Do you use Goodreads? It's a social network for readers. I started using it to get good recommendations from friends about books.It enables me to make a list of books I want to read, and to rate and recommend the books I have read for others.
In the past three years, I have found other uses for this versatile site. It has become a very useful homeschool tool!
On the Goodreads site, you can list a book as "want to read", "currently reading", or "read." You can also create your own shelves. I started writing reviews for kids' books under the shelf name "books-for-boys". I asked my sons to rate books we read, and if they had comments, I would type them in as a "book report." As my son got older, he could type in his own ratings and book reports. These reports are printable so you can include them in a portfolio. I set up other shelves like "read aloud" and "audio" to indicate how we used the book in our homeschool.
I try to enter books into my Goodreads list once a week or so. Right before we make a library trip is a good time to do it.
One day, I had an epiphany when a reviewer asked me for a list of books my son had read that year. Goodreads allows you to sort by shelf (or multiple shelves) or you can sort by date. I set up a shelf for my son called "E third grade" and one called "H first grade". As we read a book, I enter it and add it to this "shelf". You can add one book to multiple shelves, for instance I can enter a book as "books for boys, audio, E third grade" at one time. I can print a page at the end of each school year listing all books my son has read, with the date and type of book (audio, read aloud, or independent) listed, and stick it straight in the portfolio.
