring different memoirs also helps students discover the writing styles they may want to emulate when writing personal narratives or college essays later in the school year.
Talia Dych, a senior in Blades' class, said Sept. 18 was her first time participating in a book tasting. She said her favorite book from the activity was Educated by Tara Westover.
"That sounded, like, really interesting to me," Dych said. "If I really like a book, I'll read."
She added that the activity helped her learn much more about each book than she would have from simply looking at the cover or reading a few pages.
"You might look at a front cover, or you might read the first few pages and just be like, 'I don't like this book,' because I did that," she said. "Once I started, like then my partner started reading it, and I was like, 'wait, I actually like this book,' or like watching the videos helped because I'm like a visual learner so I feel like watching the videos really helped me."
Blades said that later in the year, students will have to select a book to read for book clubs, and the lesson helps them make that choice.
Blades said the lesson is important "to let them read professional examples of memoirs so that they can learn how to tell their own story through a personal narrative."
Coffin said she's been leading book tasting lessons for several years and believes they are especially valuable when students are selecting books for book clubs.