Book review templates

[nwmum]

does anyone have a basic non-complicated book review template?

thanks

[librarymice]

what age range are you looking for? This one is very basic but does the job for little ones!

[nwmum]

hi

looking for an older one yr2 -3

[monkeyfeathers]

For year 2 or 3, I think all you need is to get them to write a sentence with the name of the book and the author (and illustrator if there is one). Then they can write a couple of sentences explaining what the book is about. Then get them to write a paragraph giving their opinion of the book. That could include: why they chose the book (and if it lived up to their expectations); what they liked about the book (and why); anything they didn't like (and why); what the most exciting/interesting/etc bit was (and why); who their favourite character was (and why); anything they'd have changed about the book (and how they'd have made it better).

The why thing is probably the most important aspect (and something I wish that university students could appreciate). Saying what was good about a book is far easier, but less informative, than saying why it made the book good. It doesn't have to be in-depth literary analysis, obviously. In a year 2, I'd imagine that 'Anna was my favourite character because she likes cats and so do I' counts as a perfectly good analysis of and comment on a book. The exercise is usually trying to get them thinking about what kind of things make books/stories/writing generally interesting. As they get older/more experienced they can start linking this to more 'literary' concerns (the kinds of words that made story 'scary', the ways that the author has tried to keep them wanting to find out more, etc, etc).