So, You Want to Start Your Own Book Club...

The Bookworm Buddies got together and discussed some ideas to get your own book club started.  Here are some suggestions on how to start.

Selecting a Group:

- The group should be small enough so getting people together is not impossible, yet big enough so that there can be a lively discussion.  The Bookworm Buddies thought 5-6 kids was ideal.
- The group should be people you want to spend time with and people you will be comfortable around.
- People who like to read
- People who like to read more than one type of genre
- The group does not need to be good friends.  Just people who would like to get together and discuss what they are reading.
- People who want to participate in a club and share their thoughts and feelings.
- Commitment to the book club and to reading.

Finding Good Books to Read:

- Research on Amazon or Barnes and Nobles
- Research on the internet book club websites and blogs
- Ask librarians
- Ask teachers
- Ask older kids for suggestions on good books they have read
- Look on NY Times Best Seller list

Schedule a time and place to meet

Be Organized!

- Have a calendar to schedule meetings
- Have a person to send out email reminders and confirmations
- Everyone should bring the book and journal to the meetings
- Small snacks are great during the meeting and even before starting.  Have someone be in charge of snacks.
- The next book or two should be selected before meeting so people know what is coming up and how to budget their time.

The Meetings:

- They should have a beginning, a middle and an end (and of course a snack!).
- Journals are a great way to start a meeting.  Everyone writes something about the book and takes a turn sharing what they thought, learned, shared, liked, disliked...
- Discussion questions get everyone thinking about things they might not have thought about before.  Different perspectives are also shared.
- Summing up the message in the book, feelings it may have brought out and connections people may have made.
- Discuss the next book and possibly start reading it together.

Other Things to Consider:

- Tie the book club into what is going on in school.  Biography, historical fiction, non-fiction.
- Vocabulary.  Great for discussion and playing games.  Word Search or Crossword Puzzles with new words.
- Seeing a movie about the book, visiting a place in the book or talking with an expert in an area you read about.
- Write to an author!  They really write back!
- Meet an author.  Some bookstores and libraries have author visits.  Go together as a group and ask some questions.