
“Better to ask,” came the sleepy reply, “how you plan to solve this dilemma at 1am.”
Unfortunately for the sleepy side of my brain, there was no more sleep that night…..

Eureka! I found a solution to our family’s reading woes, and we’ve been using it ever since. Perhaps it will be helpful to yours as well.

Reading for Sport
For some reason, the question of reading was particularly pressing one particular starless night. In desperation, I switched on the light and picked up the September 2010 issue of OCEANetwork Waves, Oregon’s Christian Home Education Association Network Magazine. There I found an article, “Advice from a Bibliophile”, by Kate Karman.
Ms. Karman suggested three things:
- Read Old Books
- Read Whole Books (unabridged)
- Keep a List of What You Read
Bingo! “Self,” I said, “if we can keep sports stats, then we can keep reading stats!”
The next morning, I presented our new plan to my skeptical boys, complete with individually labeled notebooks. I’ve found that enthusiasm is key for any venture involving the male gender.
“Boys! We’re going to play the book game! (They love games.) We’re going to write down every book you read, the author and the date. You’ll have it forever and ever, and you can show it to your great-grandchildren! (The boys are excited about showing everything to their great-grandchildren.) I’m going to do it too! (In our house, success is nearly guaranteed by parental participation.) This is a game you play with yourself–there’s no competition with anyone else.”
How a Book Log Can Help Your Child
Thus began our book game. We’ve been playing the game (otherwise known as keeping a book log) for over six years now. It has become a record of sorts of their homeschool journey. I appreciate being able to look back and see what they’ve accomplished (what a joy to realize we’d read 19 books of the Old Testament the first fall we kept the list). They love having their reading stats recorded for posterity. Now that’s what I call a winning score.
You can keep a book log too. For boys, who are particularly concerned with stats and competition, turning reading into a sport can be really helpful!
In addition to adding some fun to your reading, keeping a book log gives your kids a lifelong record of the material they’ve read. This can be a lot of fun to read through.
My Book Log: A Notebooking Journey
Over the years, we’ve expanded on our book log. We’ve added little mini book reports, lists of books we’d like to read, and instruction about fiction, nonfiction, genre, worldview, and more.
I’ve put the years of experimenting together into something just for you. It’s part book log, part elementary reading curriculum, and part book report template. I can’t wait to show it to you.
Ready? Let’s go!
The My Book Log is the perfect tool for your elementary aged kids (from 3rd through 6th grade) to learn all about books, and to keep track of their literary consumption.

You’ll want to read through the instructional parts with your kids, then help them apply what they’ve learned in the notebooking parts of their book log.
Your kids will explore:
- The Library
- The Dewey Decimal System
- Fiction Structure
- Non-Fiction Structure
- How to Evaluate Fiction
- How to Evaluate Nonfiction

Your kids will keep track of:
- The Books They Read
- Important Book Details
- Their Impressions
- Books They’ve Borrowed
- Books They’ve Loaned
- Books They Want to Read
My Book Log

The My Book Log has some cool aspects to it:
- Explanations, charts, and diagrams
- The Dewey Decimal System
- The Dewey Decimal Classes
- Fiction Book Genres
- Nonfiction Book Genres
- Fiction Characters
- Fiction Plot
- Nonfiction Text Structures
- Nonfiction Beginnings
- Theme
- Author Worldview
- Interactive Fun
- A Library Scavenger Hunt
- Book Plates for Your Kids
- Text and Pictures to Color
- Book Logs Galore
- Books I’ve Borrowed
- Books I’ve Loaned
- Books I Want to Read
- Books I’ve Read
- Books I’ve Loaned
- Mini Book Reports
- Fiction Book Reports
- Nonfiction Book Reports
- Easy-to-Fill in Reports that Reinforce What Your Child Has Learned
- A Great Base for Future Literature Study!
- 170 Pages
- Household license
- Reprint for all of your children
- Reprint every year
- Classroom license available

How to Notebook (and What is Notebooking?)
Notebooking Resources for Your Kids!
Bible Road Trip™ Year One Notebooking JournalsBuy HereBible Road Trip™ Year Two Notebooking JournalsBuy HereBible Road Trip™ Year Three Notebooking JournalsBuy HereMy Timeline NotebookBuy HereMy Book LogBuy HereMy Field Trip and Travel JournalBuy HereMy Sermon NotebookBuy HereCobblestone Path™ Church History Research JournalsBuy Here
Printing Your My Book Log
- Sometimes readers are concerned about using colored ink. If this is the case for you, there should be a setting on your printer that allows you to print in black and white. Printing in grayscale will still use some color, but it will come out prettier than black and white.
- Print the My Book Log duplexed (double-sided) and have them flip on the long side.
- I recommend printing the My Book Log on white cardstock so the pages will be more durable with no bleed-through. This is my very favorite cardstock: Neenah Premium Cardstock.
-
- Three-hole punch the pages and store them in a notebook.
- Spiral bind your notebook.
- This is my favorite way to store notebooking journals. I take mine to the local office store. I wish I had invested in a coil binder years ago. It would have paid for itself many times over.
-
All About the Library

Your kids will explore:
- The Dewey Decimal System
- The 10 Dewey Decimal
- System Classes
Your kids will keep track of:
- A Library Scavenger Hunt
- Books They’ve Borrowed
All About Fiction

Your kids will explore:
- What Fiction Is
- What a Genre Is
- 20 Fiction Book Genres
- 4 Types of Characters
- Fiction Plot
- Story Theme
- Author Worldview

Bible Road Trip: A 3-Year Bible Curriculum for Preschool through High SchoolWhen Lightning Struck!: The Story of Martin LutherWonderfully Made: God’s Story of Life from Conception to Birth
Neenah Astrobrights Premium Color Card Stock, 65 lb, 8.5 x 11 Inches, 250 Sheets, Stardust White
Crayola Fun Effects Mini Twistables Crayons, 24-Count, 1 pack
Crayola Different Colored Pencils, 100 Count, Adult Coloring
TruBind 10 Mil 8-1/2 x 11 Inches PVC Binding Covers – Pack of 100, Clear (CVR-10ASN)
TruBind TB-S20 Spiral Coil Binding Machine (TB-S20)
TruBind 8-1/2 x 11 Inches 12 Mil Sand Texture Polycovers – Pack of 100, Black (CSD12-ASBK)
TruBind 20mm (3/4-Inch) Standard Black Coil Bindings, Pack of 50 (COIL20-BK)
TruBind Heavy-Duty Coil Cutting and Crimping Tool
All About Nonfiction

Your kids will explore:
- What Nonfiction Is
- What a Nonfiction Genre Is
- 10 Nonfiction Genres
- 2 Nonfiction Opening Structures
- 5 Nonfiction Text Structures
- Nonfiction Theme
- Author Worldview
All About My Books

Your kids will keep track of:
- Books They Want to Read
- By Fiction Genre & Nonfiction Subject
- Books They’ve Read
- In a Book Log Format
- Books They’ve Loaned
- For Books That Must Be Shared With Friends
- Mini Fiction Book Reports
- To Practice What They’ve Learned of Fiction Analysis
- Mini Nonfiction Book Reports
- To Practice What They’ve Learned of Nonfiction Analysis
Book Plates

Keeping a book log has been a lot of fun for our family over the years. My boys have learned to be discerning, educated readers. I’m so excited for your family as you begin on your own book journey!

More Thinking Kids Posts You’ll Love
When Lightning Struck!: The Story of Martin LutherWonderfully Made: God’s Story of Life from Conception to BirthMy Book Log: A Notebooking JourneyBible Verse Coloring Pages for Teens {& Their Moms}Best Books About Prayer for FamiliesBible Story Books for Kids26 Fabulous Christian Picture Books for ChildrenChristian Children’s Books about the Birds and the BeesBooks about the Bible for Kids and TeensBooks of the Bible BookmarksBuild Your Library of Christian Children’s BooksThe Absolutely Enormous List of Christian History Books | By Grade and Time PeriodBest Books on the ReformationColoring Books for Christian TeensWays to Get YOUR Kids Reading BooksChristian Books for Girls | Real Life HeroesChristian Books for Boys | Real Life Heroes10 Faith-Growing Christian Books for Your Teen to ReadAwesome Christian Books for Children They Won’t Put DownChristian Children’s Books about the Birds and the BeesBooks on Christian Dating for Your TeenChristian Magazines for Teens that They’ll LoveChristian Magazines for Kids that Moms Love and Kids Read!History Coloring Books for Kids

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