STARTING A KIDS BOOK CLUB
So you’re forming a book club for your kids? Or are you an aspiring children’s book author who is gather yer best author buds to read some book club source material. Either way, we have some of the best kids book club names for you. Here you’ll find everything you need to start that kids book club today from kids book club names, to snacks, to interesting kids book club questions to start the conversation!
Ideas For Starting A Kids Book Club
THIS POST INCLUDES EVERYTHING ABOUT STARTING A CHILDREN’S BOOK CLUB:
KIDS BOOK CLUB HISTORY
WHY READ TO YOUR KIDS IN GROUPS
TIPS ON STARTING A KIDS BOOK CLUB
KIDS BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS
KIDS SNACK TO SERVE DURING BOOK CLUB
BOOK CLUB NAMES
KIDS BOOK CLUB HISTORY
Though today many kids are in book clubs, the history of book clubs is actually tied to women’s rights! Thats right, women of the 1800’s were excluded from intellectual gatherings and not even allowed into colleges or universities. So what was a book hungry lady to do?
Well in the 1800’s women would meet in the back of bookshops or by candlelight in their living rooms and found book reading groups, known today as the “book club”. One of the first recorded women’s book clubs was the Woman’s Reading Club of Mattoon. Founded in Illinois, the WRCM met with a goal of expanding horizons and discuss new ideas. To this day they are still going strong and are the longest running book club in the USA.
Its very likely that kids would tag along to these early book clubs and even though there wasn’t enough children’s books at the time to warrant kids having their own book club, they would soak up the ideas and hunger for books.
It was only in the 20th century that big business came into the book club arena. With increased printing it became obvious that there was money in books. Harry Scherman, a businessman, created Book of The Month Club in 1926 and would send books straight to peoples homes as a subscription. Oh, the days of Amazon’s unlimited kindle reading weren’t too far behind.
WHY READ WITH YOUR KID IN GROUPS
If you are reading this then you think reading is amazing, but not everyone is on the same page! Sadly 27% of adults in the US havent read a book in the last year! Reading books together can be a great way to influence your kids to read more and get excited by books.
I remember in kindergarten my niece didn’t have the 10 sight words necessary to graduate into first grade. She was super bright but just wasn’t interested in readying. So my sister spent a weekend and taught her the 10 sight works she needed to graduate. Then on the first day of first grade, my neice saw that the other little girls were reading for pleasure! Thats when the competitive juices in her started flowing and she became the avid reader she is today. SOCIAL READING MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE FOR CHILDREN!!!
Its also super important to get your kids reading early. The developing brain triples in the first year alone and is virtually fully formed by the time a child enters kindergarten. Eliot, L. (1999).
Ultimate Children’s Book Club Discussion Ideas.
KIDS BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS
Do you ever ask your kid if they liked a book and all you get is a “yep” or “nah”. Children can be unresponsive at best, so its good to get them some leading questions. I love asking kids questions about books that require more than a “yes” or “no” answer. The trick here is to get creative and ask kids some wacky questions in their book club to get their creative juices flowing. Here are some of the best children’s book club discussion ideas:
Which character in your book would you like to meet in real life?
What would you ask them?
If this book was a cool movie, what would be your favorite part?
If you gave this book a different title, what could it be?
What would you ask the author if you could call them on the phone?
Does this book have a moral? What lesson did you learn?
What have you read that is similar to this book?
What scene do you remember best.
Tips for starting a kids book club.
TIPS FOR STARTING A KIDS BOOK CLUB
Before you begin your book club you have to think about how many kids are going to be in it. Are you going for 3 kids or 6? How many do you want to include and how many can you manage at one time. I recommend starting with not more than 6, you can always get more later!
Then choose a location for your kids book club. Will it be at a parents house or at the local library? Perhaps your local house of worship would like to host a book club. Also think about how often will you meet. Will your kids book club meet once every two weeks or once a month?
Ask other parents to help and volunteer. Organizing a book club can be a lot of work. Have other parents help and give them tasks like: leading circle time, bring a snack, host at your house.
ICEBREAKERS:
Just like circle time in school. Start your kids book club with some simple icebreakers. Saying your name. Have you read anything lately. Maybe make up a silly “group” name.
RATING TIME!
After your group of kids has finished reading, ask them to rate the book on a scale of 1-5. You can keep track of the different kids books you’ve read and how they are rated! Download our free rating sheet below!
PICK A THEME
Choose a theme to guide the readers. Do the kids love pirates? Do they love a particular author? Try Mo Willems or Dr. Seuss.
GROUND RULES FOR A GOOD KIDS BOOK CLUB
No Interrupting
Calm Bodies
Raise your hand if you have a question.
No interrupting
Be respectful
There are no wrong answers
Everyone gets a chance to talk
SNACKS FOR CHILDREN’S BOOK CLUBS
Reading is great exercise for your kids mind and after a brutal workout they should get a snack! here are some good “dry” snacks for kids that are pretty easy for your book club snack time!
Dried Fruit
Crackers (ritz)
Fruit Leather
Carrot Sticks
Apple Slices
And
Parmesan Ranch Snack Mix!!! RECIPE: Combine one packet dry ranch dip seasoning mix, a spoon full of grated Parmesan in a bowl with popcorn, pretzels, nuts and any other dry kid friendly snack.
KIDS BOOK CLUB NAME IDEAS
Where The Wild Books Are Book Club
Book Web Book Club
The Very Bookish Caterpillar
The Garden Of Books
Adventures In Bookland Book Club
Bridge To Fantasy Book Club
The Book Wizards
On The Same Page
Read It and Weep
No Whining Allowed
The Book Kids
The Bad News Books
The Story Quarry
The Story Kids
The Liter-Kids
Born To Read Book Blub
Chicka Chicka Book Club
Give A Kid A Book Club
Fantastic Books and Where to Find Them
You’re A Reader, Booky
Horton Hears A Book Club
Goodnight Book Club
Don’t Let This Book Club Drive The Bus
The Very Hungry Book Club
The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Book Club
Where the Book Club Ends
Book Club Book Club, What Do You Read
The Tall Tale
One Book Two Book Red Book Blue Book
Phew! That’s a lot of ideas for starting your kids book club. From funny kids book club names, to book club ground rules, to healthy snacks. Hopefully that will help get you started! Do you have any other ideas we might have missed? Please leave a comment below!
