Setting Up a Children’s Book Club? Here’s How to Get Started
Reading time can be boring for some kids, especially if they have to do it all alone. But, when they have to read a story with their buddies, it easily becomes an exciting moment for them. They couldn’t help but be interested as well about the book as they hear their friends also rave about it. This is when setting up a children’s book club becomes beneficial. Add in the fact that joining a book club not only encourages your child to be a book lover.
He or she will also grow to be a person who constantly craves knowledge, which will help him become more successful in life. But, how do you set it up? The following tips will help you get started.
Create a Group
Encourage your child to invite other friends aside from his reading buddies to join the group. The people behind Literati suggests that children should be grouped according to their age. But, if this cannot be done, they can also be grouped according to their abilities or interests, depending on what’s deemed most appropriate. Aim for at least a group of 8 or ten children. Don’t make the group too large or there will be chaos and everyone may not be given the chance to participate. Also, do not make it too small or there won’t be enough to keep the discussion interesting.
Establish House Rules
After creating the group, house rules should be established. For example, children are not allowed to make fun of someone else’s opinion. Respect must be present at all times. Everybody should be obliged to observe cleanliness before, during and after the reading sessions. If an issue among kids arises, the organizer, along with the parents must talk properly about it and address the issue right away. These house rules should be observed at all times and everybody should memorize these by heart. The importance of respecting these house rules must not be taken for granted because it will help keep the club achieve the goals of setting it up in the first place.
Choose Someone to Act as an Organizer
This child, with the help of his or her parents, will be the one in charge of keeping the schedules, sending out reminders and initiating the planning of activities. The organizer will also be the one who is always available as much as possible to answer queries from other members of the club. The organizer should also have an assistant and other co-officers who will help him when an activity is about to take place. Make sure there will be a proper delegation of tasks among children. The roles and tasks given must be according to their age and abilities. Of course, there should always be direct supervision from parents.
Agree on a Meeting Schedule
Everyone should agree on a schedule when to meet. Children may decide to meet on a monthly or bi-weekly schedule. In addition to their regular meetings, they should also schedule a big event that will be held every summer, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween or whenever there’s an occasion where everybody can attend. These activities will greatly help the group develop stronger bonds between each other. These meeting schedules should always be coupled with interesting activities in addition to reading time such as a tea party, a gardening session, or a baking activity where everyone is encouraged to participate with the help of their parents.
Choose a Place Where Everybody can Gather Together Comfortably
The place where kids gather to read a book may change from time to time. It could be in a member’s house, yard, coffee shop, bookstore or a library. Just make sure that everybody is comfortable in a chosen venue. It also needs to be accessible by everyone. Keep in mind that for younger members of the club, chances are their parents will also be accompanying them all throughout the activity. So, the place has to be big enough to accommodate everyone. The chosen organizers must prepare the place days prior to the event. So, if they need to book the place ahead of time, they should do so. An ocular inspection should also be done to ensure the place is right, comfortable and conducive to learning, not just for fun.
The beauty and benefits of setting up a children’s book club go transcends through time. The club can grow along with your child. Besides, the knowledge they gained from reading one book after another is something that money couldn’t recompense. Make your children’s life more interesting than they are now by letting them join a book club.
