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42 Creative Book Report Ideas for Students

Inspire your students to share their love of books.

Responding to what you read is an important literacy skill. Reading about other people’s experiences and perspectives helps kids learn about the world. And although students don’t need to dive deeply into every single book they read, occasionally digging into characters, settings, and themes can help them learn to look beyond the prose. Here are 42 creative book report ideas designed to make reading more meaningful.

1. Concrete Found Poem

This clever activity is basically a shape poem made up of words, phrases, and whole sentences found in the books students read. The words come together to create an image that represents something from the story.

2. Graphic Novel

Have students rewrite the book they are reading, or a chapter of their book, as a graphic novel. Set parameters for the assignment such as including six scenes from the story, three characters, details about the setting, etc. And, of course, include detailed illustrations to accompany the story.

3. Book Snaps

Book Snaps are a way for students to visually show how they are reacting to, processing, and/or connecting with a text. First, students snap a picture of a page in the book they are reading. Then, they add comments, images, highlights, and more.

4. Diary Entry

Have your students place themselves in the shoes of one of the characters from their book and write a first-person diary entry of a critical moment from the story. Ask them to choose a moment in the story where the character has plenty of interaction and emotion to share in a diary entry.

5. Character To-Do List

This fun activity is an off-the-beaten-path way to dive deep into character analysis. Get inside the head of the main character in a book and write a to-do list that they might write. Use actual information from the text, but also make inferences into what that character may wish to accomplish.

6. Mint Tin Book Report

There are so many super-creative, open-ended projects you can use mint tins for. This teacher blogger describes the process of creating book reports using them. There’s even a free template for cards that fit inside.

7. Fictional Yearbook Entries

Ask your students to create a yearbook based on the characters and setting in the book. What do they look like? Cut out magazine pictures to give a good visual image for their school picture. What kind of superlative might they get? Best looking? Class clown? What clubs would they be in or lead? Did they win any awards? It should be obvious from their small yearbooks whether your students dug deep into the characters in their books. They may also learn that who we are as individuals is reflected in what we choose to do with our lives.

8. Book Report Cake

This project would be perfect for a book tasting in your classroom! Each student presents their book report in the shape of food. See the sandwich and pizza options above and check out this blog for more delicious ideas.

9. Current Events Comparison

Have students locate three to five current events articles a character in their book might be interested in. After they’ve found the articles, have them explain why the character would find them interesting and how they relate to the book. Learning about how current events affect time, place, and people is critical to helping develop opinions about what we read and experience in life.

10. Sandwich Book Report

Yum! You’ll notice a lot of our creative book report ideas revolve around food. In this oldie but goodie, each layer of this book report sandwich covers a different element of the book—characters, setting, conflict, etc. A fun adaptation of this project is the book report cheeseburger.

11. Book Alphabet

Choose 15 to 20 alphabet books to help give your students examples of how they work around themes. Then ask your students to create their own Book Alphabet based on the book they read. What artifacts, vocabulary words, and names reflect the important parts of the book? After they find a word to represent each letter, have them write one sentence that explains where the word fits in.

12. Peekaboo Book Report

Using cardboard lap books (or small science report boards), students include details about their book’s main characters, plot, setting, conflict, resolution, etc. Then they draw a head and arms on card stock and attach them to the board from behind to make it look like the main character is peeking over the report.

13. T-Shirt Book Report

Another fun and creative idea: Create a wearable book report with a plain white tee. Come up with your own using Sharpie pens and acrylic paint. Get step-by-step directions .

14. Book Jacket

Have students create a new book jacket for their story. Include an attractive illustrated cover, a summary, a short biography of the author, and a few reviews from readers.

15. Watercolor Rainbow Book Report

This is great for biography research projects. Students cut out a photocopied image of their subject and glue it in the middle. Then, they draw lines from the image to the edges of the paper, like rays of sunshine, and fill in each section with information about the person. As a book report template, the center image could be a copy of the book cover, and each section expands on key information such as character names, theme(s), conflict, resolution, etc.

16. Act the Part

Have students dress up as their favorite character from the book and present an oral book report. If their favorite character is not the main character, retell the story from their point of view.

17. Pizza Box Book Report

If you’re looking for creative book report ideas that use upcycled materials, try this one using a pizza box. It works well for both nonfiction and fiction book reports. The top lid provides a picture of the book cover. Each wedge of the pizza pie tells part of the story.

18. Bookmark

Have students create a custom illustrated bookmark that includes drawings and words from either their favorite chapter or the entire book.

19. Book Reports in a Bag

Looking for book report ideas that really encourage creative thinking? With book reports in a bag, students read a book and write a summary. Then, they decorate a paper grocery bag with a scene from the book, place five items that represent something from the book inside the bag, and present the bag to the class.

20. Reading Lists for Characters

Ask your students to think about a character in their book. What kinds of books might that character like to read? Take them to the library to choose five books the character might have on their to-be-read list. Have them list the books and explain what each book might mean to the character. Post the to-be-read lists for others to see and choose from—there’s nothing like trying out a book character’s style when developing your own identity.

21. File Folder Book Report

Also called a lap book, this easy-to-make book report hits on all the major elements of a book study and gives students a chance to show what they know in a colorful way.

22. Collage

Create a collage using pictures and words that represent different parts of the book. Use old magazines or print pictures from the Internet.

23. Book Report Triorama

Who doesn’t love a multidimensional book report? This image shows a 3D model, but Elisha Ann provides a lesson to show students how to glue four triangles together to make a 4D model.

24. Timeline

Have students create a timeline of the main events from their book. Be sure to include character names and details for each event. Use 8 x 11 sheets of paper taped together or a long portion of bulletin board paper.

25. Clothes Hanger Book Report Mobile

This creative project doesn’t require a fancy or expensive supply list. Students just need an ordinary clothes hanger, strings, and paper. The body of the hanger is used to identify the book, and the cards on the strings dangling below are filled with key elements of the book, like characters, setting, and a summary.

26. Public Service Announcement

If a student has read a book about a cause that affects people, animals, or the environment, teach them about public service announcements . Once they understand what a PSA is, have them research the issue or cause that stood out in the book. Then give them a template for a storyboard so they can create their own PSA. Some students might want to take it a step further and create a video based on their storyboard. Consider sharing their storyboard or video with an organization that supports the cause or issue.

27. Dodecahedron Book Report

Creative book report ideas think outside the box. In this case, it’s a ball! SO much information can be covered on the 12 panels , and it allows students to take a deep dive in a creative way.

28. Character Cards

Make trading cards (like baseball cards) for a few characters from the book. On the front side, draw the character. On the back side, make a list of their character traits and include a quote or two.

29. Book Report Booklets

This clever book report is made from ordinary paper bags. Stack the paper bags on top of each other, fold them in half, and staple the closed-off ends of the bags together. Students can write, draw, and decorate on the paper bag pages. They can also record information on writing or drawing paper and glue the paper onto the pages. The open ends of the bags can be used as pockets to insert photos, cut-outs, postcards, or other flat items that help them tell their story.

30. Letter to the Author

Write a letter to the author of the book. Tell them three things you really liked about the story. Ask three questions about the plot, characters, or anything else you’re curious about.

31. Book Report Charm Bracelet

What a “charming” way to write a book report! Each illustrated bracelet charm captures a character, an event in the plot, setting, or other detail.

32. Fact Sheet

Have students create a list of 10 facts that they learned from reading the book. Have them write the facts in complete sentences, and be sure that each fact is something that they didn’t know before they read the book.

33. Cereal Box TV Book Report

This book report project is a low-tech version of a television made from a cereal box and two paper towel rolls. Students create the viewing screen cut-out at the top, then insert a scroll of paper with writing and illustrations inside the box. When the cardboard roll is rotated, the story unfolds.

34. Be a Character Therapist

Therapists work to uncover their clients’ fears based on their words and actions. When we read books, we must learn to use a character’s actions and dialogue to infer their fears. Many plots revolve around a character’s fear and the work it takes to overcome that fear. Ask students to identify a character’s fear and find 8 to 10 scenes that prove this fear exists. Then have them write about ways the character overcame the fear (or didn’t) in the story. What might the character have done differently?

35. Mind Maps

Mind maps can be a great way to synthesize what students have learned from reading a book. Plus, there are so many ways to approach them. Begin by writing a central idea in the middle of the page. For example, general information, characters, plot, etc. Then branch out from the center with ideas, thoughts, and connections to material from the book.

36. Foldables

From Rainbows Within Reach , this clever idea would be a great introduction to writing book reports. Adapt the flap categories for students at different levels. Adjust the number of categories (or flaps) per the needs of your students.

37. Board games

This is a great project if you want your students to develop a little more insight into what they’re reading. Have them think about the elements of their favorite board games and how they can be adapted to fit this assignment. For more, here are step-by-step directions .

38. Comic strips

If you’re looking for creative book report ideas for students who like graphic novels, try comic strips. Include an illustrated cover with the title and author. The pages of the book should retell the story using dialogue and descriptions of the setting and characters. Of course, no comic book would be complete without copious illustrations and thought bubbles.

39. Timeline

Create a timeline using a long roll of butcher paper, a poster board, or index cards taped together. For each event on the timeline, write a brief description of what happens. Add pictures, clip art, word art, and symbols to make the timeline more lively and colorful.

40. Cereal Box

Recycle a cereal box and create a book report Wheaties-style. Decorate all sides of the box with information about the book’s characters, setting, plot, summary, etc.

41. Wanted Poster

Make a “wanted” poster for one of the book’s main characters. Indicate whether they are wanted dead or alive. Include a picture of the character and a description of what the character is “wanted” for, three examples of the character showing this trait, and a detailed account of where the character was last seen.

42. Movie Version

If the book your students have read has been made into a movie, have them write a report about how the versions are alike and different. If the book has not been made into a movie, have them write a report telling how they would make it into a movie, using specific details from the book.

What creative book report ideas did we miss? Come share in our We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook.

Plus, check out the most popular kids’ books in every grade..

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My students love mysteries! After my fourth graders picked a good mystery book and read it from cover to cover, we created Mystery Book Reports . This is included in my Book Reports That Motivate!

1.  Decorate a title page.

2.  Write a summary with suspense all the way up until “who did it.”  

Paste it inside on the left of the booklet. A graphic organizer or checklist of things for students to include is helpful!

a.  Description of the main character and setting at the beginning of the summary.

b.  Detailed information about the problem/mystery.

c.  Plot is clear, evident, and easy to understand.

d.  Good sentence structure and paragraph format.

e.  Details have words that create a picture in the reader’s mind

3.  Then write the ending and 2 other possible endings.  

Paste it inside on the right of the booklet. **Make sure to tell your students to mix up the endings ! This will help when students present the mysteries to the class. They want to be able to stump their classmates and have them guess one of their own endings, NOT the real one!

4.  Do a self-rating.  

This can be the same as the checklist or a rubric so students make sure they included everything.

5.  Present to the class and see how many people you can stump! 

Whoever stumps the most, gets a prize! My students love it and I hope yours will too!

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Engage Students In Learning With A Mystery Bag!

It is so important to engage our students in learning! Our classrooms shouldn’t be a place where students just sit and get information. Our students should be actively involved in the learning process! While there are many engagement strategies and tools that we use as teachers, one of my favorite ways to engage students in learning is with a mystery bag!

A mystery bag is one of those super easy, low prep strategies that has high impact when it comes to student engagement!

It’s really simple: you just need a bag and something to put inside the bag that is related to your lesson that students pull out. It may not sound magical, but trust me it is! Our primary aged kiddos, especially, love a good mystery and if you deliver it with excitement your students will eat it up! I’ve also used this strategy in fifth grade though and it worked great for that age too!

I usually like to use the mystery bag at the beginning of a lesson. It works really well as a hook or anticipatory set (my college professors would be so proud that I pulled out that verbiage and still remembered the fancy terminology!) Basically, it’s a way to get students to focus and be ready to learn!

There are lots of reasons why I love using a mystery bag:

• It’s low prep and so easy to do!
• The kids LOVE it!!
• It can take even the most boring lesson and make it more interesting!
• It gets student’s attention right at the start of the lesson! And engaged students are much more successful than passive learners.
• It’s not a once and done strategy! You can use it over and over again in any subject or lesson.
• It can be used in SO many ways!

Here are just a few ways that you can use a mystery bag to engage students in learning:

1. get to know you bag at the beginning of the year.

Put several items in the bag that will help students get to know you. Each time a student pulls out an item explain why you put it in the bag. I would put a picture of me and Mr. Foxwell, an Elephant and Piggie book (which we of course had to read!), and a mixing bowl (because I love to bake) into the bag. You can then even have students make their own get to know you bags too. It’s a great way to get to know each other!

2. For a sorting activity!

Put multiple items in the bag and work together as a class to sort them into categories. Have one student at a time come up and pull an item out. This is great for content lessons. In the past I’ve done this to sort items for a needs/wants lesson (I always love doing this lesson around Christmas time!), to sort recycle/trash items for earth day, and sort items that represent different states of matter.

3. Put in a stuffed animal friend or puppet that will help with the lesson!

Primary students eat this one up! Make the animal talk and you’ll have your kids on the edge of their seats. Who do you think kids would rather learn from? Me or Piggie?

4. Put items in the bag that are related to the lesson!

You can put in an item or multiple items for students to pull out. They love doing this! If you are putting multiple items in the bag you can have the students try to figure out what they have in common! For example, if you’re doing a writing lesson on using sequential words in writing you could put a toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss into the bag. Then, you can talk about how there is an order, or sequence, to brushing our teeth.

5. Put a book in the bag!

Books, by themselves, are a great hook or anticipatory set for the beginning of a lesson! So, by putting a book in the mystery bag that you’ll be reading you’ve just supercharged your engagement! I love too that there’s a book for everything ! 

6. Put an activity in the mystery bag!

I like doing this for our writing crafts . I put the example of the craft and supplies in a bag for students to pull out to see what fun activity we’ll be doing that day! 

7. For letter review!

You can put an object or even multiple items in the bag that begin with a letter. I love doing this for digraphs! We had digraph friends that students would pull out each time we learned a new digraph. It’s so much fun!

8. Put a case note in the bag to kickstart the lesson!

Students love solving cases. Turn a boring math warm up into a mission that students need to solve and you’ll have instant engagement!

9. Put clues in the bag to lead up to a special learning experience!

For example, have students pull out these Virtual Field Trip clues to discover that you’ll be going to the Coral Reef!

10. Introduce students to a new concept!

I loved doing this with when we learn about Frozen E , except I use a box for that. Mystery boxes work too! Bags are not more magical, they are just easier to store!

See, the possibilities are truly endless! You can use a mystery bag in SO many ways!

Get Your Mystery Bag FREEBIE!!

I’m so excited for you to try using the mystery bag with your students! Be sure to grab this free mystery bag tag and attach it to any bag:

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Teachers are Terrific

Book in a Bag Project Book Report Alternative

April 7, 2024 by Carol Davis

Are you looking for an engaging alternative to a book report? This idea is perfect! I call it The Book in a Bag Project!

This little project was invented to have students share a book with their classmates in an interesting and personal way. If you have ever listened to students reading their ‘book report’ aloud then you know exactly what I am talking about!

“ In this post, for your convenience, you may find Amazon Affiliate links to resources. This means that Amazon will pass on small percentages to me with your purchase of items. This will not create extra costs for you at all! It will help me keep this blog running! “

So, how does the Book in a Bag Project work?

Here’s the  gist  of the project.

• Read a book.
• Write a summary.
• Decorate a bag with a scene from the book.
• Place five items in the bag that represent something from the book.
• Bring it to school.
• Present it to the class!

The bag can be any size. A brown grocery bag is perfect and gift bags are also good choices.

What are the Guidelines of the Book in a Bag Project?

The guidelines for the project are simple.

The front of the bag should show an original student-made scene from the book. This can be hand drawn and colored with markers or crayons, or have cut-outs or other embellishments to decorate the front. It cannot be images that are printed from a computer!

The drawing can have embellishments added- like cloth or small plastic toys. But those are decorative- not the main scene.

On the back of the bag is a one-page summary of the book. We worked on how to write this in class and then students wrote their own. The lessons I taught about this included samples from books I had read.

I just wanted the students to know that a summary does NOT tell every little tiny event, but also covers the entire book! Hint, hint, you should not read a 400-page book. That’s hard to summarize on one piece of paper!

What’s Inside the Bag?

Now, here’s where it gets really fun. Inside the bag students should have five items that show something from the book.

The student could have included a plastic lizard in the book about the iguana. Or with Crash, students could bring a football or helmet.

Finally, each item should have an explanation card that tells why the item represents something from the book. The presentations are so fun! Each student shares the bag and a little of the summary, but the most fun is sharing the five items in the bag.

Now, you cannot do all these presentations in one day! It just takes too long. We spread these out over a full week!

It’s an easy idea and a wonderful way to share books. It beats a regular written book report, hands down! Try it!  

Now, here is your surprise! I created an assignment sheet for this project many years ago and I am sharing it with you. Print it out and use this fun activity with your students! (It is not an editable document.)

Our Favorite STEM Books

February 7, 2013 at 1:07 am

What a fantastic idea, the projects look great! Your kids must have loved doing this. Leslie

February 23, 2019 at 8:51 pm

Cute projects

March 8, 2019 at 2:40 pm

We had a great time sharing our projects! Thank you!

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75 books we’re most excited to read this summer

W hether you love fiction, nonfiction, mystery, or romance, we’ve got you covered! The Globe’s annual summer reading preview features 75 books coming out this summer that we think you’ll want to slip into that beach bag, backpack, or picnic basket.

Carole V. Bell is a Jamaican-born critic and communication researcher exploring media, culture, and politics.

Leland Cheuk is the author of three books, most recently “No Good Very Bad Asian.”

Lauren LeBlanc is a board member of the National Book Critics Circle.

Daneet Steffens is a book critic and journalist.

Kate Tuttle edits the Globe’s books section.

Chris Vognar , a freelance writer, was the 2009 Nieman Arts and Culture Fellow at Harvard University.

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