So you keep hearing this term thrown around about a specific type of book that you can use to guide your students in an interactive reading lesson, but what is it you ask? Well, let’s dive into the mentor text definition together!

Mentor Text Definition

• a picture book (or chapter book for upper grades) that is read and analyzed for how it exemplifies a specific skill
• text should naturally lend itself to the focus skill

Example- The story of Goldilocks naturally supports a cause and effect lesson. So you could use Goldilocks as a mentor text noticing, thinking aloud, and learning about cause and effect relationships.

4 Things to Consider When Picking The Perfect Mentor Text

1. High Interest Books for 2nd Grade (or whatever grade you are teaching)

An important part of my personal mentor text definition is that the book should be interesting, relatable, and align with prior knowledge. Note- it could also be picked to teach background information. You do not always need to read about tigers because your class really loves tigers. You should try often to keep in mind what they like and choose books in that similar realm.

• like tigers- explore different animals in the jungle
• like cars- explore types of transportation or how the car was built
• like Mercy Watson– try other books with pigs as the main character

Find what your students love, then start small branching out from that. As they show interest and engagement for specific storylines, characters, themes, or information continue branching out further from that.

It is important for your students to be interested. This will help them remember the skill they practiced and inspire them to participate in discussion about the text.

2.A book you have access to

I love using websites like Storyline Online to show my students a video of a book that I do not physically have! However, for using as a mentor text in a reading lesson, it is much more effective if you can hold the book in your hands. Obviously, this is not always the case. However, when you have the option between two similar books and one is in print pick that one!

I always have found it really hard to find nonfiction mentor texts with a reading level accessible to my little learners. I often use nonfiction passages as mentor texts when needed. It is important to keep in mind though that although we don’t want the words to be too high level, during an interactive read aloud, students are practicing their listening comprehension. They are not decoding the words.

3. Aligning with the skill

In order to actually meet the mentor text definition, the book you choose should be one that students can learn/ practice the focus skill as they are reading. Most books can be stretched to fit any skill but when a book and a reading strategy perfectly align, it is magic! Add one of the Comprehension Crew characters and you have an incredible lesson!

I made lists for you of mentor texts that I loved using with my 2nd graders for each reading skill! Check them out at these links. I love using mentor texts for inferencing, summarizing, questioning, clarifying, predicting, synthesizing, and evaluating.

4. You can (and should) read it over and over.

If you students LOVE a specific book, use it over and over. Use it to teach connections on week, inferences a month later, and even evaluating a month after that. (Students love coming back to a book with the eye of evaluating!)

One of my favorite things during an interactive read aloud is when a student makes a connection between the current book and one we read months ago! Books stick with the kids. They love to revisit old books they’ve read before. They enjoy looking at it through a new perspective to practice a different skill! Don’t assume your students are done and tired of the book. When you make shared reading an exciting, engaging experience, they hold the memories of that book near and dear to their hearts!

Grab a FREE mentor text lesson for Spaghetti in a Hot Dog Bun!

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