Need some ideas of how to engage your children in reading over the Summer months? It may be that you need to fill that awkward gap between school and camp with a productive activity. Have you ever thought about starting a book club with your children? I know it sounds crazy, but it is also a great way to learn more about your child’s interests, learning style, and comprehension skills. Here are the simple steps you can take to start a family book club in your household!
- Decide what type of book you want to read as a family!
Obviously, the adults are going to have to help in the process of finding a book that is age appropriate for all of the children in your household. Maybe family members take turns each month choosing a book to read. Is the book exploring a new topic that is unfamiliar to everyone in the family? What background knowledge do you need before beginning to read? This process is similar to what teachers go through when choosing a book for the class.
- Decide on a meeting date and time to discuss the book!
As a family decide on a time to discuss the book. Everyone has busy schedules, so possibly dinner is the most ideal time for everyone to get together. It can look different each week, but ideally you’re getting together once a week to discuss the book!
- Create a timeline to finish the book!
Since everyone in the family is probably at different reading levels, pay attention to this when planning a schedule. Are you going to read the book in chunks or all at once? If it is a chapter book, decide on how far you want everyone to read before the next book club meeting.
- Choose a new discussion leader each week!
Each week, have someone new in the family lead the discussion. They can come up with questions with help from an adult if necessary. This is an easy way to let your child use their voice and practice leadership skills. Here is a link to a list of comprehension questions that can apply to a variety of books. You can also print these out and use them each week, in case the leader needs help coming up with questions! https://www.rtsd.org/cms/lib/PA01000218/Centricity/Domain/841/Reading%20Comprehension%20Questions.pdf
We hope this guide acts an easy way to create a book club and facilitate educational conversations in your home! Maybe a book club isn’t the way to go, you can always arrange a family reading time each week, where everyone sits down and reads their book of choice. Make it light and get your children talking about what they’re reading!
Keep Smiling,
Victoria