Morning Book Club with Students

I was looking for a way to connect with more of students and to continue to grow my students love of reading. I decided to try a morning book club, and it was the best idea ever! I was hoping I would have at least 5-10 students and over 20 showed up the first time! It has continued to grow.

This has easily become my favorite day of the week. Students and I look forward to it all week.

I'm sharing the steps I took to get my book club up and running in case you're interested in starting one too!

1. Introduce the idea-

I started with a poll (using menitmeter) to see if students were even introduced. I didn't share a lot of information at first, I used this poll as a way to get them interested and want to know more.

2. Pump up the idea-

After the poll, I talked up book club and how awesome it was going to be. :) I shared that we would meet before school, discuss the book, play some games, and just have a bunch of fun together!

3. Pick a book-

I wanted our first book to be a short read, so we could get through it fairly quickly. I didn't want book club with one book to drag on forever. I chose a book that was available on Scholastic. That way parents would be able to easily purchase the book for a reasonable price. Also, think about a book that would be appealing to most of your students.

3. Share information with parents-

I sent an introduction letter and permission slip to parents both with a physical copy and emailed them a copy. I also shared about our upcoming Book Club via my weekly video newsletter. I wanted to make sure I got the information out via many channels.  Click here to view my letter and make a copy if you want to tweak it.

4. Buy books-

I ordered the books on Scholastic for the students that placed that way. I also let students know they could check the book out at the library or buy on Amazon. If money was an issue, I worked with students to help them get the book.

5. Student Bookmarks and dates-

I created bookmarks for each student that was going to be in Book Club. The bookmark included our meeting dates and chapters to read for each meeting.

Click here to grab a copy to edit:

6. Email parents-

Then, I emailed just the parents with students in Book Club sharing the dates and times for our meetings.

7. Meet UP-

Finally, we met for our first meeting. We circled up and discussed the book. I went way BETTER than I could have imagined. Students were so engaged with the book and each other. I was so proud of their questions, discussion, and engagement. We ended each meeting with a game, usually Kahoot!

8. CELEBRATE-

After our first book club, the students asked if we could celebrate. Parents contributed, and we were able to have the best time. We even created a life motto, like one we learned from the book!

We are ready for book #2!! 

Let me know if you have any questions. 

Book Clubs in the Classroom

As an adult I love being apart of a book club. I love reading a variety of books and having someone to share my thoughts with. More than that I love the excuse of meeting up with friends drinking coffee! That same excitement comes to my classroom when students are broken up into Book Clubs. 

I love Book Clubs in the classroom and believe they are very beneficial for students for 3 main reasons:

1. RESPONSIBILITY and ACCOUNTABILITY: Students must meet and plan with their group to know when they are going to meet and must have read the book and/or chapter(s) ahead of time. They must use their time wisely and be prepared for meeting with their group.

2. SOCIALIZATION: Book clubs allow students the chance to TALK. They get to learn how to share their thoughts, go deeper about a topic, and have meaningful conversation about books. I love the different thoughts and viewpoints each student brings to the group. 

3.  LOVE of reading: Book clubs build EXCITEMENT, and I always feel students leave book clubs loving to read even more. They often go find more books by the same author or topic. It also encourages students to read a variety of books. 

Here are a few resources I like to use with my groups to help keep them focused and push them to tracking character development. 

1. CHARACTER NOTEBOOK: Each student gets a copy and fills in as they read independently and is then able to share ideas with the group. Click the photo to make a copy for your students.

2. QUESTIONS to guide their conversations if they get stuck and ways to add on to each other's thinking. Click the photo to make a copy for yourself.

3. COLLABORATIVE tracking templates: I give each group a tracking sheet in Google Docs to track their thinking from each meeting. They can collaboratively work on the document, and I can easily check in on each group each day and leave them comments back. Click the photos to make a copy of the following docs. 

This one focuses on chapter summaries, Signposts from Kylene Beers, and group reflections. 

This one focuses on key vocabulary, characters, ideas from the books. The goal is for students to find one for each letter and explain the importance of the word to the book. Students love filling this one out!

I hope these resources help you get started with your fiction book clubs! If you have any questions on getting started or implementing book clubs please leave a comment or email me at kyndra.hartzler@cfisd.net

Happy Reading!