Grade 4/5
BOOK REPORT RUBRIC
1 / 2 / 3 / 4Title & Author / Title & author not included / Only the title or author is included / Both title and author and bolded or underlined / Both included with mention of author’s previous works
Genre / Not included / Included, but with no reasoning / Included with some reasoning / Included with thorough reasoning
Setting / No description of setting / Incomplete or inadequate
description of setting / Adequate description of setting / Complete description of setting. Includes many details and background information.
Main Characters / No description of main characters / Incomplete or inadequate descriptions of main characters. (Don’t just list their names) / Adequate descriptions of main characters with some details and pertinence to the plot / Complete description of main characters including many details and pertinence to the plot
Plot summary / Inadequate plot summary / Incomplete plot summary, does not define the problem and/or solution / Adequate plot summary including some events, vaguely describes problem and solution. / Thorough plot summary including main events, thoroughly describes problem and solution.
Didn’t retell the whole story
Evaluation / No evaluation / Brief evaluation, but little or no justification for recommendation / Adequate justification for recommendation / Convincing, reasonable justification for recommendation
Mechanics / Several errors in punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and/or grammar / Some errors in punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and/or grammar / Few errors in punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and/or grammar / No (or very few) errors in punctuation, spelling, capitalization, and/or grammar
Organization and
fluency / Report is unorganized and hard to follow, sentences do not flow well / Report is somewhat organized and can be followed, sentences flow fairly well / Report is organized and can be easily followed, sentences flow well / Report is very well organized and can be easily followed, sentences flow very well and are varied
Creativity / Very little creativity, no extra project / Somewhat creative, no extra project / Report is creative, extra project is included / Report is creative, extra project included and well done
4th and 5th Grade Book Review Format
for term two.
Introduction
Things to include in the introduction:
· The title (underlined) and author of the book.
· Why you chose the book.
· Genre. What kind of story is it? (fiction? non-fiction? biography? adventure? family? realistic fiction? graphic novel? science fiction? fantasy? animal? humor? thriller?)
Body
In this section you want to describe the main parts of a story: theme, plot, setting, and characters. Then you can give your opinions about the book. Please use headings.
The Theme is the main idea of the story. Some examples might be the importance of friendship or how to be courageous in a difficult situation. Tell what you think the theme is and how you know.
The Setting is the time and place of the story. Is it set a long time ago or now. Does it take place in another country or in an imaginary place? How much time passes in the story—a day? a year? a lifetime? Authors often work very hard to try to describe the setting using many adjectives, so their reader can paint a picture in their minds. Be sure to include some of these adjectives in your description.
The Plot is what happens. You want to tell what the story is mostly about. What is the main event or conflict? What things lead up to it? What happens as a result? How does the story end? (Sometimes you want to avoid telling the ending, or giving away the secrets of the story.)
Be careful not to re-tell the whole story in detail—you want room in your report to write about other things; instead, just say enough about it so the rest of your report will make sense.
The Characters are who the story is about. The main character is called the protagonist. Who are the other important characters? Do they help or hinder the protagonist? Discuss the characters in detail, appearance, personality traits, etc.
Evaluation – You will be asked to share your evaluation, as well as, your creative project with your class this term. Answer these questions and include any other information that you feel will persuade people to choose or avoid this book.
· Did you like the story? Why or why not?
· What was the best part of the book? Why?
· How did the story make you feel? Did you feel different things at different points?
· Would you recommend it to friends?
· Would you read other books by this author?
· What new things did you learn from this book?
Conclusion
This is just a sentence or two to sum up your report. Give your overall opinion of the book and the most important thing you want other people to know about it.
Creative Project
For this part of the project, students are asked to complete one of the following creative projects. Please take pride in this project as you will be presenting it to the class.
A diorama – a 3-D scene from the book in a shoe box
A comic strip – that highlights a chapter or two of the book.
A poster – this could be an alternative book cover or an advertisement promoting the book
A series of journal entries or letters written by the author or a character in the book (3 min.)
A script for a skit about a scene from the book
A series of detailed illustrations, or poems about the novel (five min.)
*Any other projects must be approved