Goodreads – Book Recommendations and Reviews for great Books and eBooks

[asa_item id="355833469"] Goodreads is a searchable index of books and book recommendations. After registering with the app, Goodreads asks users to select genres that interest them and then rate 20 books using a 5-star scale. Goodreads tracks this information to personalize the reading experience for users. Next, Goodreads takes users to its home screen, which classifies books by genre. Here, users can see which books are trending and are most popular for the week. Additional options are available on the bottom of the screen. The “My Books” option allows users to keep track of books they read and want to…

Review Overview

A. Instruction - 5.4
B. Design - 7.7
C. Engagement - 7.3

6.8

Goodreads: An App for Reading

Summary : A Nifty Way to Find Books of Interest

[asa_item id=”355833469″]

Goodreads is a searchable index of books and book recommendations. After registering with the app, Goodreads asks users to select genres that interest them and then rate 20 books using a 5-star scale. Goodreads tracks this information to personalize the reading experience for users. Next, Goodreads takes users to its home screen, which classifies books by genre. Here, users can see which books are trending and are most popular for the week. Additional options are available on the bottom of the screen. The “My Books” option allows users to keep track of books they read and want to read. The “Explore” option lets users view books by genre, popularity, and category. The “Search” option allows users to find books and authors by entering keywords. The “Scan” option lets users scan a book’s barcode. Once scanned, Goodreads presents information about that book to users. The “Recommendations” option lets users rate additional books. There is a “More” option also available in this app. With it, users can connect with social media friends, see which literary events are occurring near them, view top books of the year, and more.

Instructional Ideas

  1. In preparation for silent sustained reading, teachers can allow students to research a book they wish to read using this app. Next, students can write a brief explanation for why they are interested in reading the book and submit that explanation to their school librarian. The librarian, in turn, can pull the book for the student or borrow it from another library on the student’s behalf.
  2. As students read books throughout the school year, teachers can have students keep track of them using the “My Books” option in this app.
  3. Teachers can have students view the “Best Books of the Year” list located under the “More” option. Students can then read one of the books on the list and compose a brief explanation that justifies why or why not the book should be included on that list.
  4. Under the “Explore” option, students can view the “Listopia” entries. Once they are familiar with them, students can create their own listopia for a topic and include books they have read as part of it. Finally, students can post the name of their listopia, an explanation of the topics covered by their listopia, and five or more books they would include with it. Students can then post that information to a class website. This way, the listopias can be shared, which may spark other students to read books that they would not normally choose.
A1. Rigor
A2. 21st Century Skills
A3. Conn. to Future Learning
A4. Value of Errors
A5. Feedback to Teacher
A6. Level of Material
A7. Cooperative Learning
A8. Accom. of Individual Diff.
B1. Ability to Save Progress
B2. Platform Integration
B3. Screen Design
B4. Ease of Use
B5. Navigation
B6. Goal Orientation
B7. Information Presentation
B8. Media Integration
B9. Cultural Sensitivity
C1. Learner Control
C2. Interactivity
C3. Pace
C4. Flexibility
C5. Interest
C6. Aesthetics
C7. Utility

Screenshots

  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot
  • ‎Goodreads: Book Reviews Screenshot