How to Write a Reader Response

This article was co-authored by Diane Stubbs. Diane Stubbs is a Secondary English Teacher with over 22 years of experience teaching all high school grade levels and AP courses. She specializes in secondary education, classroom management, and educational technology. Diane earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Delaware and a Master of Education from Wesley College.

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A reader response assignment asks you to explain and defend your personal reaction to an assigned text. Reader response papers can be difficult because they force you, the reader, to take responsibility for giving meaning to the text. Often these assignments feel open-ended and vague, but don't worry, a good reader response paper will follow a standard essay format that you can easily master. This guide will walk you through the creation of a well-crafted reader response paper that's sure to wow your instructor and earn you an awesome grade.

1. Introduce the name and author of the text.
2. Explain what the text is about.
3. Write about what you thought of the text, and why.
4. Answer any guided reading questions you're assigned.
5. Give examples to support your thoughts.
6. Conclude with a summary of your thoughts.

Writing the Reader Response

Write the introduction. Make sure that the introduction clearly specifies the name of both the text and the author. It should also include some description of the text, and what it's about. The Introduction should end with your thesis statement or argument.

• It is often helpful to use the first body paragraph to include more information about the text, the plotline, major themes, etc., and then use the rest of the paragraphs to provide an analysis of how you felt about the text.

• Remember that a reader response is meant to be personal, so it's OK to incorporate personal anecdotes and opinions into your analysis.
• Example: "Forcing Hester Prynne to wear the scarlet "A" reminded me of a time when I was cyber-bullied in eighth grade, and my "friends" spread rumors about me online where the whole school could see."

• Example: "At the end of The Old Man and the Sea, Manolin promises to once again fish with Santiago, so the old man no longer has to be alone. This was Santiago's greatest wish, but it was a different kind of success than he initially set out to achieve."

• Example: "'My big fish must be somewhere,' said Santiago. This is exactly how I felt after I received my third rejection letter, but like Santiago, I kept trying, and eventually I was accepted."
• Make sure and cite your examples per class directions. You will usually be required to note the page numbers of any quotations or specific examples in parentheses at the end of the sentence.

• A great way to think of your conclusion is that it's one last chance to explain to your reader how you see all of your points fitting together.

• Sometimes it's hard to see our own mistakes, so it can really help to exchange papers with a friend, and proofread each other's work.

Drafting the Reader Response

• "Even though I found The Scarlett Letter hard to follow at times, Hester Prynne's story is still relatable, and made me think a lot about the effects of publicly shaming people online."
• "Some people believe the Old Man and the Sea is a book about failure, but it is really a story of perseverance that teaches us that success may not always come in the form we expect, and even disasters can lead to positive outcomes."

• Introduction: 1 paragraph.
• Analysis/Body Paragraphs: 3-4 paragraphs. How you organize these paragraphs will depend on the parameters of the assignment.
• Conclusion: 1 paragraph.

Choose example passages to use in your analysis. These should support your thesis statement, and provide clear examples of the kinds of things you want to talk about in your analysis. Is there a key bit of dialogue that really captures the protagonist's personality? Is there a scene that reminded you of something from your personal life, or taught you how you might handle a specific situation?

Reading the Text

• Do you like or dislike the text?
• Can you identify the author's purpose?
• Do you agree or disagree with the author?
• Does the text relate to you and your life? If so, how? If not, why not?
• Does the text agree with, or go against your personal world view?
• What, if anything, did you learn from the text?

• Taking a bit of extra time during this phase will save you a lot of time in the writing process. [9] X Research source

• I think that.
• I feel that.
• I see that.
• I have learned that.

Sample Reader Response

Community Q&A

Yes. A reading response provides a thesis statement of opinion that can be backed up with evidence from the work it reviews. It includes personal reflections that elaborate your connection to the written or artistic work (any type of media can be the subject of a response essay). By contrast, a book report simply summarizes the setting, characters, and/or the sequence of events in a book, and it could be of any genre. There is no thesis statement unless the instructor requires one that relates to the main subject, and it usually does not include personal stories as the response essay does in a reflective way.

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Rather than a summary, give more of an analysis - not what happened but WHY the author made it happen that way, and yes, feel free to include the emotions you felt.

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A reader's response can be a short essay, graphic organizer or paragraph; it's a summary along with your reaction. A literary analysis essay is a structured five-paragraph work. Your introduction paragraph will include the hook, background information and your thesis statement. Your body paragraphs will include your topic sentence, introducing a sentence, a quote, your analysis and a concluding sentence. Your conclusion paragraph will include a final thought. You should also restate your thesis. Avoid using personal pronouns, contractions and abbreviations.

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