The Battle of the Books program at Davis-Townsend elementary is very popular, so much so that the number of interested students far exceeds the available slots on the team. In order to include a greater number of enthusiastic readers, Heitman has designed an auxiliary book club that meets during lunch. 32 students were too many for a successful book club, so Heitman rallied interested staff members to divvy up the students into smaller groups. Heitman, her assistant, an EC teacher and a Title 1 reading specialist all meet with their respective groups on Wednesdays. Students attend with their dog-eared book in one hand and their lunch in the other. The small groups give students ample opportunity to dig deep into the books and engage in meaningful discussions. Heitman chose 5 titles from this year’s North Carolina Children’s Book Awards list. Each group reads and discusses the same book concurrently, and in the spring students will be able to vote for their favorite NCCBA title. Students can check out the books, but many parents opted to purchase a set for their child. The students’ energy is contagious and it doesn’t go unnoticed that the focus of the book club is on reading for the fun of it. If you are thinking about starting a book club in your school library, Heitman’s model could be easily adapted for any age group or book list.
4 Comments
Shanna Leonard
11/16/2016 08:25:46 pm
Thanks for sharing this wonderful idea Tina!!!
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Tracy Varner
11/16/2016 10:45:20 pm
I love this idea!! What a wonderful way to encourage students to love books and reading!! Thanks for sharing!
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Amy Snyder
11/17/2016 05:02:32 am
Loved your idea for getting students excited about reading and finding time in the busy day to make it work!
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Kristi Allred
11/17/2016 10:39:25 am
This is great! I love the pictures of them eating and discussing. I like how you found time during the day to incorporate this!
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