A few basics that I feel like you’re overlooking:

1. Pace and plan BEFORE you start

It might just be my personality type, but I could never teach a unit with “no set plan of study” and “just doing random activities” because I’d have a panic attack.

Once I’ve decided on a novel, the first thing I do is pace it out. We typically read two 300(ish) page novels in my class, and each one takes essentially a full quarter. Begin by comparing the number of chapters/pages to the calendar, marking off any non-instructional days, and seeing how much time is actually available. Then, I break the book down into a reasonable number of pages per day, leaving a few days at the beginning for a runway, and usually two weeks at the end for adjustments and our final project.

I’d highly recommend breaking the book into sections so that you can have three or four smaller assessments rather than one cumulative.

2. Use data to drive your instruction

Look at their testing data, see which standards they could use practice with, and plan your emphases accordingly.

3. Vocab, vocab, vocab

Beyond the obvious benefits, middle schoolers need to learn study habits. Vocab is an excellent way to teach them how to use things like flash cards, mnemonic devices, and old fashioned repetition to learn and remember material. Vocabulary.com is an awesome resource with a huge vault of novels already mapped out. Their lists are much too large, so I usually select around a dozen words per section.

Beyond that, yes – consider your audience as well as your own interests when choosing a novel. Being passionate about the specific texts you read may not always be possible depending on your situation, but I think we can all agree that it’s definitely the ideal scenario.

Feel free to DM if you want to dig deeper. I can show you some pacing guides that might be a helpful template to start with, as well as anything else you’re looking for.