***GUEST SERIES BY SIXTH-GRADE DARLA***
I have always loved reading and have collected shelves-full of books over the past several years. When I moved to a new neighborhood full of kids two years ago, I saw it as an opportunity to start a neighborhood book club. I alphabetized all my books and handed out fliers. I though this would be fun, and could encourage kids to discover great stories, while participating in a weekly “club” of sorts. Now it is a booming weekly neighborhood book club and is helping to fulfill my dream of being a teacher when I grow up.
Almost every Wednesday during the school year, from 4:00-4:30 a group of often 10 or more kids comes over to my house and checks out books. They eat a snack while my friends and I read them story, then they do a craft that’s based on the book. Like, when the book was about leprechauns we made Fruit Loop rainbows. I have led this project from the beginning, but I’ve recruited friends to help share the work.
During the next two months, I’ll share with you what’s worked for me and my BookWorm Wednesday teammates, as we round out year two of this neighborhood project. It takes a lot more than just a love of books!
Wouldn’t you like to host your own book club? I’ll address the following topics in the coming weeks. Continue reading to learn how!
How to Start a Kid’s Book Club series:
Read Across America – Youth Leader for Literacy Project
How to Start Your Own BookWorm Wednesday
Adult Mentor
Book Selection
Activities
Safety
Marketing
Management
Teamwork
Money
Previous BookWorm Wednesday posts:
A Teacher in the Making
A BookWorm Wednesday Halloween
BookWorm Wednesday Potion Recipe
Buy with Amazon and Donate to BookWorm Wednesday
BookWorm Wednesday Gets Some Press
Thank you for spreading the word about Darla’s literacy project:
The Book Chook — Daring to be Different with Literacy
Pratham Books – Literacy Project Started by a 10-Year-Old
This series of articles is a part of Read Across America, sponsored by NEA and Youth Service America. Darla — named one of the 2009 Youth Leaders for Literacy — is sponsoring this campaign to help other youth start book clubs in their neighborhoods. Please come back next week for the continuation of this series, which will end the last week in April, in conjunction with Global Youth Service Day.
For more great ideas, please visit We are THAT Family.
Tags: book club, BookWorm Wednesday
Like this post? Subscribe to Pass The Torch
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
7:21 am
[...] How to Start a Kid’s Book Club series: How to Start Your Own BookWorm Wednesday [...]
9:10 am
Hellow “favorite granddaughter”, I have a suggestion for you if you find another bookworm who wants to start a book club too. How about donating some of your books that all of your neighborhood members have already read to someone hoping to START a club? Maybe they’d even have some new-to-you books to trade with you.
Let me know what types of books you need the most – - it’s almost Thrift Sale season!
I.L.Y.,
G.M.J.
9:12 am
P.S. I really CAN spell h-e-l-l-o …. blame it on Arthur Itis……. lol
4:54 pm
This is fantastic! You might also check with teachers who clean out their shelves at the end of the school year for a few books to get a club rolling.
11:34 am
I’m so proud of you D! Keep up the GREAT work.
Hugs,
Holly
9:21 pm
Once a month a local thrift store has a $.25 basement sale on All the kids books. I wonder if there are any stores around where you live that do the same thing.
6:11 am
[...] Begin the “Start a Kids’ Book Club” series here. [...]
6:49 am
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
11:52 pm
Ohh I will be checking back here for sure! I facilitate a bookclub at my kids elementary school (for 5th graders only) I am always looking for ideas to spice it up. Thanks!
6:33 am
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
12:13 pm
What a great idea! I taught elementary school for a few years before becoming a SAHM and I have a whole library going to waste. We are moving into a new neighborhood in the fall and this might be just the thing to help my kids get to know others in the neighborhood.
7:47 am
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
6:44 am
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
3:46 pm
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
4:18 am
[...] cleaning up the county park, serving meals at the homeless shelter, or sharing ways to start a neighborhood book club, there are endless ways to help your kids find their own talents and use them to help [...]
3:47 pm
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
6:48 am
[...] Begin the “Start a Book Club” series here. [...]
11:46 am
[...] How to Start Your Own Kids’ Book Club – the series my sixth-grade daughter has been writing for the past two months, as a Youth Leader [...]
8:10 am
[...] by young people throughout the world for Global Youth Service Day. My daughter posted her literacy project on a map at the Global Youth Service Day website, and so can [...]
10:00 am
[...] to Start a Kid’s Book Club series: Read Across America – Youth Leader for Literacy Project How to Start Your Own BookWorm Wednesday Adult Mentor Book Selection Activities Safety Marketing Management Teamwork Money OTHER BOOKWORM [...]