See the mess that is my living room? Piles and piles of mostly uninspired, hastily-made poster boards that are  my students' halfhearted attempt at proving to me that they actually read a novel of their choice in its entirety and can apply concepts/terms we have learned throughout the year. Let me tell you...I'm making it a goal to NEVER assign posters as projects ever again. Why?

1. Because they turn out to be a big pile of mess that sits ungraded in my living room for sometimes weeks on end before I can stomach the thought of sifting through said piles to find something that will receive a decent grade.

2. I'm convinced that assigning posters as a form of assessment fools kids into thinking that they really aren't going to have to put that much work into what they're doing, so they wait until the class period before (or maybe even the last few minutes) before it's due to glue, tape, label, etc. leaving the finished product with much to be desired.

3. This part is my fault, but the things I have made them include on book posters save them from having to do the hard work of thinking critically about a text and communicating their findings in an understandable, cohesive manner. Who thinks about carefully crafting well-written sentences on a poster board?? Slap a couple of headings along with a few bullet points, maybe a picture or two, and you're good to go.

4. It's a logistical nightmare. I'm learning that I'm just not the type of teacher who can get everything graded during a planning period at school (honestly, who can?); in fact, I save all of my grading for evenings and weekends because it's just hard for me to concentrate on that type of task when I'm in my classroom. Too many other things to do, I guess. That being said, I haul everything home with me, and toting around boxes full of posters (not to mention the huge tri-fold boards that some of my kids spring for) is just not fun, nor is it convenient. 

Bottom line, the "poster projects" have been a cop-out for me...a way to feel like I'm reviewing important concepts while allowing some student choice in the matter, but if I'm honest, I've been lazy about what I've been asking my kids to do as far as reading and responding to literature is concerned. I'm not sure what my brilliant solution to this will be just yet, but I'm excited to come up with something much more challenging, engaging, and dynamic. Suggestions welcome!